Sunday, May 11, 2014

finished silk copy-cat maxi-dress

Here it is! My copy-cat maxi-dress inspired by Reves Mecanique! What do you think?



You may remember that I decided to alter  Very Easy Vogue V8870 from my pattern stash from a hi-lo skirt to maxi-length. The alterations came out fairly well. The front bodice fits nicely, although the side and back I think could be taken in a little at either the waist seam or at the side seams under the bustline. I think is would be just that much more flattering if it were a tiny bit less blouse-y in the back and sides. Unlike the Sewaholic Saltspring pattern I was inspired by, this bodice has a facing at the neckline instead of being fully lined. With this fabric that worked just fine. I used lightwieght fusible interfacing on the facing and sergered the raw edge. The side seams on the bodice are finished with a french seam, and I inteneded to do the same with the skirt... but made a in a moment of absentminededness I sewed the piece right-sides together, and trimmed the seam allowed to 1/8 inch before realizing my mistake! (For french seams I should have sew wrong-sides together, trimmed seam allowence, then stitched the seam again right sides together for a beautiful encloused seam.) So I eneded up having to finish my skirt seams with the serger instead. A neat enough finish, but not as nice as french seams would have been with this lovely fabric.


The back also has elastic on the top, too, and I like how it holds the bodice in place. This pattern calls for two, narrow straps on each shoulder. I had to fiddle a fair amount to get them to lay even on the shoulders, and even still one strap likes to slip down.


The fabric is a silk/cotton blend from Grey's Fabric and Notions in Boston, MA. It sewed up very nicely. I used just a regualar size 9 needle. The fabric slipped only a tiny bit along the skirt side seams, which is barely noticible after a good pressing. Speaking of pressing... I can not seem to get the original fabric fold line out of the center back, even after a pre-wash and good pressing! Maybe it'll work itself out with wear.

I used my rolled hem foot again for the hem, and most of the hemline cam out really, really well! There were a few spots I had to go back over with hand stitches, but no one will even notice that way down by my feet! I think this will be a great tool.


Overall I am very pleased with this dress and expect to get a lot of wear out of it!

10 comments:

  1. Rolling hems like a pro!!
    Great dress :)

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    1. I'm getting there! Totally showed you only the good sections of hem. :) but honestly, I was pretty impressed with how it worked with only a little bit of practice. Hope you are doing well!

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  2. It's very glamorous! I'm super impressed with the rolled hem too. I've never tried to do one, but I'll certainly bear it in mind for the future as the finish is so neat.

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    1. If you want to try it yourself, I suggest looking up some videos on YouTube then just practice on some scarf fabrics. I think it's going to be a good tool.... especially because I don't like hemming!

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  3. Very pretty and it looks great on you.

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  4. Wow! Your rolled hem looks perfect! I still can't figure out how to do them.. I also really like the two straps on each side :)

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    1. Well... I'm showing you the part that looked perfect and leaving out some other parts. :) I originally wanted just one strap, but it looked odd with this pattern. I'm glad you like it! Thanks for the inspiration!

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