Rhino Cruise Outfit

In March 2024, Rhino Africa celebrated 20 years in business by sending the whole company on a cruise on the MSC Splendida from Durban to Cape Town. The three-night journey was punctuated with themed evenings, the final night being "Disco" themed. Having won "best dressed" on 2 previous occasions, I did not want to miss out on the opportunity to let loose and express myself a little.

The Plan

I couldn’t find anything in my cupboard that would be appropriate for such an auspicious and celebratory occasion. But I have a sewing machine and a 3D printer. I didn’t really have a plan though, just the idea that I needed something Fan-C!

Fabric: Around the corner from me is a great fabric shop, Fabric Warehouse run by a great bunch of people. Within seconds of being there, I found this shimmery blye material that I knew would be perfect.

Pattern: I hit up the FreeSewing website and found a waistcoat that would be perfect. I took some measurements, entered them into the calculator and printed the pattern in parts. I only have a small printer, but the patterns come out with guidelines so you can cut them out and stick them together. I then cut out all the pieces that I needed.

Sewing: The sewing part was a bit tricky, and I had to ask the very helpful FreeSewing community for some advice and tips on getting it all to fit.

Accessories: I knew that it would take more than a fancy suit to complete the “look”, so I went onto Tinkercad and designed a belt buckle, custom buttons, and some rings. I then found an old pair of sunglasses. Once everything was printed I sprayed everything gold, of course.