April 26, 2014

Moneta to the Max!


I have been wearing my stripy Colette Moneta non-stop since I made it, and I was looking for a quick and easy project, so I present to you…
… the Moneta maxi!
Colette Moneta maxi
Ohmygoditsperfect.
I adjusted the pattern  – I simply cut at the lengthen line, and made the skirt about 44 inches long, keeping the same angle of flare to give myself maximum swoosh – and sewed it up in less than 3 hours. And that included re-inserting the lining at the armhole once (when you pinch those seam allowances make sure you do it the right way round…).
I used a very lightweight jersey I got from Girl Charlee an age ago. When I first got it I was disappointed that it wasn’t really thick enough to make a wrap dress, but I realized that the lined bodice on the Moneta and gathered skirt pieces would be the perfect match for it. Not to mention the crazy, crazy pattern…
Colette Moneta maxi
I gave a bit of thought to the pattern placement, and decided that instead of trying to avoid putting the black diamonds on my chest, I’d use the big zig-zag as the centre of the pattern instead.
Colette Moneta maxi
Colette Moneta maxi

To be perfectly honest I only made a cursory attempt at pattern matching (this was a quick project, after all!) but it seems to have worked out alright-ish. If I ever worry about that, I try to remind myself that before I started sewing I had literally never ever noticed pattern matching before, so it’s unlikely anyone else will!

Colette Moneta maxi

I adore wearing maxis in the summer, and I can tell this is going to become a staple. I want to try making a faux-wrap bodice, and also a big scoop at the back.

Colette Moneta maxi

Have you made your Monetas yet dear readers? Are you going to maxi it up?

And don’t forget the Curvy Colette Blog Tour is still going on! Check out Sophie Lee’s fantastic Mabels at Two Random Words today, and head over to Mary at Young, Broke & Fabulous next week!

63 thoughts on “Moneta to the Max!

  1. Gail says:

    I love this one! You know how to rock a maxi, girl!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Gail! Maxis are to summer what wrap dresses are to winter chez Cashmerette!

  2. Judi C says:

    I love your print. Looks great! Sorry about the duplicate….tech issues!

  3. L says:

    Absolutely, positively beautiful!!

  4. Robin says:

    Gorgeous maxi! I was thinking about making myself a maxi today and this is a confirmation! You are rocking that black and white–so beautiful!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Robin! It was so quick and easy to make – I highly recommend hacking the Moneta

  5. Oh my gosh. Jenny, this is FABULOUS! The Moneta works so well as a maxi and you look amazing in this length. Love it.

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks MBDP! You should totally try a maxi this summer….

  6. Ellen says:

    It IS perfect!

    1. Jenny says:

      Why thank you Ellen 🙂

  7. This is just perfect! I’m telling you that you have totally made me feel like this is a pattern I should own now.

    1. Jenny says:

      Do it, Carolyn! Can’t wait to see your approach 😀

  8. Nessa says:

    Brilliant idea! This is spectacular!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Nessa! I think I’ll be making a few more before the summer is out….

  9. Brittani says:

    Wow, you look great!!So, for the sewing newb, how much more fabric do you need to make a maxi?

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Brittani! So the fabric needs depend a little on how full the skirt is, plus how tall you are. I’m 5’6″ and this is a moderately flared maxi, so I used about 3.5 or 4 yards. For a really full maxi skirt, you can need up to 5 yards. However you can play around with the gathering and how full it is if you don’t have quite enough fabric 🙂

  10. gingermakes says:

    Oh my gahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, this is fantastic!!!!! Love it!!!!!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Sonja! I’m wearing it today, though sadly inside as it’s raining 🙁

  11. Marianne says:

    Really, Jenny. You’re sewing them up faster than the rest of us can glue the pattern together. Another spectacular make!

    1. Jenny says:

      Haha Marianne, well I did get a bit of a head start on the first, but this really is a *very* quick make.

  12. prttynpnk says:

    Oh yeah! This is a great way to use that print, you look fabulous!

  13. Two for the win! Great printed fabric and great modified Moneta!

  14. Kathryn says:

    Ooh this Looks so fantastic! I love the way you’ve done the pattern placement. I do love a maxi dress for the summer!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thank you Kathryn! Maxis are the best for summer – so floaty and cool

  15. Fabulous. Just fabulous.

  16. Janet says:

    I love this. What a great make. Fabric, pattern and fit. Perfect

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Janet!

  17. Susan Fogel says:

    Don’t fall off the bench! Didn’t your mother Eve tell you not to climb on furniture?
    I love your dress, I love you in it, the belt and straw hat are just perfect. This blog tour is a great idea.

    1. Jenny says:

      Haha luckily the back of the bench is pretty high 🙂

  18. Natalie says:

    Looks gorgeous!!! And it suits you!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Natalie!

  19. tanyamaile says:

    That sure is a super summer staple, Jenny! I never thought about the Moneta in a maxi. Another stunner!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Tanya – you should totally try it! Great for really lightweight knits

  20. Super Duper Gorgeous, you and the dress.

    1. Jenny says:

      Thank you Christina 🙂

  21. I never would have thought of doing the Moneta as a maxi. What an inspired idea! I can’t wait to make my own Moneta, if I can ever make the muslin of this woven thing I am working on come out. *Beginner’s sigh!*

    1. Jenny says:

      The nice thing about knits is that you rarely have to muslin or fit, so if you get fed up with that woven perhaps you should whip up a quick Moneta!

  22. Laurwyn says:

    Really cool!
    Do you know that I never really thought about pattern matching until I watched the sewing bee? For soe reason, I now feel that it “has to” match! But to be honest, I get lazy most of the time and just let the fabric be happy-non-matchy.

    It looks really greta as a maxi dress! I am planning to make a high/low version later after the 5 pending projects I have at the moment…

    1. Jenny says:

      Hahah Laurwyn – it’s so true, I don’t know any non-sewing person who’s ever been aware of it! It’s very satisfying to do it properly though, so I do attempt sometimes

  23. poppykettle says:

    So very gorgeous and flattering on you! And such a killer print to boot. Looking great 🙂

  24. Oooooh! That’s beautiful. Nice post, thanks.

  25. Lady ID says:

    Can I have it?? LOL! It’s gorgeous – reminds me of a maxi I made a couple of weeks ago. You are totally rocking it!!!!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks! Given your Albion-making skills I reckon you could probably do a better job than I could 🙂

  26. Symon says:

    OMG what a frickin-frackin AWESOME idea!!! I ordered the pattern because I love the bodice, but I was hmming about making it cause I’m not a fan of full skirts but maxi I can do!!! Yay!! Thank you for the inspiration!! 🙂

  27. Alessa says:

    Yay, it looks great! I’ve had an aversion to maxi dresses for ages, because I always kinda feared that I look stumpy in them. But after Gillian’s Mission Maxis and your Moneta, I think I’ll have to take the plunge!

  28. rosepetal says:

    Where can I get this pattern? I love the fabric and it looks great on you!!

    1. Jenny says:

      hi! It’s the Colette Moneta pattern, with a lengthened skirt. You can buy it here: https://www.colettepatterns.com/sewing/moneta

  29. Vanessa says:

    I just love this!

  30. ginaweaver says:

    Loved your maxified version and copied you. Hopefully you hold with the proverb that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. 😉 ; Mine’s pictured at http://willyount.blogspot.com/2014/06/more-monetas.html

  31. gingerjac says:

    Oh love love love this! I SO need a new maxi dress to wear on my plane ride back to Aus next month and am Absolutely going to do this… Thanks :)))

  32. OMG! You are gorgeous! Love this print on you!

  33. I like yours better than mine…and yours is why I did a maxi. I should blog that soon. Wah.

Let me know what you think!