So recently I had a birthday, and my children gave me a perfectly lovely surprise! fabric of their choice, for a particular pattern also of their choice. It's like Sew Bossy all over again!! haha, I jest, of course in all seriousness I'm absolutely thrilled that they thoughtfully gave me something that they know that I really love ie. a sewing project, and also for me, this is a very interesting insight into their vision of me, the kind of thing that they "see" me wearing.
Well, specifically, I suspect Cassie did all the choosing and so this is therefore her vision of, and for, me. She snuck quietly into the laundry and chose this pattern from my stash, Vogue 1281, and then zipped off and secretly bought the fabric from Fabulous Fabrics.
An interesting concept no? *adopts deep thinking stance* If others choose your clothing for you without your input, then does the result say more about you and your style, or about the chooser and their taste? or maybe it says something about the relationship you have with them? Food for thought, hmmm...
The previous, first time I made up this pattern I used old Tshirts and banged it together a bit, then pretty much tucked the pattern back into the stash; a mental "been there, done that!" ticked off in my head. For this new version the fabric was a obviously just a wee bit more precious to me, and I took my time, carefully and lovingly getting everything just as right as I could :)
My original flippant assessment was that this is a very unusual pattern. Revisiting the pattern has only reinforced this assessment. This really is a unique design in amongst my very extensive collection of unique patterns.
Firstly; I sized down. This pattern is LOOSE!
The structure of the dress is all reliant upon the "lining", which is essentially a thing that we call here a "boob tube". Or if you prefer, a bandeau bikini top. Basically the whole dress hangs upon that! The first time I made it, I made it quite differently, NOT going with the separate boob tube but instead joining the dress and lining together totally at the top. I don't think one way is superior to the other. Just observing that this dress is constructed as intended, with the boob tube lining kept quite separate.
In my opinion, if you are making it as intended then it is essential that the boob tube lining fits as perfectly as possible, and it is easier to do this if it is made separately.
My fabrics are all stretchy, so I didn't put a zip in the back but just stitched up that centre back seam. IF doing this, my recommendation is that the strap be attached to the dress and not to the boob tube lining at all. I then secured the top of the dress to the boob tube by discreet hand stitching at a few key points; centre back seam, the general underarm area, and underneath the straps at the front.
A fitting tip, with my bodice fabric being quite stretchy, I still had to take in quite a lot of excess width from the bodice. I did this fitting adjustment all through the centre back seam and modified the placement of the right strap accordingly.
Details:
Dress; Vogue 1281, rayon/poly and bamboo/poly stretch jersey knit. Thin, liquidy, flowy cool. The beige is very fine, soft and matte, the print is a bit thicker and springy.
Sandals; Zomp, from Zomp boutique
