{Sooo, what’s going on? It’s actually been well over a month since I made this dress, took these pictures and half wrote this whole post too so maybe I should say something about my absence. Later.
Meanwhile, over to 6-weeks-ago me …}
This fabric is so cute! I absolutely love it! well I love the pattern too of course, but I’m going to start with the fabric… I bought it at Spotlight last year, it’s a Jocelyn Proust design. Actually, Spotlight is on a roll with great Jocelyn Proust designs at the moment… there are lots of absolutely gorgeous ones and it’s nearly impossible to choose just one. Fortunately when I got this one it was the first one I’d seen, as well as the only one in the store at the time, so I was just like WOW! I love this! *grab* *buy* A coupla weeks later and there were now lots of really beautiful Jocelyn Proust designs in the store from which to choose… but I think I still would have chosen this one!
It’s cotton drill; such practical stuff, and nice to both sew and wear, and I absolutely couldn’t resist the colours … I love navy blue and raspberry pink together. Also; crimson rosellas. Any Aussie-specific print is going to catch my eye in the shops and I think this one is really cute.
The pattern is the cover dress of the Burda 08/2019 magazine, dress 118; I’d earmarked it as a must-make from the first flick-through of the magazine… then as soon as the crimson rosella fabric came into my life I was like bingo. The design of the dress is quite interesting, with a sort of faux bib-front look to it, a raised faced section both front and back of the dress with set-in side panels that help form the pockets. It’s hard to explain actually, but you can get an idea of how the front sits out over the side panels in the side view shot above. The “sitting-out” bits have long, oddly shaped facings, that I managed to miraculously cut out from a fairly small piece of navy blue cotton drill, the final leftovers from these Issey Miyake pants from a few years ago. I only had to piece together one little bit on both facings. The pattern stipulates a lining, which I decided to leave off because I want to wear mine in the heat of summer… so I needed a way to finish off the armhole edges. I drafted some facings by just splicing the side pieces together, tracing the raw edge, and cutting the subsequent facings to be the same width as the other facings, for a matching look inside. All edges inside are finished on the overlocker, with matching bone-coloured thread, mostly because I couldn’t be bothered changing the overlocking thread to navy from the bone I used for the fabric itself! but in the end I really like the look of contrasting colour here.
The dress is drafted as a petite design, so I checked the burda size charts to see what changes I might need to make. I decided to add in 2cm length to the bodice area of the dress on all pieces, did a quick pattern mockup and this was just the right amount, I think. The pockets would have just been sitting that little bit too high on me, otherwise. I love the pocket design on this dress too, but if I made it again I would make them just little bit deeper, maybe 2cm or so. They are ok the way they are, but you know. When it comes to pockets, size does matter!
The pocket linings are also cut from the same navy blue cotton drill.
I love the design; it is just slightly on the boxy side which I like for a summer dress. You’re supposed to put in a whacking long invisible zip in the centre back seam, which I did, very obediently. And then discovered, as you do; that I can actually slip the dress on over my head without having to undo the zip. Of course!
Oh, and I ended up re-hemming the dress to be about an inch shorter. That doesn’t sound very much, but I think it looks a lot better, even that small amount made a difference! From just verging on slightly frumpy to Jackie O chic in just an inch!
This is the fifth thing made from my #makenine that is really twelve, list of 12 designs and fabrics that I promised myself at the end of last year. Hmmm, what should I make next?!
Details:
Dress; Burda 08/2019;118, cotton drill
White oxford shoes, made by me, details here
Black tights; made by me, details here
Black boots; made by me, details here
So… what’s been happening, indeed… well LOTS in the world obviously. From the perspective of our family here, we lost an important, elderly family member at the beginning of June, and it’s been a very emotional and rather difficult time for us, separately and on top of everything else. By “everything else” I mean the continuing and not inconsiderable anxieties of Covid-19, and the very important “black lives matter” movement – for which I am obviously pro – and just some other family stuff, so mmm. It’s been a lot. I don’t want to go on and on about it because this is my just-for-fun sewing blog and not a “let’s offload all one’s emotional baggage upon an innocent world” blog, and I prefer to dwell on the positive.
With regard to the BLM movement, so I’ve been buying fabric! supporting indigenous makers. I’m just going to copy and paste here what I already wrote in instagram…
I’ve been thinking about the best way to show my support for blacklivesmatter and as a fervent sewing peep I think using more indigenous textiles is a good start… I was so excited to receive my first purchase the other day… this beautiful piece of fabric, “Tjilkamala Rockhole” designed by Alice Nampitjinpa… this talented lady recently won a collaboration with Gorman clothing with another piece of beautiful artwork so I’m extra excited my first purchase should be from such an amazing artist! …
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This piece was produced by @ikuntjiartists and purchased through @flyingfoxfabrics and I’m so grateful these cooperations exist to make indigenous work accessible and available to us…
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I am humbled and inspired by my country’s rich and ancient indigenous culture that has survived here for millenia … I wish to learn how to better honour and protect the Aboriginal people, as well as acting to create a kinder and more respectful future for everyone here in this beautiful country I am so grateful to call home … I’m looking forward to researching and buying more indigenous art fabric, and, if I’m allowed a rather shallow final note, cannot wait to sew something lovely to wear from it, too! #sewing
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I’m so thrilled this beautiful length of art fabric has arrived! This print is “Mandem” designed by Eva Nganjmirra and printed on linen by @injalakarts a wholly Aboriginal owned and governed community art centre in the Northern Territory… and from whom I purchased this piece. .
I can’t wait to trawl through my patterns and make something hopefully worthy enough to do justice to this beautiful work.
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#sewing
ALSO… in the meantime, I also participated in me-made May last month, as usual. I pledged to wear 100% me-made, including my shoes and underwear, because why not? I have plenty of me-made things to wear! I was happy to achieve this, and to also mix and match my existing wardrobe so as to not repeat anything during the month either, apart from obviously black tights and a few of my shoes. There was only one tiny fail at the end there, where I neglected to wear me-made shoes for the final two days of the month, because we’d gone down south and I just decided oh to heck with it.
Here are my outfits for the month. Absolutely everything made by me, except for the boots on the last two days of the month 
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