Tuesday, April 12, 2011

BWOF 10-2010-128 - My First Garment on the Runway


This is the first of several reviews of the Haute Couture Fashion show 2011 garments made by yours truly. First, I'd like to say it was wonderful participating in the fashion show this year. It allowed me the opportunity to experience the formal steps involved in getting my creation on the runway.




Last fall, my sister and I sat down to look at possible fashion show outfits. This Burda dress was one choice we thought would be great for the show. It had incredible lines and gave me a chance to use something from my many, many BWOF magazines. I started on the dress in January.

My first challenge with this garment was tracing all of those pieces. Man o man. This step took a lot of time. The second challenge arose when it didn't fit. Burda magazine patterns run are larger than the big four. Ie., McCalls 12 is Burda 10. Finally, I tried tracing a smaller size and re-cutting the pieces of the dress. Here is the review.

Featured in - Out of Africa segment

Pattern Description: funnel neck knit dress with side panels and flared sleeves.

Pattern Sizing: sizing 72 - 88. You know BWOF has some special sizes for tall or petite pattern. The size I eventually selected was equivalent to size 10.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, but the sides in the magazine appeared to be more tapered at the waist. I think Rosy said that Burda probably had the dress pinned at the back to give the tapered silhouette.


Were the instructions easy to follow? Well, the instructions were typical Burda instructions. Several bloggers helped me with interpreting the instructions. Thank you, guys! See this post for details.

More details can be found here.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? Sis, DD and I liked everything about it. The style of the dress and the two-tone, two textures. I can't say I have any dislikes. I had a little trouble with sizing and construction of the two textures, but no real quarrel with the dress.

Fabric Used: Faux suede and a stable knit from Hancock. Both fabrics handled well.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I didn't have to alter any of the pattern pieces, which was nice. The only change I made was using faux suede instead of leather.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes. My daughter and sister want would like this dress in another color. And instead of faux suede, they want leather.

Conclusion: This is a very unique dress that will definitely get a lot of attention. It looks complicated, but it was easy to sew once I got past the challenges. It’s a great look. Try it.



Here is my flickr set on this project.

8 comments:

  1. This dress was beautiful. Your sister sure knows how to walk the runway; what a great model to have!

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  2. The dress looks stunning, another one I should have made for the winter - oh well maybe next year. It's funny I have always found McCalls to run much larger than Burda but maybe it varies by style?

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  3. I remember your post on this dress, it look fabulous and she is such a "pretty model", she looks great in it.

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  4. I was hoping you would post pictures of this dress when it was completed. It looks as wonderful as I thought it would. Your sister looks beautiful in it. I can understand why you got requests to make it again. I have used leather in combination with wools and other fabrics and it always look great. How do you really feel about making this dress two more times?

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  5. Thanks, ladies. Audrey - After making this first version, I'm confident that I can make it again. The pattern has been adjusted so there is no problem there. With help from you and others, I know how to put it together. I'm actually looking forward to making it again (with leather).
    Thanks again,
    Cennetta

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