Black and White: Contest and Wardrobe Capsule

A few months ago, Rhonda asked if I would be interested in participating in the "Motor Running Competition". I was delighted and accepted her offer. Each contestant was given about a 2/3 yard piece of fabric to incorporate into a design of their choosing.

The fabric is a shirt weight barkcloth that feels like a poly/rayon blend. I didn't know the name of the fabric until Rhonda told me, but have used it in years past. I like the texture and feel of it, but hate the wrinkles. I thought it would be great to incorporate in a kimono style jacket or accent for a skirt or dress. I couldn't decide. So I turned to Pinterest to find inspiration.

I chose a black polyester crepe to complement the barkcloth.  Even though they have slightly different texture, they work well together.

A swirl design in this evening gown caught my eye. I like the waist slimming affect of it, and thought it would be flattering on my somewhat boyish lower half. The illusion of a smaller waist and curvier hips was perfect for me.

Looking through my pattern collection, Butterick 5147 was the perfect starting point for drafting the front of the dress. I used this pattern twice before; here and here.  No need to go through the long process of making my standard alternations. My concentration was more on the design and the placement of the floral print.

My first step in the drafting process was to make a copy the full front of the dress, one pattern piece. After copying the front for the left and right sides onto tracing paper, I free handed drew the design lines dividing the pattern in three separate sections for the front of the dress. I tested placing the pattern over the fabric to determine how to use the floral design in the dress.

Oops, forgive the wrinkles.

Next, I cut the apart the pattern pieces. I added the seam allowances as needed while cutting the muslin. Surprising, there were not a lot of changes needed to the muslin. One of my concerns was with the placement of the bust and the vertical waist darts. My hope was to use the design lines to absorb the darts. I achieved that for the bust darts, but the waist was a little more challenging. Some of the excess fabric of the waist was absorbed in the half circular area (in the middle) and in the side seams. That was not enough, so I found the least noticeable area in the floral print to make a shallow dart. You can see it here.

I used the same pattern pieces to create the lining. Because I only had an off-white lining on hand, I made a front and back neck faces. I didn't want the lining to show. Vogue Patterns sometime include facings and separate lining pieces. I'm going to make a point to create facings for similar lined dresses.

My construction did create a little more bulk, but it's not bad. Once I worked out the design, sewing the dress was not difficult. It went together as easily as the previous versions. This one just has a little twist to it. A fun project.

Thank you Rhonda for asking me to participate.

Wardrobe Capsule Inspiration:  Black and White

Happy Sewing!
Cennetta

PS -  This was all that was left of the barkcloth panel.