Suit Up for Summer Blog Tour Final Day

This is it! The last of the the Suit Up for Summer tour. It’s always bittersweet. I love what we’ve seen all week and the other bloggers on this tour have just been incredible. With each new suit I saw, I had a new favorite. It feels like an honor to be surrounded by such talent!

Today’s post will be covering two things- coordinating swimwear for the whole family and using your favorite everyday patterns for swimsuits. I love that Raspberry Creek fabrics swim line is so full of options. You’re sure to find something to suit your own personality as well as everyone around you. If you’re looking to sew coordinating sets, RCF has you covered!

Each collection has little mini collections that perfectly coordinate making it so easy to pair prints. Throw in all of the swim basic dots, stripes, and ginghams and you can have dozens of cute combinations. This is so fun when you want to do family suits but don’t want to be too matchy.

I put together some more options featuring prints from different collections and throwing in swim solids and CLUB basics too! When shopping on the website, note the colors that are listed in the title of the print. If a color is listed, it will match other prints and solids with the same color.

This year we didn’t try to be too matchy and each kid picked out prints they loved. I was thrilled when went together so well.

Of course you can always just go big and pick one print and sew for the whole crew! I think the tie dyes, the paint splatter, the orange abstract, and the earthtone palms might be my top choices if I went crazy and sewed for all of my family.

One of the questions I hear so much in my sewing groups is what rashguard pattern people use? Or what is your favorite little boy boardshort pattern? And don’t forget, what’s your favorite swim bottom? I think we naturally think that if we’re sewing a swimsuit we need a swim pattern. Guess what? You don’t!

This is particularly true when looking for a rash guard pattern. Chances are you have a good slim fit tee pattern in your stash. I like the Rowan Tee from Titchy Threads for my boys, the Camden Raglan from Hey June or Xfactor Top from Patterns for Pirates for my girls.

The Layer Me Up from Patterns for Pirates is my go-to for myself and the Xfactor is my new favorite. I’m smitten with my new Love Notions Willow Wrap top too! I’m also tempted to try the Summer Basic tank from Love Notions (this one comes with a shelf bra option!), the Hepburn from Patterns for Pirates, and the Be Trendy top from Ellie and Mac. The tricky part for women is finding the support you need but once you figure out that alteration (or if you like to wear a supportive swim top underneath) the skies the limit!

For boys swim trunks, you can use your favorite shorts pattern! The Sew A Little Seam Linden is a swim short and everyday short in one and was the a-ha moment when I figured out that I had way more options than I thought. You can take the lining/underwear piece from a trunks pattern and add it to another pattern if your son prefers them.

For women’s and girls bottoms, look to your underwear patterns! I prefer those with a little more coverage and that makes it easier to fully line them as well. The Norah’s from Petite Stitchery have me so intrigued and I’d love to sew up a pair of swim bottoms with it for this summer.

As far as swim coverups go, this is where we can really think outside the box. Cardigans, robes, dresses, skirts, flowy pants, tunics… you name it will all work when you want to get from the car to the beach in style. I sewed up the Love Notions Boyfriend Cardigan in rib knit and added a removable tie to make this easy coverup that can also be worn over jeans and a tee! I’m all about versatile pieces! The Love Notions Allegros in a lightweight or sheer fabric would make gorgeous beach pants. One more Love Notions pattern I love to throw on over my suits is the easy breezy Laundry Day Tee. When we finally hit the beach earlier this year, I couldn’t wait to wear my Vero Beach Set from Hey June. I made this one during testing and it just was born to be worn at the beach. What are your favorite things to wear over your suits? Do you have a dedicated coverup or do you throw on anything that’s clean?

Can you believe this is it? The end of another great year of the tour. Make sure you head to the RCF Instagram for an extra special giveaway today.

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