Monday, 16 January 2017

Flowery Shift Dress


I had been looking for a dress pattern for some time that was a straight shift and had a smooth neckline that wouldn’t break up a large pattern. After my success with the reindeer top I thought I would try a dress made from the same pattern. I had this pink floral jersey in my stash (I have a weakness for flowery patterns which sometimes gets the better of me). The fabric cost me £1 a metre from Terry Meason’s stall on Leicester Market. At that price I don’t need to make a toile but can practice on a piece of fabric and wear the practice garment if it turns out OK. A win/win situation which appeals to my economical streak.























This fabric has more body. I am quite pleased with the fit of the dress, which I think skims all of the right areas, but I do think the print is a bit over-the-top. When I first put it on I didn’t like it at all. I cut the sleeves to ¾ length and took up the hem by an extra 2 inches and now I think I have a wearable dress. I did try the dress with a belt as shown on the pattern sleeve but it looked awful on me.


The twin needles I ordered from Amazon didn’t arrived in time to hem the dress so I lost patience and bought new needles from a local shop. Needless to say, the needles on order arrived the next morning! The dress is hemmed using my new 4mm twin needle. 


The fabric was too thick to make a double hem at the neck so I turned over a single layer and double stitched this. This fabric is very stable and won’t fray. The twin needle gives the hems the stretch that they need in a dress where the hem is likely to be pulled as you move and the stitches could pop.


Ta dah!
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4 comments:

  1. Jasu17 February 2017 at 22:44

    Floral pattern is great...not too much!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rosemary18 February 2017 at 09:23

      Hi Jasu. Thank you so much for your encouragement. I have worn this dress a couple of times but it doesn't feel right. I keep seeing pink flowers out of the corner of my eye! I am thinking about cutting it to tunic length and wearing it with black leggings. I think that might work better for me.

      Delete
  2. Jasu18 February 2017 at 18:09

    Actually if you are feeling the pink is too much I think black leggings would work well as for me it is the black / pink contrast that makes it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jasu18 February 2017 at 18:09

    Actually if you are feeling the pink is too much I think black leggings would work well as for me it is the black / pink contrast that makes it.

    ReplyDelete

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