Hmong Outfit :: Hmong Leng Luang Namtha

February 3, 2022 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi Everyone! I can’t believe it’s February already. This Hmong Leng Luang Namtha outfit took years to complete. I’ve been wanting a skirt from this group for over 5 years! I started to give up on my search and asked one of my trusted overseas skirt ladies to replicate. Unfortunately, she was able to make it correctly 2 years in a row. I stumbled upon a new maker who was willing to include as many rows of applique as I wanted. Most told me that it’s too much work. I was a little disappointed to settle for replicas but that was better than nothing. While my order was shipped to me, one of my friends found a vintage skirt at a local store near here. So I ended up with 3 skirts.

Today, I’m sharing a Hmong Leng Luang Namtha outfit from northern Laos as part of my Hmong Outfit Series.

:: Hmong Leng Luang Namtha ::

This group is distinguished by their skirts with colorful rows of applique and are from the Luang Namtha and Bokeo province in Laos. The very bottom of the skirt is typically white with large triangle applique. Usually, they use orange, yellow, white, and pink thread on the cross stitch portion of their skirt.

One of the details, that I like about vintage skirts is the small square diamond applique. So soft and dainty.

Older Hmong Leng shirts actually don’t have the blue cuff on the sleeves. This shirt is relatively old as rows of applique along the lapels are faded. Like other Hmong Leng groups in Laos and Thailand, they sew their dab tsho with the applique side down. This group traditionally wears a black apron / sev but will wear an apron like their white Hmong counterparts.

They wear a simple pink sash and leg wraps. Leg wraps are not pictured because I forgot to put them on for the photoshoot. I’m actually getting better at wrapping. Sorry for the messy hair too. I meant to put my hair up in a bun for this outfit before I put on my hat, but my hair was not cooperating with me that day. I have a lot of baby hair and it was going to take too much time to slick everything down. In older pictures, you can see them wear a bun on top of their head more often than a headwrap or phuam.

:: Outfit #1 Details ::

Jacket / Tsho

Apron / Sev

Sash / Hlab

Skirt / Tiab

Outfit #2 will feature my replica skirts and outfit with reverse applique details. Often this group would wear sev plooj and decorate their jackets with embroidery or applique.

:: Phuam ::

The Hmong in this region actually wear a variety of headwraps/phuam. I featured this one because it’s more common. Pom poms are often called paj or flower in Hmong. I wonder if wildflowers were as round as pom poms.

If you remember my hat tutorial on my Instagram, I bought two hats years ago but was unsatisfied with craftmanship as everything was hot glued and had to take my hats apart and reconstruct them. It was a total waste of the pom poms because I could tell before the glue they were well made.

A small money belt is worn across the forehead and decorated with coins. I opted for silver pieces for this hat because I have multiple money belts reserved for hats with coins.

The back piece of the hat has multiple rows of pom poms as well.

:: Coin Vest Money Bag Set ::

Honestly, I don’t know the official name of this money bag set in Hmong. However, this group wears reverse applique bags on their chest and back. When I added coins, I purposely left off some coins as I was afraid that they would be too heavy.

:: Photography ::

gflower.jpg

:: Outfit #2 Details ::

Jacket / Tsho

Apron / Sev

Hat / Phuam

Money bag set / Hnab nyiaj

Sash / Hlab

Skirt / Tiab

Thank you for reading! I hope you love this outfit as much as I do. Also, think of me if you ever want to let go of a skirt like this. Next, I might feature a simple tutorial of a Hmong Thai head wrap.

***Don’t mind my long bag in the back. The straps were too long for me and I didn’t want to cut the straps. It’s supposed to sit much higher.

Hmong Outfit :: White Hmong Longlin County

January 23, 2022 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi, everyone! I can’t believe we are already approaching the end of January. This month I tried to cross stitch as much as possible to finish a matching apron but unfortunately, I’ve been reacting to nickel on the cross stitch needle. I’m allergic to nickel but I never thought to check my needles. While I wait for my gold-plated needles to be delivered, I’ve been cutting out patterns for various outfits. Usually, after I fix up a traditional outfit, if I have extra material I make a modern version or fitted version. Today, I’m sharing a White Hmong Longlin County outfit from the Yunnan Province in China as part of my Hmong Outfit Series.

:: White Hmong Longlin County ::

This outfit is quite rare and not as popular as the beaded outfits from other parts of Yunnan like Wenshan. Honestly, it took me a long time to find pieces in close to new condition. I actually had to throw away some that looked like rags and some pieces are going to my repurpose pile or given to my mom for her crafty endeavors.

This group decorates their shirts, sashes, headwraps, and aprons with qwj applique. Additionally, I’ve seen leg wraps with applique as well. Sadly, I have yet to secure my own.

I have two versions of headwrap for this outfit but I didn’t finish fixing both of them in time for the photoshoot…

:: White Skirts ::

They wear white pleated skirts. Again featuring my trusty white skirt made by Nancy’s mom. I have a lot of backups and this one actually needs to be repeated (and washed after all of my shoots).

Since it rained the day before the pond was cloudy and not as clear as it usually is. I can’t wait to go back to see cherry blossoms and wisteria.

Look at the details. Surprisingly this shirt fit me comfortably without alterations. Maybe it’s meant to be. My shirt in my post about White Hmong Guangxi was really tight in the arms so I was really limited in movement.

I had to make my sash/hlab by piecing random parts together that I had collected in case I couldn’t find an apron/sev. Luckily, I found this sev (well my wallet wasn’t lucky) and just had to add black fabric to the center so it matched my shirt.

:: Outfit Details ::

Jacket / Tsho

Apron / Sev

Sash / Hlab

Skirt / Tiab

Leg Wrap / Nrhoob

:: Photography ::

CynnThaography

Thank you for reading! If you noticed in my past couple of posts and even upcoming posts, I have a soft spot for applique. Next, I will feature my coveted Hmong Leng Luang Namtha outfit. Follow me on Instagram for sneak peeks and to see some of my current projects that I’m working on.

Hmong Outfit :: White Hmong Guangxi & Applique

December 30, 2021 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Happy Hmong New Year! Today is the first day of the Hmong New Year in Fresno. There are only 4 days this year and usually, around this time I would be going through my Hmong clothes and selecting outfits to wear. Despite having a Hmong New Year celebration in Fresno, this year I’m opting out. On the positive side, I have another outfit to share as part of my Hmong Outfit Series. This outfit is worn by White Hmong Guangxi in China.

:: White Hmong Guangxi:

This group is located in Longlin County Guangxi. The everyday outfit is plainer without applique but I was drawn to the outfits with the applique. Seems like it’s reserved or special events or a symbol of status. Even the shape of the applique is unique. Not the typical motif associated with Hmong clothing.

The sleeves and dab tsho of the jacket have applique. I’ve seen some jackets with similar applique along the lapels of the jacket as well. It took me about a year to collect all of the pieces I needed to complete this outfit.

Originally, I had a machine embroidered sev but I wasn’t content and kept looking for one with applique. I put my sash together from various leftover pieces because the sash I bought hasn’t been shipped yet.

This group usually wears a headwrap. I still need to refurbish mine as the tassels are coming apart. So one day I’ll have photos with the head wrap.

The White Hmong of Guangxi pair their jackets with a white skirt and leg wraps. I substituted a plain pair of black leg wraps with this outfit. Traditionally, this group of Hmong wear black leg wraps with some embroidery along the edge. I thought about adding ribbon on the edge of one of my many pairs of leg wraps but I couldn’t find any that I liked enough.

:: Outfit Details ::

Jacket / Tsho

Apron / Sev

Sash / Hlab

Skirt / Tiab

Leg Wrap / Nrhoob

::Photography::

CynnThaography

Thank you for reading! I have two more outfits to show from recent shoots. One is part of my Hmong Outfit Series and the other was more a modern DIY project.

Hmong Outfit :: Hmoob Ntxaug & Orange

October 7, 2021 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi again! Chilly weather is starting to hit the Bay Area and it’s finally starting to feel like fall. Last week, I shared an outfit from Wenshan County in Yunnan and could barely wait a whole week to share this outfit. Today, I’m featuring a Hmoob Ntxaug outfit as part of my Hmong Outfit Series.

:: Hmoob Ntxaug ::

Often called Flower Miao, this group is distinguished by their heavily embroidered jackets and their skirts with detailed batik designs. They refer to themselves as Hmoob Ntxaug and are located in Guangxi and Guizhou provinces in China.

The jacket has embroidery along the sleeves, shoulders, and back. Additionally, there is batik on the bottom of the front panels of the shirt. I was first drawn to this outfit due to the colors and embroidery on the jacket.

:: Batik Skirt ::

Interestingly, Hmoob Ntxaug do not add any embroidery or applique to their skirts. Similar to other Hmong groups, the skirt is made up of three parts. The waist of the skirt is completely flat, not pleated to hold the pleats of the skirt on the middle and bottom part.

Note: I had my skirt altered to be more like skirts found in Laos/Thailand and to fit be better.

The batik on this skirt is extensive and complex with multiple rows of designs. I love the sashes that pair with this type of outfit. Usually, two or more are layered on top of each other. Firstly, the black sash is worn. Cross stitch details adorn the sash and there is a connected boa of pom poms along the end. In addition, to the black sash, there is a white sash with cross-stitch. Lastly, the sev goes on top.

I substituted a plain pair of black leg wraps with this outfit. Traditionally, this group of Hmong wear black leg wraps with some embroidery along the edge. Unfortunately, I was unable to find a pair in good condition.

:: Outfit Details ::

Jacket / Tsho

Apron/Sev

Skirt/ Tiab

Leg Wraps / Nrhoob

Sash

:: Photography ::

gflower.jpg

Thank you for reading! Currently, I’m working on refurbishing and putting together a couple of Hmong Chinese outfits with applique. After this post, I will either feature another outfit in my Hmong Outfit Series or a tutorial. We will see what I have time work on after work.

Hmong Outfit :: White Hmong Wenshan & Beads

October 3, 2021 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi, Everyone! I finally get to showcase an outfit that took me a while to refurbish and match up pieces. So far, I have finished two outfits and have four more to work on. Today, I’m going to showcase a White Hmong Wenshan outfit based in China as part of my Hmong Outfit Series.

:: White Hmong Wenshan ::

White Hmong in Wenshan county, Yunnan province in China wears this outfit. They are distinguished by their embroidered headwrap with tassels and shirts and aprons with white embroidery. Nowadays, the embroidery is either done completely by machine or a mix of machine embroidery and someone manually turning the fabric and filling in details with thread. In the past, the embroidery was all done by hand.

When I took my original jackets apart, I noticed similarities to the jackets of White Hmong in Laos and Thailand. One difference is that they don’t make an additional cut down the back of the shirt. This step usually allows the dab tsho to sit lower and not so close to the back of your neck. Additionally, I added more fabric to the sleeves to make the sleeves wider and more comfortable to wear. There is a slight taper to the sleeves as well.

Not all outfits have beads. I added beads to my outfit and used a simple pattern because I wanted to highlight the blue fabric I used on my shirt. Usually, beads are in a pattern to form flowers, butterflies, and birds. Unfortunately, I lack that patience.

:: White Skirt ::

Traditionally this group of Hmong wear white skirts. The apron/ sev tends to be short about the same length as the skirt or a little longer than the skirt. Typically, a square piece of embroidery is worn in the back under the two tw. I’ve heard it referred to as money bag / hnab nyiaj but it doesn’t have a pocket to store anything inside. To me, it looks closer to a super short second sev on the back. This would make sense as there are groups of Hmong in China that wear two sev with their skirts.

In addition, leg wraps or nrhoob with matching embroidery are worn as well. I thought about adding beads to my leg wraps for this outfit but I held back mainly because beading is extremely tedious for me.

:: Outfit Details ::

Head wrap / Phuam

Jacket / Tsho

Skirt / Tiab

Apron / Sev

Belt /Hlab

Leg wrap /Nrhoob

:: Photography ::

Simply.kcy

Thank you for reading! I want to give a shoutout to Chey, my photographer for this post. Please help support her work. I think that she took gorgeous photos during golden hour and would definitely recommend booking her if you are in the Bay Area.

Finally, I can’t wait to feature the next outfit. Hint- It’s going to be another outfit from China.

Hmong Outfit :: Butterflies & White Hmong Thailand

August 7, 2021October 3, 2021 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi, Everyone! Even though I took a long break from my blog due to grad school and difficulty collecting pieces of outfits, I have a new update featuring a White Hmong Thailand outfit. While I can’t wait to show you the various outfits that I completed, I have to be patient and share one at a time. Who knows I might disappear again. Today, I’m going to show one of my favorite outfits as part of my Hmong Outfit Series.

:: White Hmong Thailand ::

This outfit is worn by some White Hmong in Northern Thailand. In the past, I’ve seen the outfit worn in different provinces from but not limited to Chiang Rai, Nan, and Phetchabun. They can be distinguished by their head wrap and extensive embroidery on their jackets and even pants! I love the cross-stitched butterflies on this outfit.

Jackets and apron pairings come in different colors. The most popular ones I’ve seen are blue or black. Usually, the headwrap has a grid stitch pattern and small pom poms or flat small circular fringe. I’m going to attempt to make my own outfit so lookout for a future blog post about the result. My shirt is pretty boxy since they didn’t trim excess out of the body of the shirt. It is also missing a dab tsho on the back of the shirt.

:: Blue Pants ::

Unlike the White Hmong in Sayaboury and Luang Prabang in Laos, this group typically wears blue pants. Usually, a royal blue. For special occasions, both men and women wear an embroidered pair of pants.

They wear two sev, one in the front and the back. Typically, the sev features cross-stitch or grid stitch, or a combination depending on the shirt pattern. On their tw siv, they embroider along the border as well. Along the ends of the tw siv, a siv paj co is attached. This group does not wear hlab ntxoo.

:: Outfit Details ::

Headwrap/ Phuam

Jacket/ Tsho

Pants/ ris

Apron / sev

Sash/tw siv & siv paj co

:: Photography ::

Victoria Chang

Thank you for reading! The next post will feature one of the outfits that I refurbished and resized. In my free time, I’m working on a couple more so I can wear matching outfits with my sister and cousin.

Hmong Outfit Series :: Black Hmong Sapa

January 10, 2020August 12, 2020 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi, Everyone! Even though, Hmong New Year is barely over I’m already thinking about what I’m wearing. There were a couple of outfits that I had ready but didn’t get to wear. Apparently there weren’t enough days. Also I wasn’t able to go all of days for Fresno New Year. I drove back to the bay on the first and one day I had a photoshoot scheduled. Today, I’m sharing a Hmong outfit from Sapa as part of my Hmong Outfit Series.

:: Black Hmong Sapa ::

Black Hmong of Sapa live in Lao Cai province of Vietnam and are distinguished by their “black” clothing. The clothing appears black due to the dark indigo dyes that are used. There are quite a bit of groups of Hmong that are referred to as Black Hmong due to their dark clothing or due to their dialect. This group is different from another Black Hmong group in Vietnam in Son La province and Laos in Sam Neua province.

Hmong-Outfit-Series-Sapa-01-scaled-1024x682 Hmong Outfit Series :: Black Hmong Sapa HMONG Hmong Outfit Series

:: Indigo ::

Women wear a jacket with embroidered sleeves and a vest on top with an embroidered collar. Fancier jackets have embroidery and applique across the back and shoulders similar to the jackets/shirts that the Hmong Leng Yen Bai wear. The embroidery on their jackets and collars usually consists of dark colors outlined in black. The fabric is made out of hemp that has to be softened before it is woven into modafinilonline.org fabric. Afterwards the fabric is dyed with indigo giving a very dark appearance. Some jackets look shiny because they are covered with beeswax.

Hmong-Outfit-Series-Sapa-06-scaled-1024x682 Hmong Outfit Series :: Black Hmong Sapa HMONG Hmong Outfit Series

:: Shorts ::

This is one of the only Hmong groups that I’ve seen wearing short trousers. The shorts, jacket, and vest are held together with an embroidered belt with hemp ends. Additionally, Hmong Leng Sapa wrap their legs with nrhoob. Originally they wore a skirt with an apron but eventually transitioned to shorts with the overlapped jacket and vest. I personally love looking at how Hmong clothes change over the years and the fluidity shaped by culture, environment, and access to resources.

:: Outfit Details ::

Hmong Leng Sapa Jacket / Tsho

Hmong Leng Sapa Vest

Shorts

Belt

Leg Wraps / Nrhoob

Traditionally they wear a black head wrap that consist of yards of fabric wrapped several times. Similarly to the Flower Hmong and Hmong Leng Yen Bai they will sometimes wear a brightly colored plaid headscarf.

Hmong-Outfit-Series-Sapa-02-scaled-1024x682 Hmong Outfit Series :: Black Hmong Sapa HMONG Hmong Outfit Series

:: Photography ::

Alexandria Castrovillari

Hmong-Outfit-Series-Sapa-04-scaled-1024x682 Hmong Outfit Series :: Black Hmong Sapa HMONG Hmong Outfit Series

Thank you for reading! I didn’t really make official New Year’s Resolutions this year, but I’m hoping that I can update my wyckhamporteous.org blog more regularly. This Hmong Outfit Series is special to me and I have outfits that have yet to be photographed. Also, I’m trying to buy less since I’m running out of room. However, I will probably change my mind since there are various outfits from Vietnam and China that I really want. Stay tuned for my next post! I still have a super over due Lululemon post…

Hmong Outfit Series :: Hmong Leng Yen Bai

December 25, 2019August 12, 2020 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi, everyone! It’s been a while since my last Hmong Outfit Series Post. I have a couple of outfits to share over the next couple of months with you all. Today, I am featuring one of my favorite outfits, Hmong Leng of Yen Bai.

:: Yen Bai ::

Hmong Leng Yen Bai live in Northern Vietnam and dark earthy colors distinguish them from other Hmong groups. Their outfits have some similarities to the Hmong Leng in Sapa.

The Hmong Leng Yen Bai shirts have a royal blue collar and sleeves with batik, applique, and embroidery on the back and shoulders. My shirt is quite roadwaysupply simple and made more on the modern side with fitted seams. I love the embroidery on the belt. There is a mixture of cross stitch and chain stitch embroidery and the ends of the belt are made out of hemp dyed with indigo.

:: Skirt ::

The batik design on the middle of the skirt is quite simple on my skirt consisting of dots and lines. The more expensive skirts have a more complicated design and the batik design seems to vary. Unlike the Hmong Leng in Laos and Thailand, the colors used in the embroidery of the bottom of the skirt is made with earth-toned colors instead of bright pinks, oranges, and yellow. I almost bought a skirt that had more purple and dark blue in the embroidery but I wanted a bit of variation in my collection. My skirt has red, white, and black cotton applique lines on the taab tab with some red and blue rectangles. The embroidery consists of brown, white, and black cross-stitch.

The original skirt that I bought had a waistband made out of hemp but I had the waistband of the skirt altered since I wanted the skirt shorter and not as wide. I usually have Crossroads by Nancy’s mom alter my skirts for me. I understand the process but love her work so I just bring skirts for her to alter for me so that they fit better. She also makes one of the prettiest white pleated skirts. So far I haven’t found anyone that makes white skirts better than hers. High quality and extremely flattering.

:: Hat ::

Hmong Leng Yen Bai wear a black head wrap that is wrapped multiple times with paj ntaub on top similar to their belt. Usually, the head wrap is decorated with coins. For everyday wear, they opt to wear a colorful plaid headscarf.

:: Outfit Details ::

Hmong Leng Yen Bai Shirt / Tsho & Apron / Sev

Belt / Hlab

Skirt ( 38 X 17)

Leg Wrap / Nrhoob

Hat/ Phuam

:: Photography ::

Alexandria Castrovillari

Thank you for reading! Fresno New Year is here and I can’t wait to share the outfits that I’m wearing. I will be wearing this outfit one of the many days that I am attending. If you want to see what I wore last year click here.

Hmong Outfit :: Red Appliqué & Zig Zags

December 21, 2018December 6, 2020 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi, everyone! I have an epiphanous realization that I have prepared too many outfits for Hmong New Year. Some outfits are a part of my Hmong Outfit Series and others are part of my creative outlet. As I type this post, I see that my fabric purchases don’t seem to be twindling. There’s a lot of outfits on my list and I’m trying to finish them during my break because I won’t be able to sew for a while. Today, I’m sharing an outfit that I made inspired by the Hmong Leng Sam Neua. It’s not completely traditional but contains most of the pieces of Hmong Leng from this region.

:: Hmong Leng Sam Neua ::

This group lives in Northeastern Laos near the Vietnam border in the province Sam Neua. They wear their hair in large hair buns like the Hmong Leng Dien Bien/ Lai Chau in Vietnam. I like the detail on the front of the shirt. The applique doesn’t run straight on both sides but zigzags on one side and the zig zag faces differently than the Hmong Leng of Thailand. It’s typically folded over, but I sewed mine flat on the front of the shirt. I opted to do this because I think it looks cleaner and I like it lying flat and flush against the shirt.

The shirt has black cuffs instead of the dark blue cuff like the Hmong Leng of Xieng Khouang, and Hmoob Moos Pheeb. Typically the sleeve is a full length sleeve. I did the appliqué of the shirt by hand and that was a very tedious process. My appliqué skills are also quite basic so it doesn’t look very pretty up close. Usually, in the very middle of the appliqué row there is embroidery or appliqué triangles. I chose to embroider stars.

The video I linked below shows a Hmong girl getting dressed in the Hmong Leng Sam Neua style.

View this post on Instagram

this styles call..Hmong Xam Neua(Green Hmong Xam Neua Laos) #hmong #hilltribes

A post shared by aki_to (@aki_tribes) on Jan 31, 2018 at 11:41pm PST

Like the various Hmong Leng groups of Laos their dab tsho is sewn face down. Instead of tying their sash, they wrap it around the waist multiple times.

:: Skirt ::

The skirt that I’m wearing is not exactly authentic. It’s the closest skirt that I had in my collection to the Hmong Leng Sam Neua skirt. Hmong Leng Sam Neua wear skirts with rows of red appliqué in between the spaces of the batik design. Straight lines, zig zags, and criss crossing lines are appliquéd on the middle of the skirt.

Pictured below is an authentic skirt. My skirt lacks the red appliqué rectangles on the bottom of the skirt or the taw tiab/ taab tab. The bottom of the Hmong Leng Sam Neua skirt consists of cross stitch embroidery- usually yellow, orange, red, and white and appliqué. In-between the embroidery space is left to appliqué red rectangles.

Maybe when I wear this outfit next year, I’ll take the time to put my hair up in a large hair bun.

Traditionally, this outfit pairs with leg wraps or nrhoob. Long triangles of hemp fabric dyed indigo are wrapped around the legs. Inwards for the living and outwards for the dead. I added some red ribbon on the top for decoration.

:: Outfit Details ::

Hmoob Leng Sam Neua Outfit

Sash/ Hlab

Hmong Skirt/ Tiab (38 X 18)

Leg Wrap / Nrhoob

:: Photography ::

Uncle Sai Photography

Thank you for reading! Merced New Year is here and I can’t wait for the grand finale of Fresno Hmong New year. It took me a while to decide which outfits to wear for Fresno Hmong New Year, but I’m proud to say I’m ready and no longer questioning my https://www.buycarisoprodol.org/ decisions. I can’t wait to share with you all my outfits for this year. If you want to see the outfits I wore last year click here. Next week, I’ll showcase my sequin princess hat!

Hmong Outfits Series :: Paj Ntaub Cog Ci

November 13, 2018December 6, 2020 - Carolyn Chang Leave a comment

Hi Everyone! Paj ntaub cog ci is trending again and I’m ecstatic! This outfit took me so long to make! I finished just in time to wear it to Hmong New Year. Honestly, it’s worth buying over making since I spent so much time sewing on sequins. Unlike the other outfits in my Hmong Outfit Series, this outfit doesn’t belong to a specific region. Paj ntaub cog ci was popular in the late 80’s and 90’s and showcases a period of innovation, transition, and adaptation.

:: Paj Ntaub Cog Ci ::

My cousin’s outfit reminded me of the outfits that I wore when I was younger. I had various Hmong outfits made out of the Thai skirt fabric material and I wanted to make an outfit that had elements of the past, incorporated my favorite colors, and that was more fitted.

Photographer:: Tou Yang

Paj ntaub cog ci consists of embroidery and sequins. There are different patterns – some with more embroidery than others. Sequins are applied in the empty spaces. Sometimes lace is added on top of the borders surrounding the embroidery. I chose to omit the lace to have the blue stand out. I also took out the little triangles for two main reasons – I’m lazy and I don’t like them poking me. The outfit looks clean, simple, and there’s more focus on the blue and sequins.

I made my shirt the traditional style just not as loose. This was because I thought that the fitted style with princess seams would be more difficult. Since it would require me to align the diamonds at every seam and I had a limited amount of fabric to use.Then, I ran into another problem with the print of the fabric. I wanted the diamonds to run vertical and not horizontal because it give the illusion of being slimmer and if it ran horizontal I would look wider. So in the end I still had to align the diamonds. Usually with traditional shirts there isn’t a seam across the shoulders but if you look really closely on my shirt you can see the seam. I didn’t really care about the pattern matching super closely where I attached the sleeves though.

Originally I wanted a 3/4 sleeve shirt but I made the mistake of cutting too much off of my sleeve embroidery. Do you see a trend here? This entire process was a cycle of failure and compromise with way more patience than I thought I possessed. So I had to settle for a long sleeve shirt. Additionally, I made the shirt a little to small for me. Despite the mistakes along the way, I’m super excited to wear this outfit to Hmong New Year. I’m pairing it with the hat that I featured in this post.

:: Outfit Details ::

Sequin Outfit

Phuam

Crossroads by Nancy White Pleated Skirt (37 X17.5)

:: Photography ::

Sweet Capture Photography

Thank you for reading! I can’t wait to show the finished princess hat that I made to go with this outfit too. I’ll showcase it with a different outfit though. Something that is different than what I usually go for. I’m trying to stay away from sequins for a while squeezing in some last minute projects before the year is over because I won’t be able to sew for a while.