In There Like Swimwear – McCalls 7046 Pattern Review

 

This pattern was a very simple project, and I like the outcome.  For the first time I used swimwear fabric in floral white, grey, black, and pink.  Wow, it has great recovery and it feels wonderful on.  As a quick pattern review, I made View C in a size 6.  The ruching that drew me to it is created with elastic sewn to the seam allowance.  The flounce directions were easy to follow and all the seams lined up.
    

I like this dress, and will probably end up making it again more times than I should. The fabric wears like a second skin and that feels great in the Louisiana heat.  A close up of the ruching effect is below.

The Mardi Gras Dress – Vogue 9053 Pattern Review

I saw the pattern for this dress and had to have it.  I know it’s simple but look at the envelope photo.  The ice blue floor length dress, the brown girl with curly hair, it could so be me! LOL   Let’s talk about sizing on this one.  I went by the finished garment measurements printed on the pattern.  I decided that the most important piece to fit would be the waistband and went from there.

I ended up tracing out a 6, 10, and 12. The size 6 pieces I held up to myself and they seemed like they would be too small. I traced the 10 which also seemed too small, so I traced and made a muslin of the bodice in a 12. It was too large all over, so I made a muslin in the 10. I decided not to try to sew the 6 or 8 bodice to the 10 waistband and just made a straight size 10.

It is comfortable to wear, with the waistband size choice being perfect, but not quite as form fitting in the bodice as i prefer. As a pattern review, I made View A.  My only deviations were to alter construction order since I used an invisible zipper.

  

As a note, I did not use a recommended fabric. I used a black confetti print cotton and lime green silk washed habotai for the lining.  I definitely will make this again, however, next time I may experiment with using the size 6 or 8 bodice and the 10 waistband. I do want to make the floor length one in the recommended fabric charmeuse. No, I don’t have an excuse to wear it, (unless pics for you all count :)), but I still want it. 🙂

  

Ready for a Picnic – McCalls 6801 Pattern Review

  

I saw this pattern and the neckline and ruching called out to me.  I had to have it, then I read the details and saw it was lined.  Well, that was interesting because I hadn’t lined a knit before.  So, of course, I had to do it. I found this blue and white checkered jersey knit on the sale table, (and a white poly blend knit for the lining). It may be counter intuitive but I thought this dress would be great for the summer heat because then maybe the sweat associated with a heat index over 100 wouldn’t show.

As a pattern review, I made View A in the smallest size, an 8.  I think the instructions were easy to follow except that I believe that step number 9’s picture is shaded incorrectly. The instructions describe what to do correctly, but if you’re the kind of sew(er/ist) that goes from picture to picture skimming the instructions, it shows the right side of the back lining facing the right side of the front. To be correct it should show the right side of the back.

  

I’ve seen some complaints about the ruching, but I found the instructions simple and easy to follow.  It is gathering stabilized with binding, not elastic.  I’ve included a close up of the ruching below.

I thought about leaving the sleeves off, but didn’t think it looked balanced, so I completed them.  I would like to try the long sleeved version in the future.  This dress is comfortable, and I like it. I would like to note the sleeves don’t really move with the body. It will be interesting to see if that is an issue when I make a long sleeved version.

When I wore it work for pictures, a co-worker told me that it reminded him of a tablecloth for a picnic. What do you think?

A Simple Sheath Dress – McCalls 7014 Pattern Review

 

I saw this pattern sometime ago, and something about it kept me coming back to it, so on a McCall’s pattern sale day, I picked it up.  Who doesn’t need a simple sheath dress?

McCalls 7014 is shown on the envelope in plaid as seen to the right.  So I thought, why not, I can do plaid, it’s on sale. 🙂  Little did I know how much that little decision would affect the amount of time it would take to complete this dress.  Pattern matching added more time in the pattern placement and cutting phase as well as the sewing phase.  After that, whipping through the lining was a breeze.

As a pattern review, I chose the size 6 based on the finished garment measurements on the envelope.  I made View A without the pockets and with an invisible zipper.  I was drawn to the neckline, and I liked that it’s lined and doesn’t have a waistline seam.  As you can see, I used a pink, white, and black plaid cotton with a beige polyester/rayon blend lining.  I omitted the pockets, and used an invisible zipper instead of a standard one.  I really liked the neckline on this dress.  I rounded out the collar corners this time, I may make them points for a winter version, but I like this softer version.

This is a good sheath dress pattern for me. I had to make no alterations for it to fit comfortably. I probably won’t make it in a plaid again 🙂 (Yes, that’s the laziness talking).

  

 

I Couldn’t Help It, It’s Shiny – Vogue 8921 Pattern Review

I couldn’t help it.  The shiny fabric had to come home with me.  It was supposed to become a pair of pants for dance, but as you can see it became a dress instead.

As a pattern review, I made View B of Vogue 8921.  

I chose the size (6) based on the finished garment bust measurement on the package (34 in).  I omitted the sleeves because it’s hot here (in the good old summertime) and I omitted the zipper, because my fabric is stretchy enough that I don’t mind pulling it on over my head.  I ended up cutting the back pieces on the fold to eliminate that seam.

This dress was relatively easy to put together, especially since I left off the zipper and sleeves. I would like to note that I’m pretty sure I cut my crossover pieces as directed and that means that they do not stretch across my body, so that tightened my waistline a bit. I prefer it, but if you want it to stretch you may want to alter the piece placement when you cut.

Overall, I like this pattern, and I will probably make both a shorter, tighter version as well as a floor-length version with sleeves for fall/winter.