Ready, Set, Snorkel!

Wow, was this a quick sew!

I needed something I could wear swimming and snorkeling and I had very little time to get it together.

I purchased a swim tee from Lands End, in navy with white polka dots. (I really liked the blue tie dye swim tee, but it was not yet in stock.)

Yes, I could sew this, but I was in a rush.

To go with the swim tee, I sewed up a pair of swim shorts. I just happened to buy several coordinating nylon lycra swim fabrics more than a year ago from The Fabric Fairy, so I used the navy-and-white diagonal stripe.

I used the Style Arc Laura Legging pattern, which I have used before. It's a great pattern - it has just one pattern piece - there is no side seam or separate waistband. I chopped it off a bit above the knee, cut it out, and sewed up the three seams, lickety split.

I had plan to complete the shorts using gripper elastic but my order of gripper elastic didn't arrive in time, so I used regular elastic.

I also sewed two short lengths of elastic into the top, one at each side seam, several inches above the hem. This elastic will be attached to the top of the swim shorts, once I have them on. This will prevent the swim tee from flying up in the water and exposing the goods, but there is some play so it can move a bit.

Besides protecting me from sunburn, this swim top lets me wear an actual bra - I will have much better support than if I wore a bathing suit with built-in cups. (Those are not nearly supportive enough for me.)

As you can see, I also ordered a custom snorkel mask from Snorkel Mart.

The process was quite easy - I entered the corrective value separately for each eye - you don't actually need a prescription - it's sort of like buying reading glasses in that regard. (My eyes are -3.75 and -3.5, and the options don't include quarter fractions, so I rounded down and ordered -3.5 for each eye). I haven't worn the mask underwater yet, but I can *really* see with it on dry land. The mask feels very airtight, so I am hopeful that it won't leak.

It will be so nice to *see* the Hawaiian fishies, rather than a big blur, and the mask cost only $55, which seemed pretty reasonable.

And, yes, I have shaved my legs.

To my colleagues and the denizens of Maui: you're welcome.

By the way, the corrective snorkel mask can be used in the shower, too, for useful activities like leg shaving.

If you haven't yet seen the gorgeous jacket that Margy made for the workshop I led, check out Margy's elegant jacket! Also, Gayle has made a beautiful jacket using a pocket pattern that I provided at the workshop. Check out Gayle's beautiful and wearable jacket!