In this review I will include information on two dresses that were "partially" made from S2926. For the first dress, I made alterations to copy an inspiration dress. And the second one, I used the bodice to save what would have been a disaster.
In January 2009, I started a series of projects called "Copy That". I am constantly on the hunt for fashion that appeals to my taste and life style. I found the inspiration dress in Marie Claire magazine, which features a tweed coat a top of an audacious print dress, "Classy meets Sassy".
I like both pieces. And plan to make a similar coat with a basketweave boucle purchased from Gorgeous Fabrics.
I used this simplicity pattern to copy the style of the Peter Sow dress.
Pattern Description: Short waist dress, midriff with skirt variations.
Pattern Sizing: 8 - 24, I used 14 a neckline, 16 through the shoulder and upper body to capture the fullness of the inspiration dress. For the skirt I used to straight pattern size 14.
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? No. I changed it to match the inspiration dress. But based on the paper pattern I think it would look very much like the photo on the pattern.
Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes the parts of it that I followed.
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I selected this pattern because it was the perfect solution for creating the Peter Sow dress. It had a similar neckline and bodice. Making the adjusts in the bodice and the elasticized waist was easy. I didn't dislike anything about it as I had a special goal in mind when I selected it.
Fabric Used: silky polyester floral print that I purchased at JoAnn's a few years ago. I didn't know what I would make out of it when I purchased it, but it was perfect for the Sow dress.
Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made:There were several including my usual FBA. I added bust darts, extended the bodice, eliminated the midriff, made the sleeve band half the width, and added elastic to the waist.
Initial Alterations and Inspiration Information
After I attached the bodice to the skirt and tried the dress on, I noticed the bodice was too long. I decreased the bodice length by 1 1/2 inch then reattached it. Perfect.
The sleeve band was wider than I wanted for this dress. So I cut two bands instead of four. Then I folded them in half, stitched the short seam of each, then sewed one end of the length to the sleeve. To finish it, I slip stitched it closed.
Elastic waist - I sewed a 7/8 seam allowance. Turn it down toward the skirt and stitch to make the elastic casing. Then threaded 3/8 inch elastic measured for by waist. At the back opening I stitched closed the ends of the casting with the elastic slightly passed the end. Then I inserted the zipper.
Now for the second dress. This was truly a "save the dress anyway you can". I blogged about five must haves last fall and the structured dress was included in the five. Well, Vogue has the perfect structured dress. V8280, which has been reviewed here several times.
Well, my first mistake was not making a muslin. The back was too tight and the flange didn't lay flat and had some excess fabric at the side seam. You can imagine I was disappointed when I couldn't come up with a quick fit. The fabric that I used was leftover from a dress that I made many, many years. There was only about a yard to make the bodice.
I wanted/needed a quick fit. So I took the top of the S2926 and combined it with the bottom of V8280 to come up with a wearable dress.
Fabric: Very nice polyester for the skirt and leftover dupioni silk from DD Easter dress.
Changes:
Continued the back darts through the midriff to address my sway back.
Followed the same sleeve band application as the inspiration dress, adding a inch more to the width.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I probably will not make this one again. I think I've worked "it" enough. But do try it if it suits your taste. It's not a difficult pattern to sew, and I didn't notice any fuzzy instructions on how to make it.
Conclusion: This pattern was the perfect solution to copy my inspiration dress. And the plus is: it saved the bottom of my V8280 dress (will try again in the fall).
