Is it wrong of me to be in love with the Fashion issue of Bust? It is like my dream fashion magazine. There are DIY tips, profiles of independent designers, and a layout of models dressed like feminist icons (where the clothes were just as likely to come from design houses as Target). I have been trying my hand at some very DIY pattern making lately and having some fun with it.
It started last month when I made this top from Simplicity 4123:
I had seen a similar pattern on SouleMama’s blog back some months back. In trying to save money, I bought the pattern with the flutter sleeves instead of cap sleeves as the flutter sleeve pattern was part of their less expensive lt’s So Easy line. To start out I copied the pattern onto butcher paper. I cut it out as is and sewed as intended. When I tried it on, I thought the waist was not defined enough, the armscyse was too big, and the bottom was a little tight on my hips. Using these observations as a guide, I traced a new silhouette on the inside of the top and re-sewed it. I worked for some time on creating cap sleeves, but couldn’t get it quite right. I left the shirt as a tank and decided to try a commercial pattern with cap sleeves at a future date to get more experience. Finally, I traced the new waistline, etc. onto the pattern I had transferred leaving me with a pattern that fit.
The fabric is a sheet (the same I used for the shower present apron) and a little bit of quilting fabric. I used the other hem of the sheet so that I didn’t have to hem the shirt, which might have been part of the problem with the tightness around the hips. The original shirt would not have been quite as long.
After finishing this project I watched Altman’s The Long Goodbye. In it Nina Van Pallandt as Eileen Wade wore an amazing 70s sundress. The waist dropped down to mid-thigh and the bottom at two huge gypsy style ruffles. The closest thing I could find is a Charlotte Ronson dress(Fall 06 Collection Dress 2), which is adorable but not quite right mainly because Ronson’s looks to be made out of jersey. However, I knew that because of my size and proportions I didn’t want the waist to drop that far and because of that I knew I had to add a third tier to make it floor length.
I am not much of a drawer (one who draws, as opposed to where you put your clothes), so I just had to keep picturing it in my head as I cut and sewed until I ended up with this:
Specs
Material: A vintage Vera sheet that I picked up at Thriftown and some lace that had been cut out (by someone else) for curtains but never used as such. When my mom saw the photo of this dress, she confirmed that my grandma had had these exact sheets.
Pattern: For the top I used the pattern above. I brought the waist in a smidge more and flared the bottom to give more ease around my hips. To make the skirt, I generally followed the direction from Threads summer issue for making a gypsy skirt. I made each tier twenty inches wider than the previous tier. Therefore since the bottom of the bodice was 40" in circumference, the first tier was 60" in circumference, the next was 80" and the lace tier was 100." (If I had really gone for it, each tier would have been maybe 30 inches wider to really get a crazy 70s look). I sewed each tier together starting at the bottom and then sewed up the side seam.
Time to sew: With cutting it out and sewing, I would say that it took about five sittings of a couple of hours each. I wore it to a wedding on July 15 and started it the Sunday previous.
Unlike Mrs. Wade I could not wear it in all it’s billowy glory without belting it. I think it has something to do with height. If I were a tall girl maybe I would feel more comfortable wearing a potato sack. Since I am not, I used a ribbon to tie it (actually Mr.’s idea, I had used a brown belt). Here it is at it’s debut:
This is the cutest dress ever!
Posted by: jenny | August 09, 2006 at 08:49 PM
It's great -- and I love the grandmother link with the vintage sheet. :)
Posted by: alison | August 10, 2006 at 08:47 AM
Excellent work!
Posted by: Gina | August 10, 2006 at 09:13 AM
awesomee... i bow down
Posted by: Laurel | August 10, 2006 at 09:57 PM
Lovely, gurl. The lace is really pretty and the whole gig looks great on you. Why is everything so much easier for the tall girls?
Posted by: anne | August 11, 2006 at 02:35 PM
Lovely, gurl. The lace is really pretty and the whole gig looks great on you. Why is everything so much easier for the tall girls?
Posted by: anne | August 11, 2006 at 02:35 PM
I love it! You did an incredible job!
Posted by: Dana | August 21, 2006 at 05:38 AM
WHY IS EVERYONE SEWING?!?!?!
Don't you people know that I am literally scrimping and saving my pennies to get myself a sewing machine?
Don't you people realize how much I am DYING--DYING I TELL YOU!--to start sewing?
Stop the torture!!!
The dress is frikkin' adorable. This does not help the desperate state I am in to GET A SEWING MACHINE.
Posted by: HibiscuitsGirl | August 22, 2006 at 03:45 PM
I love it. Looks great on you!
Posted by: cordeliaknits | August 22, 2006 at 11:07 PM
I must say I stumbled upon your site but had to comment when I saw the adorable top that matches a vintage sheet I inherited in my granny's stash. I too have turned it into a Simplicity dress and a cute toddler dress that you can see on my blog entry. http://sewkeelichic.blogspot.com/2008/05/elles-first-birthday.html
Posted by: keeli | October 30, 2008 at 11:16 AM