Sunday, December 16, 2012

Glam Up a Dress

It is holiday party time again.  My plan was to wear a dress made in a previous year,  but that went out the window when I did a try on of the dresses in my closet.  All okay, but not exciting.   Butterick pattern 5780 was lying on the top of the pattern pile, having been a recent purchase.




 I bought it for the style lines of the neckline. It is described as” the bodice side front bodice extending into back collar”   I have pictures of similar necklines in my inspiration file.


Christian Dior Jacket


Pattern Magic 2
  I thought it would be interesting to make the side front and back out of a different fabric, something sparkly and festive,  that coordinated with the fabric used for the other parts of the dress. It would give the illusion of wearing a short jacket over a scoop neck dress.  The dress is made out of a medium weight ponte knit from Hancock. The coordinating fabric I made myself by layering a sheer fabric over the ponte knit.  I auditioned three sheer fabrics with the  black knit fabric.

 My favorite was a flocked scroll design on a sheer woven.  I chose a sequined tulle instead because the tulle stretched like the knit I was going to use as a base.  I cut the tulle and the  ponte knit using the same pattern pieces, layered the tulle on top of the ponte, serged around the edge to hold the two pieces together and treated them as one for the rest of the construction process. I did not have to remove any sequins from the seam allowance like I did for another recent project.  The sequins on this tulle were tiny and scattered.  They did not cause any problem with serging or sewing. Sigh, this project reminded me of why I do not sew Butterick patterns very often.  The neck, shoulders, bust and torso length always require so many alteration to fit me. Ultimately I used my sloper and drafted the bodice pattern from scratch, but copied the Butterick style lines.  It was a good learning experience.  I did use lining/stay pieces in the bodice  just as the pattern did. They are necessary to hold that fold in place as it starts at the bust and wraps around the neck.  I used the pattern skirt pattern with my bodice.  I did  not insert a zipper. The dress pulls over my head easily.



 
 
 

25 comments:

  1. Nice work. This is perfect for any event.

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  2. This is stunning! I love the sequin fabric that you added to it to make it holiday-ish! I love it!

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  3. So pretty! It's classy and understated. Nice use of the fabric.

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  4. Ooh, gorgeous! I love the lines on this dress. They are so unusual and flattering. Interesting to read about the fit of Butterick patterns on you. I've found that I have better fit with certain pattern companies (McCall's fits me pretty well while the easy Vogues rarely do...). It must be that companies have slightly different slopers for sizing.

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  5. Great job with this dress. I love the sheer fabric idea! You look in this dres.

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  6. Super choice of fabric for this pattern - very classy on you!

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  7. Oh very clever to redraft the whole bodice but what a pain! The outcome is wonderful though! Happy holidays to you Audrey.

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  8. beautiful looking dress which looks great on you - worth the effort with all the changes.

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  9. How did I miss that pattern? I love what you did with the different fabrics there.

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  10. This is a stunning twist on the LBD! You look fantastic!

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  11. It is a beautiful dress - subtle and classy and glamourous all at once. Have a Merry Xmas.

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  12. How clever! You look fabulous in this.

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  13. That neckline is gorgeous! A really beautiful dress which looks great on!

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  14. Very pretty and it looks wonderful on you. Party on!!!

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  15. Love the neckline/collar. Mix of fabrics is great too.

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  16. What a lovely job you did on this dress. A clever idea to layer the fabrics, it worked out beautifully.

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  17. It's wonderful! I love that Dior inspiration jacket and the pattern magic idea of a vanishing collar. Brilliant!

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  18. The subtle sparkle is so classy and understated--love this! You can wear it in a variety of settings and never be too dressed up *or* dressed down.

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  19. Your efforts were rewarded, you made a beautiful dress!

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  20. Great dress! The neckline is really beautiful and I love the mix of fabrics. I also loved reading about your blogger meet-up in a prior post -- fun! Have a wonderful holiday!

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  21. I think your dress turned out very pretty and is such a good fit. I too have that Butterick pattern and have been thinking about making it. I am so glad I read your take on how it is drafted. Hmmm...I love that neckline so I'm sure I will tackle it some day.

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  22. Oh, I have just bought this pattern but know it won't look as lovely as yours! A great dress.

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  23. Such a pretty dress, Audrey. I love the flattering and fresh neckline. And don't you just adore ponte for dresses? You just can't eat enough party snacks to be uncomfortable in ponte!

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  24. Such an amazing beautiful dress. The idea of using Stretch Sequins fabrics is great. Thanks for sharing.

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