Summer breeze

Now I know this is going against what I said about my seasonal sewing plans where I was only going to add plain colours to my wardrobe but I was working on this dress (I promise - I really was) before I decided on my plan.  The beautiful colours, which I might add, are perfect for my 'Cool Summer' colour palette that I talked about in this post, and the light fabric were just irresistible to me, they reminded me of a Summer breeze, so naturally I had to make something with it.  No?  The occasion - my granddaughter's Christening.

I have very few dresses in my repertoire and needed something special.  Dressy but not over the top.  Sooo... the search for a pattern started.  I eventually decided on Anne Klein for Vogue V1223.  When I found the fabric it seemed that they were just made for each other.  I carefully laid out the fabric in a single layer making sure I had it right before placing the pattern down all the same way.  After all I didn't want to get any back to front pieces now did I.  I cut the first piece; turned it over to mark darts etc and OMG!   I have cut it out on the wrong side of the fabric - well I think I have, more checking - yep I cut it on the wrong side.  You can see which side is which, can't you?  Neither could I.  I figured if I couldn't tell, nobody else could either so I continued cutting and yes, I made this dress wrong side out.

Wrong side - Right side (I think)

Fraying fabric

I don't know what the fabric is called but it's a polyester similar in weight to a Georgette (which frays a lot) and I lined it with a blue Sunsilky.  My review of this pattern is below.  I really like the pleat detail on this dress. Stitched down at the shoulder and again through the waist to hip on the front and back.  Very soft and floaty.

Bodice pleat detail

Waist pleat detail

But then there was a problem.  The design of the pattern pieces didn't allow for any length alterations for the short waist that comes with my vertically challenged figure.  So, I did a most unconventional alteration for the waist length.  I pulled the dress up and took it out from the shoulder.  I mean, everyone does this, right?  Well, maybe not, but hey - it worked for me.

Alteration for short waist

Now everything is sitting where it should be; waist at waist level and neckline not to low.  I did have one more problem.  Not enough time to let it 'hang' before stitching the hem.  It dropped a bit more during the week I was in Melbourne before the Christening.

This photo was taken the next day when I got home as I forgot to get a photo while I was wearing it.  Without make-up and hair not as well done.  I styled it with this green jacket, a black belt, jewellery and sandals and a blue bag.


Dress: Vogue V1223
Jacket: Katies
Belt: A new little shop in town - can't remember the name
Jewellery: Big W
Shoes: Zenzu from Faulls


Pattern Description:
Mid-knee lined dress, fitted at bust, has pleated front and back skirt, back zipper and very narrow hems
Pattern Sizing:
8-14, I made the 14
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Yes it did
Were the instructions easy to follow?
Mostly they were but they appeared incorrect for the pleating.  The instructions were telling you to sew the pleats down on the front when clearly on the envelope they were not.  The were correct for the back.  I also found them a little vague or incomplete when stitching the shoulder seams.  This is my first time lining a dress and couldn't quite figure out how it worked.  I finished by stitching the shoulder seams by hand.
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
I particularly like the pleat details but found them inclined to stretch out of shape a little while stitching them even though I was careful.  This could be because they are on the bias or it could have been the fabric I used.
Fabric Used:
Polyester 
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
I always need to shorten the waist in patterns and this design does not lend itself to being shortened here.  So, as I usually find that I am short from the shoulder to the bust point not necessarily at the waist I removed an inch from the shoulder seams then reshaped the back neckline and the armhole.  This worked very well.
Would you sew it again?  Would you recommend it to others?
Probably not. I don't really need more that one dress in this style
Conclusion:
A very nice dress which is comfortable to wear.


 

 Leaving you with a photo of my son and daughter-in-law and beautiful Liana.

Wow, it's that time again.  Me-Made-May '12 is upon us already.  How fast did that come around?  Being a nosey parker I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone else is wearing over on the Flickr Group.  Not so sure I'm looking forward to taking photo's every day again though.  You know, I think it'll be a huge challenge for me this time as I don't want to bore you with the same things I wore in the last challenge but in reality I have not done a lot of sewing so fear you will see many things over again.  Having said that, I believe the purpose of  these challenges is to get us wearing the things we make instead of having them languish in the back of our wardrobes which means that I will be wearing previously seen garments.  So as not to bore you I think I will only post daily outfits when it's something new otherwise I will group a few days together.


Day 1

Ladies Day at the Races

 

Today was Ladies Day, the first day of the May Racing Carnival  and Jacqui (my daughter, in case you can't tell) and I are going to the Ladies Luncheon.  A day at the races requires a somewhat dressy outfit and I decided to try some colour blocking which I think worked quite well. My dress is made from  McCalls 7440, view C.  I've had this pattern since about 1998. (I found measurements for both of my DD's dated 1998 inside the envelope.)  I've made this dress before but this is the first time for myself. The pattern is designed for woven fabric but I chose to ignore this and used Ponte Roma, a knit fabric, as the weather is starting to turn cold and a thicker fabric was needed for warmth.  I don't think using a knit instead of a woven made any difference as I didn't want a skin tight fit anyway.  I didn't even reduce the amount of ease.  I made a few alterations raising the neckline and adding in the waist detail.  I also added a black detail with some frog closures on the front shoulder but my hair is covering it so it's not visible.  I can see now from the photo that I should have taken more time to check the fit as it looks a little large in the front shoulder area.  Mmmm... I guess it pays not to leave it to the last minute but I just couldn't decide on the colour for the middle panel.

A fascinator is also a major part of any outfit for the races.  Talk about leaving things to the last minute.  Again the dress colour choice delayed construction.  It's my own design and I put the finishing touches on it about an hour before leaving. Phew...made it just in time!

 

Two views of my fascinator worn to the May Races.  A very big three day racing carnival here.

Details:
Dress; McCalls 7440, view C modified to raise the neckline adding waist and shoulder details
Fascinator; My own design
Bag; A gift from Italy
Shoes; Bonbons from Faulls Shoes

Day 2

I've finally been forced to work out how the remote works on the camera.  I think I didn't do a bad job but I really need to find the tripod instead of using the furniture in spaces that aren't really suitable.  I had to crop the hell out of the photo to get rid of all the unwanted background. Nothing new here as far as the clothes go.  The red top is a favourite seen before.  Here I'm having a day of rest after the races and enjoying the sunset.

Details:
Top; Simplicity 4076 details here
Jacket; Suzanne Grae several years old
Jeans; Target also several years old

Day 3 - Nothing me made today.  I wore a uniform to work and them slummed around at home in old clothes.

Day 4

Another day just running some errands and doing not much else before heading off to work.  Mmm... I really need to find the tripod

Details:
Top; Kwik Sew 3617 details and my review of this pattern here
Cardigan; Tempt
Jeans; Target also several years old

Colour in My Wardrobe!

I live in Melbourne where we are known for wearing black.  I wonder if anyone thought that if there were some colour in the shops people might actually buy it.  Instead we have no choice.  It's even hard to get away from shades of black when buying fabric.  I have been wearing black, grey and white, or some form of a neutral for way too long now and wanting to add some colour to my wardrobe for some time so, when I saw this purple fabric I just had to have it.

TaDa!  One down three to go!  My first dress in the June Challenge 4 x 1 which also helps me achieve another day in the Me-Made June Challenge. 

This is the dress I wore today and was absolutely thrilled when I received 2 compliments within 10 minutes of my arrival at work.  Neither person could believe it when I said 'I made this myself!'  This really made my day.

During the course of Me-Made June I have discovered that it is very hard to get a decent photo.  It took my husband about 10 shots of the back view to get this one and I still don't think this is very good.  The flash appears to be too bright and you can't see the pleat detail very well in either photo.  Below is my review of this pattern.

Pattern:  Butterick 5523

Description:
Close-fitting, A-line, above mid knee length, pullover dress with draped collar, front and back pleats, Long sleeves with pleats at cap, back tab with non-functioning buttons.

Size:  8-14.  I cut the 14 View A.   I probably could have cut the 12.

Did it look like the  pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?  Yes it did.



Fabric:  Gina Dry Handle Knit purchased from Knitwit

Were the instructions easy to follow?  Yes, very easy. Great project for a beginner.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
I love the style. I didn't like that there was no allowance made to shorten the waist for petite sizes. For a dress that is supposed to be close fitting it isn't really.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
I made the usual pattern changes for shortening the waist and sleeve lengths and I sewed the elastic to the empire seam line as I didn't read the instructions and cut off the allowance for the casing.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Probably not, but I do recommend it.

Conclusion:
I love this dress, it's easy to sew and makes a great addition to your wardrobe.

Grey Tunic Dress

I thought I would start by showing you one of my most comfortable dresses.  I made this about 18 months ago after seeing a sketch drawing of it in a 'Sewing with Stitches' magazine.

The tunic style is made from a Butterick pattern in Ponti fabric (a double knit), was very easy to make and fits me perfectly. Although I feel the fabric is a little too stiff for the cowl neckline which doesn't drape well, I just love this dress.