B5206 - Border Print Dress

I finally have something from my sewing room to show you. I bought a lovely knit border print fabric awhile back from fabricmartfabrics.com when it went on sale. I just can't resist their sales. I just wish their shipping wasn't $8.00. The combination of colors is one of my favorites--rose & blue. Also, this fabric reminds me of stained glass, which I also love. I really had no idea what pattern I would use, as is frequently the case when I buy fabric. For several months I have been looking for the vintage vogue pattern 2517. I had pretty much given up on finding it, so I was going to try to adapt a wrap dress pattern to the color block design. I chose B5206 as my starting point. I wanted to test the fit and use this beautiful knit fabric for a dress, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone (my that is a terrible sounding saying---I love birds) Anyway, I would get my dress out of this material and know how the fit is. Once I knew the fit, I was going to cut the pattern into pieces and attempt to produce a pattern like the vintage vogue.

front

back

I rarely ever make muslins--I have made about five in entire 10 years I have been sewing. I just sort of fit as I go. When I make a knit dress I always go by the finished bust measurement. I did the same here and the dress fit with no fitting alterations. Well, there was one planned and one unplanned alteration. that did not involve fitting. I had planned to do the short sleeved version and as I was serging the sleeve seam, this slinky fabric slithered its way under the serger foot, and I sliced a huge hole in my sleeve. I had already had enough sewing disasters recently (see previous post) that I did not have the patience to recut the sleeve and deal with the seam allowance issue. I just picked it out and decided to go sleeveless. Another alteration was that I chose not to use the contrast trim. I used clear elastic to fold under the edges. I had never done that technique and it is something I have been wanting to learn. It was really easy. Here is the tip on how to use it at patternreview.com. There are other tutorials on the internet for using it. I took a stitch at the neck so that it would not gape open. Also I left off the belt and just wore one of my own. I also coverstitched the hem using my coverstitch function on my Babylock Evolve Serger. I basically kept it very simple so that this print would be the focus. I am happy with how it turned out. I am not so sure that this particular ecru color is good for my skin tone at the neck, so I wore a denim jacket with it to work to add a little more color.

Well, while I was making this dress, a lovely lady from patternreview let me know that the vintage vogue pattern I wanted was on ebay. I don't think I have ever surfed the internet so quickly. I snapped it up so I am very happy I don't have to create a pattern now. It was going to be my next project, but something else has moved into its place. I have a very special wedding to attend in a month. My husband's best friend's youngest son is getting married to his dream girl. They both go to my church and I am so happy for them. I have been asked to sing at their wedding, and I have been looking for a dress. I found one at anthropologie, and it was on sale....FOR $90!!!!!! By the time I paid the astronomical shipping and tax, it would have been over $100 when I received it. I just can't spend that much money on a dress. Also, their sizing is all over the place, so you never know if you need to go up or down a size, and the closest anthopologie to me is 3.5 hrs away---probably a good thing :) I have decided to attempt a knock off of it. The dress is the "Swinging Sweetheart Dress". Here is the front and the back. I am probably going to do mine with a straight skirt so that it is more elegant. The antho dress is pretty as it is, but I am almost 40 and that flared out skirt together with the scalloped waist, ruffled neckline and sleeves, and gathers makes the "Swinging Sweetheart Dress" as it is a little...well... too sweet. It is going to be a challenge, but I am looking forward to it.

I have another dress to show you that I made this past weekend, when I get photographs. I plan to wear it to work Thursday, so I will do a post this weekend on it.

Two months of wadderville

First I want to say thanks to the 102 followers I now have. WOW!! And, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. It has been awhile since I have posted, but I have been living in wadderville. I set out to make an Easter Dress from S2444 using some of the gorgeous Vera Wang fabric I got when fabric.com had their sale for $1.95.






I have been in love with that pattern since it first came out. I ordered it from sewingpatterns.com and had pretty much given up on getting it. It had been 3 weeks and they still had not sent it and had not charged my credit card. After emailing them, a week after I had ordered it, they told me it had shipped. It never came and the did not respond to my two later emails. I will never order from them again. I gave up and ordered it from somewhere else. Well the day after it arrived, the one from sewingpatterns arrived. GRRR!! I had planned on having a giveaway with one of the patterns when I reached 100 followers, but I lost one of the pattern pieces and had to cut my second one. GRRR!!! After I got the dress made, I put it on and it was just too much!!! It was too poofy and I looked liked I was wearing a curtain. I am just calling it an unplanned muslin :)

On to plan B---Then I decided to make M 5752 using some of that gorgeous Ivory Vera Wang jersey I got in the same sale.


That fabric is to die for!!! Well, I got it made and even did a pretty little cover stitch on the sleeves and hem using my Babylock Evolve serger. This pattern was really a pain to sew because it had one inch seams. I had my outfit all planned out in my head for Easter. I was going to wear a little jacket with it that I had made the year before and some shoes with the same colors as the jacket. I got the dress on that morning and was putting on my makeup. When I stood up from the chair after putting on my makeup, I had somehow gotten several spots of makeup on the dress. I am usually so careful.
Here is the dress and the makeup disaster:



Needless to say I had to wear something else to church. I immediately sprayed Shout on it and washed it. It did not come out. Then I sprayed Greased Lightning with Bleach Power on it, let it set, and washed it. It did not come out. I am bummed. Now, I just have no desire to sew. I am tired. In my mind I want to sew, but my body says no. Does anyone know how to get this stain out? Someone at Stitchers Guild suggested something from Joann's that sounds good, but I do not live close to one. Anyway, I know I will get over this and get back to sewing, but right now I am pouting. Thanks for listening :)