Coral halter dress: McCalls 3584

We arrived in Florida after a looooong drive on Monday. I finally got my sewing studio re-setup two days ago, and started working on this dress, which I'd started a few weeks ago, and brought along. I had delayed finishing it, because I was having fitting woes, which have only been partially resolved.

...from McCalls 3584 ... View B.

Close-up shows bodice detail, pleats on under bodice and upper skirt, and droopy waistband. (The droop in the waistband is still bothering me)

Back View... I like the halter ties and the swoopy low back.

Fitting Woes: Whenever I cut a pattern to match my full bust, I cut 14, which then is loose above and below. But Palmer/Pletsch say to measure the UPPER bust with a sloping tape like this photo. If I do that, I'd cut a 12. I'm going to try that on my next pattern and see if that helps.

Another View. I lengthened it several inches from the pattern, and now I'm debating if it is frumpy looking at this length???

Black Hawaiian Dress: McCalls 6071

I finally finished two dresses today, ones I started weeks ago. Here's the first one. Because I have stubbornly refused to make a muslin, I keep having to alter over and over, ripping and restitching, which is very time consuming when the pattern has a band at the waist as this one does. Many alterations later, I ended up with...

I used McCalls 6071 for the upper bodice. But one reviewer said the pattern turns out VERY LOOSE, which is hard to tell from the photograph. But notice how the model is holding the LOOSE skirt in with the placement of her hand. I wanted a closer fit, so I took a band and skirt from another pattern. I also made the straps halter instead of straight over the shoulder.


For fabric, I used this very large wrap skirt from a church rummage sale: all in a bag for a dollar. There was plenty of fabric due to how far the wrap went around...


... Here is the design process... as I look back now, I like this dress better than what I ended up with. I must say I'm not thrilled with the way the bodice turned out. It seems to make my upper carriage look very narrow... Hmmmm ... I may tear it apart and rethink ... or not...



This closeup shows two things:
1. the gathering band that makes pleats on the upper midriff. The pattern added a bow, which I eliminated. It wasn't till I saw this picture that I realize the pleats ended up lumped in the wrong places. I'll go back and tack the pleats more appealingly.
2. I'm not pleased with the droop of the midriff band. It's over two inches wide, and on another garment, I reduced it to just one inch and the droop was eliminated. I think that I don't have 2+ inches of body in the space between lower bust and hip bone to accommodate such a wide band. I'm not going to change it, but I'll keep that in mind in future patterns.

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Tshirt Dress: Style

I just finished this long t-shirt dress with short sleeves and vertical darts.


...and side slits on each side seam


I used this McCalls 2460 pattern, designed for a woven, so I cut it a size smaller. I chose it for the vertical darts to give shape to the dress, and I (approximately) liked the neckline, so thought it was a good place to start. I eliminated the side seam dart (didn't need it on a knit), and shortened the sleeves a bit to make them closer to a cap sleeve.


I absolutely adore this ballet neckline variation created by Passiona Cottee on the Burda (Downloadable) Lydia t-shirt. (You can download the pattern for a dollar and see various adaptations discussed here.) I didn't quite achieve this neckline, I got nervous with the scissors so close to the edge of potential ruin... it's OK in this more modified version, but I'm going to try Passiona's on another shirt)


Next debate: Does the dress need a belt (either sewn on or just a tie belt.)?? I'm concerned that the loooong t-shirt is kinda looooong with nothing going on. Maybe it's OK ... I can't decide.

Option 1: Empire waist ... a bit too little girlish I think


Option 2: Just above the waist ... nice and tidy and adult-looking ... this works.


Option 3: Below the waist ... I like this one, and could do it with a white tie belt with the ends hanging down for visual interest... (any opinions out there)?

Flowered Dress: McCalls 5094

Just in time for Florida, I just finished a new little short sundress.
It's made from a narrowed skirt version of McCalls 5094 View B. It took forever to get it to fit right. I'm frustrated with cutting out the size that matches my measurements, and then having to take it in so much before it fits ... Alterations: I made the skirt narrower and shorter, and the band is 1 inch narrower. I made the bodice front a little higher. Then it gaped a bit, so I modified it till it quit gaping, and also added a ruching band. I put elastic inside the shoulder straps so they hug my shoulder a little better.

And for the fabric: a refashioned XXlarge Campshirt (by Liz and me) I picked up for free at a yard sale after the sale when everything was free. In this pic, I've already cut off the sleeves and collar ... then arranged them for the pic.

Close-up: The bodice front was cut from the sleeves, the skirt from the back of the shirt...
And the button front went on the back. (I would have cut around the buttons, but I couldn't get the skirt piece to fit, so I had to decide: front buttons or back buttons ... eenie meenie miny mo). There wasn't enough flowered fabric for the band and the bodice back, so I used a black rib knit (which turned out to be another bonus ... I didn't need a zipper ... with the stretch in the waistband, it fits over my head no problem.

Oops. It's good I have a photo of the back. Those buttons gape. I'll sew them shut. It's not like they're usable... Also in the back... I evidentally have sway back issues. They showed as a blob at the horizontal back seam. I took that in a bit, and it was resolved.

18 Ways to wear a little black dress (Burda 09-2008-132)

Dress it up or dress it down. When you start with an uber-comfortable slim black knit dress, there are oodles of options on ways to wear it... here's just a few ideas to get you started...

1. Unadorned. A blank blackboard to begin the design process (and a wonderful way to wear a black dress)


(This dress was sewn from a (shortened and slimmed) view of Pattern 09-2008-132 from the Burda Magazine ... you'll find a review of this pattern for patternreview.com at the end of this post)


2. An evening out at the theatre


3. A trip to the library


4. A day at the beach


5. A day of sightseeing ... (with a black cami underneath)


6. ...or out shopping ... (with a white cami underneath)


7. Comfy on a chilly day, with a slouchy cardigan


8. To the baseball game in a red hoodie


9. Or cozy and casual in a white hoodie


10. Under a tied denim work shirt


11. or belted


12. The skirt is slim and comfy enough to play the role of slip under a sarong


13. ...or under a high-waist skirt with ruching


14.The top is smooth and seamless under a cross-front top in matching fabric


15. ...or under a asymetrical top


16. ... or under a bolero top


17. wrapped in a gorgeous pink scarf


18. Cinched with a colorful cummerbund


Review for patternreview.com

Pattern Description: Evening dress (shortened and narrowed version)... Here's the Burda magazine photo of the dress.

Pattern Sizing:36 ... 44. I cut out a 40 to match my measurements and had to take it in about two inches at the waist. (It's sized for a woven and I used a knit, so that would account for some of that).

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, except for my alterations (see below)... (This dress is comfy enough to use as a nightgown. I was tempted to include a view under a bathrobe...)


Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes, although I didn't like the way they said to use elastic to gather the shoulder area. By the time you put elastic on both the fashion fabric and lining, that's a lot of lumpage. I eliminated it, wanting a simpler, smoother look anyway.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I love the dress. Nothing to dislike. I didn't make the pleated waistband, altho it is pretty. I wanted a smooth, simple LBD (smooth enough for being the UNDER-layer to some outfits).

Fabric Used:Cotton Poly Knit

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
1. Shortened it

2. Reduced the width. It is more aline than I expected and I was looking for a slim straight skirt. I made it slimmer.

3. The back is designed to be as gathered as the front (it is the same pattern piece). I eliminated the gathers in back. I like the look better.

4. I eliminated the pleat on the shoulder. I wanted a simpler, smoother look.

5. The neckline was a shade too low for my everyday use, so I crossed the two front pieces slightly. It works well this way, covers a bra totally, doesn't gap or gape, and also looks nice with a white or black cami under it.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes and yes.

Conclusion: I love the pattern and love the dress. It has become my A#1 most versatile garment ever. Highly recommended!

Butterick 5181: Blue Flowered Maxi Dress

Only two more weeks and we'll be heading to Florida for the winter. I'm so looking forward to seeing my Florida friends (hi gals) and hitting the sandy beaches on the Gulf of Mexico. In preparation, I just finished this comfy and cute maxi dress.

...using Butterick B5181 with some alterations. (see my pattern review below).

...Close up shows the midriff band, a skirt with a bit of gathering (altho I reduced the pattern gathering quite of bit), and halter top (which I modified from the pattern's over-the-shoulder top).

And look what I used for fabric. I cut apart an old short sleeve top and skirt that I made at least 15 years ago and over the years, I wore it a lot. (I always loved the fabric!), but the style is past tense ... a loose fitting top with nice wide shoulders and shoulder pads (I'd already cut the sleeves off in the pic below) and a two tier gathered skirt. So that's the "before" shot.

So I cut apart the dress and layed the pattern pieces on it. I was forced to have less gathers because that's all the fabric I had, but in the end, there are plenty of gathers. (I could even do with less, to tell the truth). Below, I'm laying the pattern bodice and making a rough stab at a halter remake...

...and for the lining: why not an old pillowcase?

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