Sew Wrong

MMM 12 – May 25

MMM 12 - May 25

Me-Made-Item: Dress, McCalls 4868 (OOP)
Link to Original Review: N/A, made before I started my blog

Cardigan: INC

Wearability Report:

I’ve gotten a lot of wear out of this dress in the past seven years.  Yes, seven years ago, during my first summer out of college, I stitched up this halter dress and have worn it just about every summer since then.  I think that speaks pretty highly to its wearability!  I forgot all about this dress last summer (buried somewhere in a closet) and pulled it out to pack for my vacation this week.  The only bummer about this dress is that since I made it so long ago (specifically after my freshman year…read between the lines on that one) I need to take in the sides quite a bit – it fits a lot looser around the top now.  My cardigan covers up the fact that in the back, my strapless bra is showing and there’s gape-age around the sides.  I’ll have to pick it apart when I get home (gulp!) and nip in the sides a bit so that it fits again and I can wear it all summer long.

Follow:

MMM ’12 – May 12

MMM 12 - May 12

Me-Made Item: Dress
Link to Original Review: Vogue 1224 (July 8, 2011)

Sandals: Marc Fisher
Shades: Bulgari
Nail Polish: Essie “Watermelon”

Wearability Report:

Even though I originally pledged that I was only going to try to wear me-made items on my days off from work, when I came home on Saturday, it was way too warm and beautiful out not to pop on one of my summer dresses.  And since my boyfriend and I were going out to dinner (I wanted outdoor seating and Coronas), a dress was something I wanted to wear for our mini “date night.”

I wore this dress a bunch last summer after I made it, and I loved it so much that I made it again in another fabric.  It’s lightweight and cool, and the sleeves aren’t really sleeves, it’s more like fabric that floats over my shoulders.  I’m not surprised at all that this is a “Best Pattern of 2011” on PatternReview.com because it’s so flattering on everyone, great to wear, and a cinch to make.  I stayed nice and cool all evening in the 80 degree weather.

Follow:

MMM ’12- May 5

MMM 12 - May 5

Me-Made Item: Dress
Link to original review: McCall’s 6200 (Oct. 25, 2011)

Leggings: DKNY Smoothies
Flats: Franco Sarto
Bag: Coach

Wearability Review:

I’ve worn this dress a bunch since I made it last October.  I first wore it in 80 degree weather in Arizona as-is, wore it with leggings, layered a long sweater cardigan over it for work, and paired it with tights and boots all last winter.  The style of it and weight of the fabric, along with the color and print I chose, make it an all-season kind of dress depending on how it’s styled, and I’m always comfortable wearing it.  After thinking about this dress today, I realized I want to make at least one more!  Sure, it’s not the most exciting dress silhouette that I’ve made, but when I reflected on how much I’ve worn the other dresses in my closet, this one definitely wins the “most worn” award.  I was even wondering today if I could turn the pattern into a sleeveless dress, eliminating the raglan sleeve and turning the neckband into shoulder straps.

Another bonus: it’s great for going out to dinner since there’s no defined waist!  I ate all the sausage and pasta I wanted to this evening.

Wear Rating: 10/10

Follow:

On My Cutting Table: Vogue 1250

vogue 1250

It feels like I’m the last sewing blogger to attempt this DKNY dress pattern that came out last spring, but I kept my eye on it until I found the right fabric.  It’s not often that I find a sewing pattern that a) looks good on all body types, b) is super easy to make, and c) is a designer sewing pattern.

I took the pattern out of the envelope this afternoon and marveled at the construction of this dress: it’s essentially only two pieces (minus the neck facing)!  The whole front and lower back skirt are one piece that join in a seam in the back, and the upper back piece is then connected to the shoulders, lower skirt, and sides.  It’s a brilliantly constructed pattern and I can’t wait to cut this one out – looks like it’ll be a quick enough sew for me to wear to work this week with a blazer.

Also – I must be on a black and white kick.  The last dress I made was b&w, I just finished my Simplicity 2369, a black and white top with black pants (pics to come), and now this dress.  Plus, I bought fabric for two button-up tops that are black and white floral prints!  Now I know I need to inject some color into my sewing!

Follow:

Vogue 8138 – Three Hour Dress

Vogue 8138

Vogue 8138

Pattern: Vogue 8138 (OOP), View C
Fabric: Matte jersey from Gorgeous Fabrics
Size: 10 graded to a 12, with fit modifications

Cardigan: INC
Lipstick: NARS Manhunt

This dress sprung from an idea one night on a train ride home from work.  I work in retail, and on that particular day I was in my dress department for most of the day – organizing racks, putting out new merchandise, etc.  So while I was sitting on the train, listening to my iPod, I kept thinking about all of the cute spring dresses I was playing with all day and how I really wanted a new dress to wear.  As in, to wear to work.  Tomorrow.  Hmmm….

I ordered a swirly matte jersey from Gorgeous Fabrics a few weeks prior and couldn’t remember what I bought it for – it was probably one of those “ooo I want to put that in my shopping cart!” kind of purchases.  One thing I’ve learned about sewing with knits is that simplicity is key: a busy print like this doesn’t demand a complicated garment design.  It seemed like a simple pull-over dress would be the right choice, and lucky enough, I had a basic pattern in my collection.

For some reason, I felt it necessary to post on Facebook, ” I’m crazy…sewing a dress tonight to wear to work tomorrow. ”  And of course, the follow-up comments were “can’t wait to see!” and “pics plz.”  So it was on!  People knew and there was no turning back!  

Vogue 8138

Honestly, I can’t remember a time I made something this quickly, and I really think I am the world’s slowest stitcher.  The dress is only a two piece tank dress with four seams total: the side seams and shoulder seams.  I think the most time consuming part was fitting the dress since my typical cutting mods (10 graded out to a 12 from waist to hip) ended up fitting too loosely, or at least, not how I wanted this dress to fit.  I pulled it on, pinned it how I wanted it to fit, and marked stitching lines to take it in.  I probably ended up making the top a size 8 and the skirt a size 10 based on how much I took the dress in, but I’m not certain.
So yes, I pulled it off and wore this to work the following day!  It was slightly not in dress code (I’m supposed to wear mostly black), but I think I sneaked by because when asked about what I was wearing, I told everyone that I whipped the dress up the previous evening – that was enough to distract from the fact that really, I was out of dress code.  A little.  Maybe.
This pattern has been hanging out in my stash since 2008 when I first sewed the failed convertible cardigan, a very popular cardigan at the time.  It’s nice to go back and resurrect a pattern that didn’t work the first time, kind of like what I did for my Vogue 1020 pattern.  Sometimes patterns are worth a second shot, especially if it’s a wardrobe pattern with multiple basic garment options.  I can definitely see making this dress again in the summer with a bright floral fabric, or maybe altering the neckline and coming up with an entirely new design.  This dud is now a keeper.

Vogue 8138

Follow: