Blast From The Past

I am pretty sure I had a corduroy jumper just like this in 1994.  Remember when overalls were popular?  I loved mine.  I had a denim pair I wore all the time and I also remember having a dress like this.  Anyway, I'm digging this jumper.  It was worn immediately after taking it off the sewing machine, which is always a good sign.

There was some really cold wind blowing when I took these photos!

I cancelled my Burda magazine subscription a couple of years ago to save some funds.  And honestly, I miss it. I think I'm going to have to resubscribe.  I know some give Burda a hard time because they have some pretty wacky designs.  But I like that.  The magazine is fun to get every month and flip through.  And even if you don't make anything right then and there, you always have those patterns to browse through in the future.  I do not, however, enjoy printing and taping together pdf's.  So it really takes something special for me to purchase a pattern on the Burdastyle website, print it, tape it together, add seam allowances, etc. So much work!  That's how badly I wanted to make an overall dress.

Pattern Description: Jumper dress with side button closure and two skirt variations.  Straps can be fastened with buttons or a variation where the straps are pulled through a grommet and tied in a knot.  I'm kind of interested in trying that.

Pattern Sizing:  Burda size 34-44.  I made a 42.  I typically make a 40. My bust measurement falls in between a 38 and 40, my waist in between a 40 and 42.  But my hips really are a 42.  So I made a straight size 42 out of laziness.  I figured I'd need the ease around my hips and I did.

Fabric Used:  I used an uncut corduroy.  It has some stretch to it and attracts every piece of lint in a ten yard radius.  I am going to buy a lint roller just for when I wear this dress.  The corduroy was easy to sew.  I did use my walking foot and a press cloth when I ironed seams.  It is a little stiff to wear, though.  It's ok for a winter jumper but I wouldn't want anything so stiff for warmer weather version.  I used some great metal buttons with anchors stamped on them for all the button closures.

Alterations/ Deviations:  I lined the yoke and skirt with a slippery poly lining.  I treated the yoke lining as an underlining and the skirt as a separate lining.  I knew I wanted to wear this with tights.  I also three inches of length- one inch to the yoke and two to the straight skirt.  So the original pattern length is short.

Likes/Dislikes:   There are some fit issues but I really like the end result.  It feels very art teacher-y for some reason.  Kind of apron-like, I guess.  The side view is not the most flattering, but eh.  I did need the size 42 around my hips but I think if I make it again I will cut down a size from the yoke up.  The front bib (?) part is too wide.  I will definitely narrow that down next time.  I think it would make the straps sit better at the back as well.  Also, you can see in the inside out shot below that the straps were a lot longer than I needed.   I overexposed the photo below so you can see the seam lines better. And yes, I pressed those wrinkles in my lining so they are there forever.

Conclusion:  I like it a lot.  I really want to make this again in a lighter weight denim for summer.  And I want to try the knotted straps through the grommets.  And probably the gathered skirt.  I could see myself wearing it over tee shirts and tank tops.  In fact, I've already ordered some denim!