Wednesday, May 25, 2011

I Made A Dress

Yep.  A dress. 

 I feel like it's about time I actually made a wearable dress.  It's been a while.  I seem to make separates most of the time.  Surprisingly, the majority of my pattern collection is dresses even though I rarely wear them.  I like wearing dresses.  I just don't own many that I would wear on an everyday basis.  That may be something I need to remedy.
 

Anyhoo, this is the Lisette Passport dress that has been popping up everywhere lately, Simplicity 2209.  It's been languishing in my sewing room for two months now waiting on a hem.  A hem! (Ahem-- funny)  I made it up for a wedding back at the beginning of April but had no time to finish.  I decided it was due time this past week. 

 
 
I was pleased with the pattern.  Fit well right out of the envelope.  So little fabric used.  That's nice compared to some patterns that seem to just eat it up.  The crossover dart is my favorite detail even though my fabric is too busy to see it.  I used a Kaffe Fassett rayon challis print.  I'm in love with the print.  I ordered the fabric a while back on a whim, not really sure what it was going to look like in person.  The colors are vivid and warm.  I tend to like a lot of the color combinations I see in his prints.  They are striking and unusual.   I was also interested in working with rayon challis.  I love the drape but I'm not sure it was the best fabric for this dress pattern.


I decided to skip the facings and line the whole dress.  I fumbled my way through lining the sleeveless bodice.  I had it all worked out in my head but got lost during the process of lining it.  I ended up lining the front and back separately leaving the shoulder seams free.  Then, I sewed the shell fabric shoulder seams and slip stitched the lining shoulder seams together.  Since then, I found stitchywitch's tutorial for lining a sleeveless dress.  I'll have to try it out next time.


The zipper gave me a fit.  I tried my first ever invisible zipper and it was... um, visible.  Very visible.  I tried again.  Still visible.  So I ripped it all out and put in a regular dress zip by hand, which is also visible but that doesn't bother me as much as one that's supposed to be invisible.   I'll put one in right one day.  I think putting a zipper in a side seam is much more cumbersome than one in the back.


The only negative is the way the rayon pools a bit at the waist.  At first I thought it was because the lining was a bit short or that I stitched it a bit too short.  But after unpicking and sewing the lining at the waist seam three different times, the fabric still pools there.  I think it may just be because of the fabric I chose.   I don't think it would happen with a crisp cotton.  It doesn't bother much, though.  

All in all, this is a nice and easy summer dress.  I think I'd like to try it in a cotton print, maybe two different prints like on the envelope cover.  Now I just need an occasion to wear it...


23 comments:

  1. Beautiful dress--great with the shoes!

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  2. It looks lovely - especially with those shoes! I think a little waist belt would alleviate some of the pooling issue - not that is an issue anyway - it looks fantastic.

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  3. I also like the styling a lot, it's great that you chose the bright turquoise to go with the fabric. Go big or go home.

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  4. Lovely dress, and I love the fabric too!

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  5. Wonderful dress! Love your shoes too.

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  6. It looks great - you can never have too many cute dresses like this!

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  7. Your dress looks so pretty in that beautiful colourful print. The perfect dress for summer days and nights!

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  8. Very pretty, good job!

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  9. Oh wow, I LOVE this! The fabric is just awesome - was it easy enough to work with?

    And I know what you mean about the hem....I have a dress that I steamed through making up, until I got to the hem...and now it's sittting in my sewing room, staring at me.....ugh, why do I loathe hemming so much??!!!

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  10. Thanks, everyone!
    Rachel- I think you're right. A skinny belt would look nice.
    Suzie- The fabric was easy enough to work with. It's drape-y without being super slippery. And I hate hemming, I'm not sure why.

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  11. Hi Liza Jane!
    Love this dress! And guess what? You get to make another dress because you are the Big Winner of the Meghan Peasant Dress pattern giveaway from The Scientific Seamstress hosted by Hideous! Dreadful! Stinky!
    This one: http://www.hideousdreadfulstinky.com/2011/05/giveaway-meghan-peasant-dress-pdf.html

    Please shoot me an email over at sadsilver@gmail.com within the next 10 days and I will put you in touch with the Scientific Seamstress herself to send you your prize!

    Congrats!
    Marigold

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  12. I find the fit quite lovely, it makes me realize my fit is way too tight in the bodice. And impressive lining :)

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  13. I love the whole outfit! All these colors look just sooo beautiful on you....and yes, I want a pair of your shoes, too. ;)

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  14. this is lovely, the dress looks great on you!

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  15. It looks gorgeous!! The print and colours are just beautiful!

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  16. I can just say what the others said already. Lovely print that is done best in such a simple shape like this dress. The colours suit you very well.

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  17. Looks like you're bursting into spring. The colours in the fabric are lovely - great match with the shoes. I think a skinny belt would look nice too.

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  18. I am LOVING this dress! So perfect for Summer... I'm hoping to try a Lisette pattern soon too. :) -Erin

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  19. Hi Liza, nice dress! And how cool are your sandals! Love the whole outfit! I haven't seen you in the Me-Made-June group, are you participating? It would be great to see your lovely clothes again!

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  20. Adorable dress- I especially like the fabric! This is such a great summer dress!!

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  21. That is beautiful! I love the styling--the waist is very elegant and flattering.

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  22. I'm sure you know this already, but i didn't use invisible zippers for a LOOOOONG time because i didn't realize that you need a different machine foot to sew them in! They are sooooo much easier than regular once you get the hang of it! love the shoes! :) (and great job on the dress!)

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  23. lovely dress. i really like your shoes and necklace too! great outfit.

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