Thursday, February 23, 2017

Vogue watercolor dress

I know I'm not the only one with a queue a mile long, but how often do we actually get to some of those oldies on our lists? Today I'm sharing a dress that I've had planned for almost exactly four years. I kind of don't even want to share because it's taken me so danged long to make the thing!


The first birthday I had after I learned to sew (incidentally, Saturday is my birthday, hooray?) my husband surprised me with a gift card to Mood. It was the first time I had ordered from them. I spent a solid week breaking it down bit by bit, rearranging my cart, changing yardage. The virtual shopping was as much fun as receiving the fabric. This lightweight poly/cotton jersey is from that purchase. It's super pretty and soft, and it has always been destined for Vogue 1224. I made a size 8, the smallest in the envelope.


This pattern is out of print, but it's been a long time fave over at Pattern Review. It appealed to me because of the elasticized neckline (easy for nursing) and simple design. Now that my four-years-in-the-making project is finished, however, I'm just kind of meh about it.


Here's the back and OMG IS THAT WHAT MY HAIR LOOKS LIKE?? Immediately after taking these photos I went in my house and cut my hair. Badly. And it still looks better than this two-toned disaster. I had no idea it looked THIS bad from the back. Yeesh.


Back to the dress. Reviews indicate a few issues, first that it is WAY short (true) and that the waistline doesn't seem to hit anyone in the right place. I accounted for the length problem (I added 4") but not the waistline. Whoops. I'm long-waisted, and this ended up somewhere between my natural waist and almost an empire waist. At first, this bothered me a great deal, but every time I put it on I feel better about it. Empire waistlines tend to say "maternity" to me (Lord knows I'm way over that look) and hitting at my natural waist isn't the best at the moment, since I'm still hanging on to some post-baby pooch.


I did make some other modifications. This fabric is pretty sheer. I intend for this to be a summer dress and didn't want the hassle of adding layers underneath when dressing. The pattern already provides pieces for lining the skirt. I used a nylon milliskin fabric (adding length to it as well). For the bodice, I used two layers of the main fabric. I didn't have quite enough fabric (the pattern pieces with the sleeves are huge) so on the back, it's just a partial "lining". It's not a true lining since I opted to treat the two pieces as one when sewing. I had to piece it on the back as well, you can see the CB seam (on the inside only).


I think doubling up the bodice fabric, even though it's lightweight, made the bodice drape not quite as pretty. It's kind of thick around the neckline. Maybe I'm just imagining it? I did omit the drawstring and only used elastic, since my kids inevitably mess with anything dangling off of me.


Reviewers also mentioned that the armholes were huge. To be honest, I don't know if that's true, because the directions for sewing them made NO sense to me. I did it my own way and then I did end up sewing the armhole closed farther as well.


That third line of stitching is where I sewed it closed after hemming.


So that's my 4-year dress! I think this is one of those garments that will get worn more than I think, because it will be so easy to throw on and go. I probably won't make it again because it will take too many alterations to get the pattern fixed. But at least I can cross this off my to-do list!

3 comments:

  1. I think it looks cute on you! I hope you will reconsider making another one. It would be cute in a solid also.

    ReplyDelete
  2. It looks easy and comfortable to wear, nice job!

    ReplyDelete
  3. It looks fab on you, the neckline is lovely! I have a couple projects that have sat for years, I want to sew them but for reason it never happens. I know the hair from the back feeling, I have a funky odd parting thing and it looks like I have a bald spot.

    ReplyDelete

I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to comment below.

Newsletter sign up

.