Tuesday, July 9, 2013

One dress done...

Hi there,

So the first dress is done. Well, really the second dress...keep reading and you will understand what I mean.  I have to share with you that this was not as quick of a project as I expected. Robin, the new addition to our blogging team, had to sew this dress twice. Yes, twice. We're going to call it a "learning experience". I picked out the fabric from one of my warehouse walk throughs. I loved the colors and the softness of the knit. It had not hit the floor yet, so I grabbed a roll for our online store and a piece for Robin to make a dress from. After looking at a few patterns, we decide on Simplicity 1804 . We felt this one was simple and versatile and would be flattering to many body types. The twist really helps define the smallest part of your body. Before I show you the final dress, I'm going to show you the first one Robin made.
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As soon as it came together Robin realized the fabric did not line up right in the front and that the seam there was just not flattering.  After I tried it on a few times, we decided to make it again but the second time Robin knew she would have to tweaked the pattern a bit. First, she adjusted the center front seam piece of the pattern to go on the fold which got rid of the seam right between my boobs. Really, who wants that?! Lol.
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Here she is placing it on the fabric...
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We also felt the neckline was too low. Here she is making the adjustment to the neckline...
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The last tweak was adding length to the bodice. The pattern called for the twist to be right below the breasts. Besides the fact that I have a long torso, it just felt too high to us so she dropped it down a bit. From looking at the finished dress you can see it is still pretty high. It really wouldn't have worked on my torso the way the pattern called for.
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Next she ironed the interfacing onto the fabric before she cut the pattern out.  Doing this helps prevent any possible shrinkage to pattern piece.
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Lastly she had to make some adjustments as she was pinning to make sure everything lined up and then it was onto sewing.
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We decided to make the second dress shorter. Personally I like a little leg and I just thought it would be nice for our readers to see it both ways.

So here is the finished dress. I wore it to work today and had so many compliments. It is always fun, even for our employees, to see the fabric come to life.
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I really like the style and comfort of this dress, as it's perfect for work or going out to lunch on a weekend. Just be prepared you may have to tweak the pattern a bit to fit your individual body. Thank goodness Robin has a great eye and could make it work.

Any questions, please let us know.

Thanks & enjoy!

Regina & Robin

5 comments:

  1. I love the tweaks you made to the pattern! It's a really cute dress!

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  2. I like the second dress, with the adjustments, much better. I do think a long version would still be attractive and comfortable, but the knee length is so much more versatile. A very flattering dress!

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  3. I like the shorter version. I will have to cut my next one higher like you did, as I have to wear something under mine to cover my bra and that is just annoying.

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  4. Another suggestion is the cami bra from Soma Intimates. I love this bra with tops that are a little low. I have a few pics of me wearing it on our Instagram page...michaellevinefabrics

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  5. It looks great Regina! I don't like seams in the middle of my boobs either.

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