Sweater knit skater dresses

It's been a while, yeah?  Between a busy teaching quarter, broken sewing machine, and a newfound obsession with knitting, I haven't been sewing as much as usual.  Which isn't to say I haven't been sewing (there will be several upcoming posts of my past garments), it's just slowed down a bit.  It's actually a little ironic, since I made a loose "resolution" to not purchase any clothing that I could sew (which is *almost* everything) for the year. 

Anyhow, for my winter work attire, I thought some sweater dresses would be useful.  I absolutely fell in L<3VE with these jacquard sweater knits from Hamburger Liebe (navy & pumpkin and wine & pink fabric, purchased at L'oiseau Fabrics) and a skater dress felt like a good way to showcase them.  Both fabric are the same type of knit and both are thick and lovely, with good drape but not too heavy.  They wash beautifully, too! 

I made the navy & pumpkin one first.  It works well with tights and boots, and I have a cropped cardigan that I wear when it's chilly (which is always in my teaching lab). 

Here's a closer view of the fabric.  Isn't that pattern the best?  And the colors?  Faves.

Both dresses were sewn using the same pattern, a personalized version of the Bronx dress from SBCC.  I've used this pattern a ton and just love the simple, yet flattering shape of the fit and flare.  It's pretty ideal for work and non-work.  

The second version feels a little "flashier" with the bold herringbone geometric, but I love it just the same.  

I did my best to match up the vertical lines at the waist seam, but the same is curved on the skirt, so it's a bit sketchy toward the side seams.

Since the hems aren't really stretched much when wearing, I went ahead and sewed a straight stitch, which worked just fine.  I definitely didn't feel like busting out my coverstitch machine for these quick projects.  

While the fabric has some stretch, it's not quite enough to use like a rib knit, so I topstitched the neck band, to ensure it would lay flat.  

Alas, no pockets on either dress.  They are definitely missed, but it would just be way too bulky/ lumpy.  Trade-offs!

Two fit + flare dresses

Again, I couldn't help but make two of the same pattern!  This time the pattern is the Bronx dress from SBCC, with some fit alterations (armhole redo, back width increase, sleeve redraft).  As I'm sure I've mentioned on this blog before, I just love the fit and flare shape.  What I especially love about this dress, though, is that I can sew it in way less than 2 hours, from cutting the fabric to hemming.  Plus, it only takes like 1.5 yards of fabric, so it's kind of a stash-buster, too.

I made this wallpaper floral knit dress first, just because I adore the fabric. It might be a little bold for Paris, but I like bright colors and patterns, so I guess I'll just stick out.  Plus, the poppies will remind me of California when I'm homesick.

Looks like I could use a it of a sway back adjustment, too, but I don't see back there too often :)

Simple and comfy, yet a bit dressy.  My kind of travel outfit.

So the second dress came about because I got my schedule for school in Paris.  The first three official days are going to be spent working Paris Fashion Week!  Backstage, we'll be assisting the models into their haute couture garments.  Holy crap, guys, I will be able to touch and see the insides of haute couture dresses!

But the catch is that we have to wear black.  For three days.  Clearly I don't really *do* black clothing (my dark neutral is navy, obviously).  In fact I've only made two black garments (I believe, though my memory is pretty crap): this black skirt, which I made for a funeral, and a pair of black pants that wasn't properly blogged about and no longer exist in my wardrobe.

Of course, I immediately ran out to buy a few yards of black stretch knit and whipped up another Bronx dress.   With the leftovers, I made a simple black tee to go with some RTW black pants I already owned (to be blogged about shortly).  Two outfits is going to have to be good enough for three days....hopefully no one notices.

A black dress is definitely a useful staple item in a wardrobe, and perhaps more appropriate for Paris, so I'm really pleased with the addition.  Plus, I can make it more colorful with accessories!  I'm in NY now visiting family, but a little over a week until I make my flight to France!

Two summer shirtdresses: M6891

I was definitely not kidding when I said I tend to sew up a pattern twice!  Since I made this two dresses just days apart, I thought I would post them together :)

The pattern is McCall's M6891.  It's a good, classic shirtdress style with a convertible collar and pockets.  I love the full skirt, waistline seam, and ungathered back (why do designers do that??). Since it's a Palmer and Pletsch pattern, there are extensive directions for tissue-fitting and adjusting the pattern. The fit I achieved on the first go-round was good enough that I didn't have to make too many changes for the second version (though the fit was slightly different...).  

So I made the checked dress first with fabric purchased at Style Maker Fabrics.  The check has "running stitches" along some of the vertical and horizontal lines, which gives the fabric a bit more personality.  Unfortunately, after washing, the stitches shrunk a little more than the rest of the fabric, which gives it an overall slightly puckered look.  I'm okay with it, but I would have been happier without the extra texture.

 I did my best to match the pattern all around, but it wasn't always successful--quel domage!

For the closures, I used navy snaps from Snap Source--they worked perfectly!

The dress is so comfortable and cool, I can't wait to wear it all summer!

I chose this amazing linen fabric (on sale right now!) from Britex for my second version.  I had purchased the fabric for another purpose, but the plan quickly changed after my first dress.  I LOVE this fabric--it's linen, and while it looks a tad "rumpled", it doesn't get the serious wrinkles that other linens can get.

I went with the sleeveless option for this version.  Normally I don't love sleeveless garments, but it seemed to fit the style of the fabric and I'm sure I'll be appreciative of the extra cooling in the dead of summer. 

Somehow, this version is a bit tighter than the other, but it's still perfectly wearable.  I'm super pleased with the back coverage and the depth of the armhole.

Again, I had to worry about pattern matching, and I made a mistake!  If you look junction of the bodice and skirt, the colors are opposite.  Oops!  

Again, I used snaps (antique brass color, again from Snap Source).  In both versions, I added hidden snaps between the visible ones around the belly area to keep the placket from gaping.  These are tiny, clear plastic ones that are just perfect for this purpose (from Dritz). 

I love these two shirtdresses and I'm certain they're going to be a staple when the weather warms up a bit!  Bring on the summer!

Textured check Bronx dress

I have a thing, apparently.  If I like a pattern, I make it at least twice, in quick succession.  There are many examples, but this is the most recent instance; the Bronx cowl dress (see first version, here).

Clearly, I love this pattern.  More specifically, I love this silhouette and look for me.  A fit and flare dress just works with my every day life.  And again, for those that think dresses are fussy, count the number of garments I have to coordinate and put on my body.  Yup, that number is 1.  Easy-peasy.

Let's talk about the fabric, though; it is the true star of this garment (at least that's my impression based on the number of approving comments I received when I wore it!)  I purchased it last month with an allowance from Britex Fabrics and unfortunately, it's not available anymore.  I normally wouldn't pick a polyester knit, but I just adored the raised square texture!   The fabric is on the thick side--not quite a scuba knit, but with a good heft.  I don't think I'll enjoy the poly knit in the blazing heat of the summer, but it was very comfortable for our early spring temps.

Here's a close up of the tiny raised squares.  It's really fabulous!

Knowing that the fabric was a little thicker than my last version, I expanded the cowl a bit to help it drape better.  To do this, I slashed the pattern horizontally across the bodice at the bustline.  Then, I cut the remaining upper part vertically and expanded the cowl arc.  This expands the cowl while leaving the bust and waist measurements the same.  

I did want to break up the fabric print with  belt, so I added some belt loops at the side seams.  I just ran my serger while pulling the 4 threads to create a "chain" and then attached them to the dress on the inside.  If I don't feel like wearing a belt, I can pull the belt loops inside the dress to make them less visible from the outside.

I suspect I have a couple more of these dresses in my future, though perhaps using the scoop neckline and short sleeve variation for the summer.

I'm also realizing that my last bunch of posts have all been navy garments (and there is one more, I'm afraid!)  Navy is the new black :)

Bronx dress for the first day of school

After seeing SBCC's new cowl-neck addition to the Bronx dress pattern, I couldn't resist.  I loved the look of a classic skater dress with a bit dressier neckline and elbow length sleeves.  If I were teaching, this style would be perfect every day....

But instead of teaching a lecture, this past Monday was my first day at WVC as a full-time student!   And I was lucky enough that the weather was (temporarily) warm enough to wear a dress without tights!  Yay!

I so appreciate that SBCC's patterns are drafted for us petite ladies.  It's so nice not to have to shorten bodices and hems!  However, when I sewed up the appropriate size (XS), the bodice didn't fit well across the shoulders (sorry, no photos!).  After looking at the pattern a bit, it seemed like the back armholes were a bit deep, at least for my broad back, so I took apart the bodice (cutting away the serged edges) and recut the back bodice to have a wider upper back.  It fits so much more nicely, but it could still use a bit more work.  It also looks like I need a swayback adjustment there!

I lucked out and ordered just the right fabric for this dress: midnight navy rayon-nylon ponte knit from Mood.  The weight is great for its structure and coverage, and it sewed up beautifully, but it's fairly thick, so the cowl isn't as drapey as it might be with lighter fabrics.  I also unwittingly matched the sample shown at the SBCC website.... :)

In the future, I'll alter the pattern a bit to increase the drape when working with this type of thick fabric.  (Notice my rainbow heart "Nicole" pin?  That's totally vintage 80s right there.)

The dress is an unbelievably fast sew, especially since I totally cheated and decided not to hem the skirt or sleeves.   Shh....I even left the back neckline unbound!  This type of fabric could handle it, since bias binding the neckline would have been super bulky.

I LOVE this dress!  I felt put together and comfortable all day, which made it so much easier to learn stuff :)