dress

Chambray shirt dress

~ Rhiannon ~ 3 Comments

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Remember the quest to find the shirt dress of shirt dresses? Well it continues with a new contender. This dress has already had a lot of wear since it was finished at the end of April, and has become a firm wardrobe favourite for being both comfy and casual and fancy and formal, meaning it’s great for work, lazy Sundays and impromptu nights out. Winner indeed.

What is it?

A shirt dress with a pleated skirt

Is it blue?

Yes!

What’s the fabric and where is it from?

The fabric is chambray and it came from a shop on the Goldhawk road

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What’s the pattern?

The infamous McCalls 6696 in view B

What was good about making this?

For the most part the instructions were really clear and straightforward; possibly more so than I expected from one of the big 4. Additionally, by using the best poppers ever rather than buttons, I managed to avoid hours of buttonhole misery and got it from “bit of fabric” to “ready to wear” in about fifteen minutes (not a joke, I was determined I wanted to wear it out to dinner that evening).

What was bad about making this?

There are a lot of pieces and a lot of steps, so there were times when I got a bid bored of this. I also found that the back has a bit more fabric than I’d like. Also, it needs 140cm fabric to fit the skirt pieces which means that it took a while for me to find a fabric that I both liked and wanted to make this dress in.

Would you make it again?

I think so, although I’d sort out the back bodice. It’s had a lot of compliments already and is so easy to throw on it would be silly not to have a second (or third, or fourth…). I think I’ll probably go for something patterned next time though, just because

x

Heart print dress

~ Rhiannon ~ Leave a comment

IMG_5980Remember that I mentioned when I made the floral dress that I had already made another one? Well here it is!

What is it?

A sleeveless shift dress with a pleated skirt.

Is it blue?

No

What’s the fabric and where is it from?

The fabric is a lightweight cotton that I bought from a shop in Walthamstow

What’s the pattern?

Gather Patterns Mortmain dress in the sleeveless variation

What was good about making this?

Much like when I made the floral version, this dress is so straightforward and comes together so swiftly. The detailing on the exposed zip is great and the fit is pretty much perfect for me.

What was bad about making this?

I really don’t like the facing. It was a bit of a pain on the floral one, but this time it’s even worse. In between making this and writing it up I’ve been experimenting with both bias binding for finishing and with teeny rolled hems on necklines, so would consider either of those two in the future.

Would you make it again?

Yes. I’ve got a gorgeous piece of Nani Iro fabric I bought in Japan last year that I’ve been saving and this dress is just the right amount of material combined with a pretty perfect fit. Added to that having a wedding in a few months’ time, it would be a shame not to make it again. I’ll definitely change the facing though as I couldn’t bear to have ugly facings with a fabric this beautiful!

x

Unicorn dress!

~ Rhiannon ~ Leave a comment

A photo posted by Rhiannon D (@rhiannonbrum) on


Sometimes you find a fabric that you fall in love with, but you don’t know whether or not you’ll use it (and it’s pricey…) so you leave it.

And go back and look again.

And leave it.

And so on, until eventually, one day, you buckle and buy it, just in case.

And then it sits in your stash a while longer, and then you find out that the delightful Gabby is getting married and there is really no better fabric to make a dress to wear to her wedding with than that rather special fabric.

What is it?

A DRESS WITH UNICORNS ON IT!

Is it blue?

Yes

What’s the fabric and where is it from?

The fabric is Riley Blake Unicorn fabric that I bought in Guthrie and Ghani. The lining material is a blue chiffon that I got from Sayeeds (?) in Walthamstow.

What’s the pattern?

The Sewaholic Cambie dress with the gathered skirt option

What was good about making this?

Uh, the fact it is unicorn fabric?! That aside, I really like this pattern, it fits me well and the sweetheart neckline is lovely. Having made it once before it came together really swiftly. I also got to discover the rolled hem setting on my overlocker when it came to sorting out the chiffon dropped hem.

What was bad about making this?

Chiffon is awful to cut out. So slippery and teeth gnashingly annoying. I’ve since heard a couple of hints that will make it a bit less painful should I go down that route again.

Would you make it again?

I think so. Like this it’s a great dress-up dress, whilst with a slightly tamer pattern it’s brilliant for work. And I haven’t even considered the fitted skirt variation yet….

x

Unselfish sewing OR a dress for Jenny

~ Rhiannon ~ Leave a comment

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So back in December, my friend Jenny asked me if I’d be able to help her out with something rather exciting. She makes music under the name Rooks (and go check it out, because it’s amazing) and wanted to do something a bit different for her album launch in March. Namely, lights. So of course I agreed, because, frankly, when offered the opportunity to make a dress with lights in it, who’d say no?

What is it?

A sleeveless shift dress. With lights. You heard me. Lights.

Is it blue?

No

What’s the fabric and where is it from?

Black crepe from the indoor market at the Bullring. The bodice was lined with a black and white bird print cotton bought in Walthamstow.

What’s the pattern?

An altered version of the Lilou dress from Love at First Stitch.

What was good about making this?

Figuring out how to sew lights into a dress, and then threading them all the way through was a challenge but a fun one. It also meant that the dress had an incredible structure to the skirt due to all the wire snaking around inside. However, the absolute best thing, sappy as it is, is that I got to see one of my best friends wearing a dress that not only looked great, but that gave her a lot of joy, as evidenced by her switching it on and off after the gig to show people how it lit up. That was pretty magical

What was bad about making this?

I learnt that black fabric is not particularly interesting to sew with. I also found it really stressful to make something for someone else; as much as I worry about the fit when I make things for myself, I know that ultimately I can bodge it around myself. Not the case here by a long shot!

Would you make it again?

It depends if I’m asked!

x

Green floral dress

~ Rhiannon ~ 1 Comment

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I love this dress, and not just because I get to spin around whilst wearing it…

I initially bought this fabric about a year ago to make a Lilou dress, but it ended up sitting in my stash box, unused and a bit unloved. Then I wanted to make a wearable toile and it seemed a good fabric fit; I wasn’t wrong!

What is it?

A sleeveless shift dress with a pleated skirt

Is it blue?

No

What’s the fabric and where is it from?

A floral midweight cotton. I think I got it in the Fancy Silk Store, but I’ve seen it in a couple of places and multiple colourways.

What’s the pattern?

The Mortmain dress by Gather patterns in the sleeveless variation.

What was good about making this?

I couldn’t get over how quickly this came together, nor how neatly the seams all looked. Not having to make a lining for a dress was a bit of a revelation!

What was bad about making this?

I misjudged the ease so had to lose two inches off the bodice once I’d made it (i.e. drop it a dress size with some seam pinching). Although, from another angle, that just means there’s two inches less of me than I thought!

Would you make it again?

Yes I would, and indeed I have.

Gingham Cambie dress

~ Rhiannon ~ 2 Comments

IMG_6152I love gingham. It’s amazing and summery and makes me feel like holidays are just around the corner (almost certainly due to gingham dresses being summer uniform at school). Coupled with the sweetheart neckline loveliness of the Cambie dress pattern, it was a match made in heaven, and to be honest, the main surprise is that it took me so long to make it!

What is it?

A dress with a sweetheart neckline and a gathered skirt

Is it blue?

Nope

What’s the fabric and where is it from?

The fabric is a cotton gingham that I got as part of the stash swap at Sew Brum

What’s the pattern?

The Cambie dress by Sewaholic Patterns in variation B

What was good about making this?

I really enjoyed the simple way that this pattern came together, and had a surprisingly good time trying to pattern match the gingham up. I didn’t have any faith in the description of the way that the skirt would gather up, but actually it was lovely and the pockets are a delight (seriously, who doesn’t love a dress with pockets?

What was bad about making this?

I had a nightmare getting the lining to attach to the bodice at the waist, and in the end I made the decision to leave it unattached except for a small section in the centre. It worked well and is definitely how I’d do this if I made another cambie without a skirt lining.

Would you make it again?

Yes as this was a wearable toile for the unicorn dress….

x

Black floral Nicola shirt dress

~ Rhiannon ~ 4 Comments

IMG_4542 I have a search. A search for the perfect shirt dress. As an item of clothing I blooming love them but as a thing to make I’d felt pretty daunted by it as a possibility.

I’m going to say right now that this dress is not the perfect shirt dress. In fact, this dress very nearly got consigned to the WIP pile for all eternity and even once complete it very nearly caused a meltdown and immediate binning.

But more of that when we get there, for now….

What is it?

A black floral shirt dress with V-shape neckline and full length sleeves

Is it blue?

No (note to self: this is becoming a bit of a trend at the moment. Must buy more blue fabric)

What’s the fabric?

A super soft cotton (polyester? rayon? I have no idea) that’s black with white and red flowers (best description I can think of for them)

What’s the pattern?

The Nicola Dress from Sewaholic

Where’s the fabric from?

I got it at the Birmingham Rag Market during SewBrum for the princely price of £1 per metre!

1-IMG_4078What was good about making this?

I got to try out a new skill with this dress; making sleeve plackets! I realised I hadn’t quite read the instructions correctly about half way through, but I was pretty please when I did it, as evidenced by my immediate wearing of said sleeve…

IMG_4536What was bad about making this?

Where to start? With the collar piece that I cut to the wrong size because the schematic diagram for the layout wasn’t particularly clear? The confusion around finishing the facing? It doesn’t help that I got so far with making it and then ran out of time before Christmas, so left it unhemmed and unbuttonholed (?) for about a month. By which time I was fed up of it and bored, a feeling repeated when I hand sewed on the buttons (whodathunk a shirt dress would have lots of buttons….).

The absolute moment of (near) tears though was when, having finished it, I tried it on with the belt that comes with the dress. It looked hideous. A moment of learning the hard way that I do not suit a loose bodice or fussy waistlines with extra fabric. I looked – and felt – like a giant sack of potatoes.

BUT ALL IS NOT LOST.

For then I remembered my old friend the cinch belt and lo, with a bit of a nip in and reallocation of fabric folds, the dress was completely redeemed. And now I love it. So much so that I’ve worn it a couple of times already in the fortnight since making.

Would you make it again?

Nope. This dress is not the dream shirt dress that I was hoping for and, whilst I’m pleased with the finished product, I think that I wouldn’t make it again. I have however found out about the fabled McCalls 6696 shirt dress that seems to be getting a lot of positive press in the blogsphere, so have bought a copy and plan on making that after my current (nearly finished) project.

The great shirt dress search continues…

x

Super shiny Peter Pan Moneta dress

~ Rhiannon ~ Leave a comment

Sparkly moneta

It’s taken a while. but finally, with this post, I’m up to date on my pre-Christmas sewing, and it will come as no surprise that when I decided I wanted to sew a dress for New Year’s Eve I decided to combine two of my favourite things; shiny things and swooshy dresses!

What is it?
A Moneta jersey dress with three quarter sleeves and the peter pan collar hack

Is it blue?
No

What’s the pattern?
Moneta by Colette (definitely becoming a favourite, especially now I’ve got a peter pan hack!)

Where’s the fabric from?
One of the shops in Walthamstow. The man who sold it to me was a fabulous geezer and as I said in the Astoria post, everything in there was £5 a metre or less!

What was good about making this?

As ever with Moneta, it came together quickly and easily, and it was good to try out a collar hack. I was still pleased with the gold topstitching I trialled on the Astoria, but, most importantly I got to use my overlocker!

IMG_4312What was bad about making this?

Having to wait so long to use the overlocker. Seriously, it arrived here mid December, but due to Christmas rules, I wasn’t allowed to get it out of the box until I came back from my parents’ house. Pretty testing times. I mean, look how excited I was when it arrived:

IMG_3983Would you make it again?

I have a feeling that yes, this won’t be the last time a Moneta appears on this blog!

One final photo for you all; I got the boy to take a couple to try and get the dress in its best light, but my absolute favourite photo (bar the one of the two of us being silly) was the out take!

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x

All because the lady loves….

~ Rhiannon ~ 3 Comments

Cadbury Moneta

I’ll be upfront. I’m not about to hand over a box of Milk Tray to every reader. However, don’t you agree that my new dress is very Cadbury purple? Particularly as, for reasons beyond my ken, the camera appears to have over exposed in the background.

I digress…

What is it?

A lovely swingy swooshy jersey dress

Is it blue?

No, Cadbury purple (which I guess could be argued at blue if you get that far round the spectrum?)

What’s the fabric?

Purple jersey that I picked up during SewBrum

What’s the pattern?

Moneta by Colette, using the 3/4 sleeves option

Where’s the fabric from?

The infamous Rag Market in Birmingham

What was good about making this?

How quickly it came together! I sat down at 3pm on Saturday and by 5:30pm I had a dress that was ready to wear out to dinner with friends (if we ignore the fact that I was lazy and didn’t hem the skirt until the Sunday….).

What was bad about making this?

Although I’ve made the Moneta before, this is the first time I’ve done it on my own machine and also the first time I’ve sewn jersey on my machine. It was fine for the most, but there were a couple of ‘oh yes, that’s how you do it’ with the shirred waistband as well as a ‘why won’t you work?!’ when using the twin needles on the hem (along with a note to self to read the instruction manual before doing twin needle sewing again….)

Would you make it again?

Yup, I’ve already got the fabric to make it up for my dress for New Year’s Eve. I think that next time I’ll add the collar back in as I’ve realised I really like the collar, although I might use one of the add-on hacks you get when buying the pattern (let’s not kid ourselves, it’s going to be the Peter Pan collar because I’m a sucker for a PPC).

So yes, all in all a delightful quick project, which was especially welcome as it feels like a long time since I’ve actually made anything! Now I just need to tackle a slightly longer-than-I-have-time-for list of things to complete before Christmas…. Wish me luck!

x

 

Speedy spooky sewing

~ Rhiannon ~ 2 Comments

1-green dress 1Ok, so I’ll be honest, I don’t really know what counts as spooky sewing, however this definitely counts as speedy sewing; in under three hours this morning/afternoon I managed to sew up a whole dress!

What is it?

A green shift dress that forms the basis for my Halloween costume next week; I’m going to go as Poison Ivy although I’m going for more of a 50s theme Ivy and a bit less flesh-revealing than the traditional comic book character…. I’ll be cutting a load of ivy down from out garden to wrap around myself and into my hair and making my eyes all green and sparkly to complete the look.

Is it blue?

Nope, green. How many ivy plants have you seen that are blue?

What’s the fabric?

Really nasty cheap polycotton that I bought for a previous costume

What’s the pattern?

The pattern is one I drafted myself in a copy-your-clothes class. The original dress is one of my favourite ever RTW items. What you can’t see in this photo (not least because I haven’t sewn them on yet…) is that there’s a false opening on the back held together by buttons. The only difference I made was to the skirt which is a bit tighter than the original, not least due to the limited amount of fabric I had!

Where’s the fabric from?

I think it was from Fancy Silk?

What was good about making this?

I was really pleased with a couple of things with this. The first was how quickly it came together. I didn’t have any bias binding but managed to figure out a bodge for hemming the neckline which I was chuffed with.

green dress 2Basically, I sewed baste stitches at the 5/8  seam, then used these to help me turn the hem, cutting notches as necessary on any curved lines. I then pressed it all and resewed at 3/8. I was also pleased with the gathers connecting the skirt to the bodice, especially as the back pieces don’t connect so I had to make sure they lined up as neatly as possible without actually joining them (that doesn’t make sense but would if you saw the back)

What was bad about making this?

Despite being a copy of a dress I already have, I don’t like the way the armholes sit when the dress is on, nor do I like where the bust darts are. It also seems tighter than expected, which is a bit of a worry.

Ultimately, although it’s a bit rough around the edges, I’m pleased with the speed that this came together. Besides which, once I’ve dressed it up with ivy and the like (and I’ll share pictures next week after the party) all the bodges and rough bits will be hidden and no-one will know!

How about you? Are you making a costume for the spookiest night of the year (possibly)?