Remember I mentioned that time I went fabric shopping with something of a hangover? Well floral fabric wasn’t the only thing my poor tired brain latched on to. It also found this:

What’s this? Why only the most inaccurate tube map you’ll ever see. Don’t believe me? Take a closer look at it and then compare it to this which is the actual tube map.

So wrong.

And yet…. so right. I knew I had to have it. So I did, and this was the result.

What is it?

A princess seamed bodice with a sweetheart neckline and gathered skirt.

Is it blue?

One of the lines is blue…

What’s the fabric and where’s it from?

Underground print cotton polycotton from a stall in the rag market. I’ve seen it elsewhere online.

What’s the pattern?

The Kim dress by By Hand London

What was good about making this?

I’d wanted to toile the Kim dress and this seemed like a good fabric to do it with. The instructions were really clear and it came together pretty quickly. I liked the construction of the bodice too.

I wore it for the first (and only, see below…) time on a London work day and had the miracle of not one but two complete strangers engaging me in nice conversations. Which made my day better too.

What was bad about making this?

The straps were way too long, but I didn’t find this out until I’d finished it. To get the neckline to sit in the right place (rather than half way down my bra…) I had to take at least 2 inches out of each side (maybe more). Which then meant that the waistline sits a bit too high. So although it fits it’s not as flattering as it could be. So it doesn’t get worn as much as it should.

I might get round to slashing it open and putting in a waist panel in to lengthen the bodice back out, or I might remake it using another £6 worth of fabric, or I might slash it and turn it into a skirt instead, but until then, every time I go to put it on I look at myself in the mirror and take it off again.

Would you make it again?

Yes as this was always meant to be a toile, although next time I’ll lose some length on the straps and add some length on the bodice to balance it out

x