Simple Wrap Knit Dress - M3648

I love a simple wrap knit dress.  Don't you?  With the re-release of the iconic Diane von Furstenberg wrap dress, almost everyone in the sewing community snatched up a copy and made their lovely version of the 1970's dress.  And of course, you know I had to have a copy as well.  I just haven't made it up yet. Lol.  So, I added it to my already BIG collection of dress patterns.

Anyway, what I did make was a McCall's dress pattern released in 2002.  It's a simple everyday dress that sews up in about three hours.  I made this one before, before I started blogging.  So it's been over 15 years ago.  

It was perfect for a quick no-fuss sewing project.  

Pattern Description:  Misses' dresses:  A-line wrap dress has tie variations and long or cap sleeves; dresses A and B have dropped shoulders; dresses A and D have a collar.  I made view D with a few minor adjustments.

Pattern Sizing:  When I used it last, I was a size 12.  So, I graded it up to fit.  

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?  Oh yes,  it did.

Were the instructions easy to follow?  The instructions were typical, but nothing confusing or difficult in them.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?  I like that it is a simple wrap dress, in my opinion, that fits me well.  No real dislike.

Fabric Used:  My fabric was purchased at Hobby Lobby.  It is a textured knit that I got on sale in the Spring.  I really make a practice of pre-washing my fabric almost as soon as I get it home.  So, the yardage went into the washer the same day I purchased it along with several other knits.  No problem sewing it.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: You'll find this surprising.  I didn't make a FBA!.  Same as before.  I did make a slight broad shoulder adjustment.  And I added a few inches to the length.  That's it!  This was a super easy sew.  No other changes.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I think I will.  When, I don't know.  And yes, I do recommend it to others if you have it.  It has great bones and it so easy to sew.

Conclusion: I love how this dress turned out, again. Lol  A quick and easy wrap knit dress.  On trend with something old. Lol

 

Happy Sewing!

C

 

Easy, Breezy Summer Dress - Simplicity S8735 and Simplicity S8637

There is nothing like a floaty, breezy summer dress.  This one has been in the making for two years.  Last week I finally finished it, and I am glad I did. 

 

Here again, I decided to use two different patterns to come up with the style that I wanted.  I used Simplicity S8735 for the bodice and Simplicity S8637 for the skirt and the flounce sleeve.  

I decided to use S8735 because it included different patterns for the cup sizes.  So all I needed to do was select my cup size and tweak it a little bit.  For the skirt, it was very easy.  No serious fit adjustments; just a little tweaking.  I used size 16 for both.  Both patterns are over six years old.  But they may be still in print. 

 

Because the bodice of S8735 is above the waist, my dress also sits above the waist.  That's something that you need to pay attention to if you're splicing patterns together.  

What I like about my new dress is:

• The wrap - I love a wrap dress.  Perfect for my body shape.
• Princess seam - easy to make fit adjustments.  In this case, having the different cup sizes made it even easier.
• The flounce on the skirt - Who doesn't love a full skirt dress. 
• The flounce of the sleeve - I wanted to try something a little different.  This is a cute style design.

No dislikes.

The fabric is from Mood Fabrics.  They may not have it in stock.  It's been in my collection for at least 4 years.  But I’m sure they have similar cottons that would look great in a summer dress.

 

I'll wear this fit and flare beauty as soon as an opportunity presents itself.

 

More sewing projects to come.  So stay tuned!

 

Happy Sewing,

C

My First Cashmerette Appleton Dress

Wheee!

After that ten plus hour blouse, I needed something quick and easy.  The Cashmerette Appleton Dress fit the bill.  I used her sizing chart and my t-shirt dress sloper to help identify my size.  This process significantly reduced the amount of time that I would spend on fit adjustments.

One of the beauties of Cashmerette's patterns is that they include multiple cup sizes beyond D, which is great for a lot of people.  So for this dress I used size 16 with cup size E/F.  This was spot on for me.  The only other pattern alterations and changes made were lengthen the dress by 3 inches, lengthen the sleeve by 2 inches, lengthen the ties, and added just a little width across the back.    I didn't make a swayback adjustment because the dress ties around the waist.  

 

I can have a dozen of these dresses in my closet.  ;-)

 

The Appleton Dress is described as the classic wrap dress designed to play up your curves with a crossover front, a built-in waist tie, and a deep v-neck.  Designed by and for curvy women.

It is available in sizes 12 to 28 with cup sizes C/D, E/F, and G/H. 

My dress looks like the illustrations on the pattern cover.  And I am very pleased with how it turned out.

The instructions were good.  Easy to follow.  I really like that the construction for the ties, neck, and front bands. It creates a neat, clean finish.

There is so much to like about this dress; no dislikes for me.

Likes:

• Easy to sew classic wrap dress.
• Multiple cup size for easy fitting.
• Shoulder length is perfect.
• Stylish and classic
• Great wardrobe staple.

 

My fabric choice was perfect for this wrap dress.  It is a ITY jersey knit from Gorgeous Fabrics: Bold Scale Paisley ITY jersey

It sews up beautifully.  Before cutting it out, I tossed the fabric into the washer, then into the dryer.  Just a great yardage of fabrics that washes well too.  It has a soft hand and is great against the skin. 

I've already cut my second dress out.  So you can expect to see this wrap dress over and over again on my blog.  I highly recommend it to others.  But I think a large percentage of the online sewing community has already try it. 

 This is a great classic wrap dress.  A must have staple for every well dressed lady.  

Happy Sewing!

C

The Pleated Wrap Dress - Butterick B6703

If you follow me on Instagram, you've seen my posts on "My Dress Projects" that I'm currently working on.  I "need" some new ones.  Lol.  Actually, I've been making so many masks.  I need to get back to making other things.

This Butterick wrap dress is relatively new, published 2019.  I haven't made a wrap dress in awhile.  So, I put this one next on my list to sew.

Butterick pattern description:  Wrap dress has semi-fitted bodice with tie closures, front pleats and narrow hem. A: 3/4 sleeve with double-stitched hem, straight skirt with right front pleats. B: 3/4 sleeve with flounce. C: long sleeve with elastic casing. B, C: flared skirt.

I made view A with a ton of adjustments and process changes.  Honestly, I started to write this as two post instead of the one.  But I have some other posts I want to get to this week.

This pattern comes in size groupings (8-16) and (18W- 24W).  I used size 16 with modifications.

The instructions were typical.  Some I didn't follow because there are other construction processes that I like to use.  There is nothing confusing in the instructions.  The pattern is raked: easy; and it was.

My dress has a lot of changes, but it does look like the dress pictured on the envelope.

There are several things I like about the dress and a few things I disliked about it.  First, my likes: wrap dress, pleats, sleeve variations, skirt-waist dress, and knit comfy.  My dislikes:  I didn't like the way the tie worked and the neckline finishing.

The fabric that I used is from Minerva Fabrics.  It is a very nice jersey knit with about 30% four-way stretch. The John Kaldor Abstract Floral Print Stretch Jersey knit has some of my favorite colors.  Yes, I know it looks a little Fall-ish.  But these colors work well with my skin tone.  I used a sharp sewing machine needle, size 12. The jersey and microtex needles produced a lot of skipped stitches. 

I made numerous pattern alterations and a few construction changes:

• FBA - this one was huge.  I probably created more work for myself.    Anyway, I began with slashing the front right bodice to add more width and a little more length.  Pictured above.  To eliminate the gapping neckline, I made a small tuck.  With the added width, I had to make an additional pleat at the waist.  The remaining width was removed from the side.  Sorry, it's not pictured here.
  
• For the left bodice front, I needed to also add more width and length.  That change resulted in the adjusted above.  Similar to the right side, difference is an additional dart at the waist.  The rest is the same as the right front bodice.

• Prominent Shoulder Blades, Swayback, forward shoulder Adjustments - First I slashed the back from the shoulder seam to the end of the back (at the waist).  Then I create a small dart at the shoulder so that the shoulder back and front seams are the same length. This change also increase the  width at the waist. I removed the excess at the waist.  Not shown in picture. Next for the swayback I added a tuck starting at the center back and graduating to nothing near the side seam.  Also, I added a center back seam for a better fit.  Finally, for the slightly forward shoulder adjustment I added a little vertical length as needed.  See shoulder seam area.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• Now for the skirt - almost always I need to lengthen the skirt.  In this case, I only lengthen it by 2".  I could have added more.  I like my skirt to fall at the bottom of my knee.  So next time I'll at 1.5" more.  So lengthening is easy.  With all the changes to the bodice, some changes are needed in the skirt. 
• Let start with the back skirt.  It's the easiest.  In additional to lengthening the back skirt, I added the tucked amount from the back bodice to the bottom of the skirt.  The compensated for the curved back area.  The left skirt front was lengthen the same as the back.  For the right skirt.  I added width from the waist to the hem to create an additional pleat.  The number of pleats in the skirt, now match the number of pleats in the bodice.  (Note:  This was an after thought. After I noticed that the pleats were off by one.)  Barely noticeable though.  So I had to make adjustments to the top and bottom of the front right skirt.  See picture above.
  
  
  
  

• Construction change - 
• Neck Binding - I preferred to bind with fashion fabric.  So instead of bias tape, I cut a neck band about 22.5" long (3" shorter than the neckline) and 2.25" width.  I folded it in half wrong side together. Pressed. Attached it to neckline easing in the excess.  Then I turned the neck band to the inside and stitched again.  This creates a nice sturdy neckline.
• Belt - Preference again.  I'm not fond of the twill tape ties on the inside.  I prefer to thread the belt through a slit at the side waist.  So that's what I did.  For the left belt, I made it long enough to wrap around the back to the left side with the length to tie the same as the right belt.  I created a small slit on the right side for the belt to go through.
• For the narrow hem, I pressed the seam allowance for the hem, applied steam a seam right at the fold line.  Then turned the raw edges in.  At the areas where the belt is attached, I only  turned in the skirt.  Once the hem was finished for the skirt, I secured the belt by making another row of stitches 1/4" away from the edge.

A lot of changes, right?  Whatever it takes. ;-)  With all those changes, I MUST make this dress again.  At least one of the other views.

I like it, and I do recommend it to others.  You might want to make a muslin.  Sorry, I didn't this time. I thought I could wing it.  I think my dress turned out pretty good.  It will be in high rotation when the crisis goes away.

Thank you for stopping by and for reading this very long review.  I truly wanted to include all of the details of "my" sewing experience.  Yours may be different. wink, wink.  Anyway, have a great day!

Happy Sewing!
C