Wednesday, July 31, 2013

June? I Don't Think So...

When I first modeled this dress for DH, he said, "Golly gee, June. You look swell!", with a giant smirk on his face. June Cleaver? This dress? No, I don't think so.  There's no collar, no apron, and I'm most certainly not wearing my pearls!

Vogue 8810

This is one of the "Easy Options" patterns, with different sleeve and skirt options. I've never been a fan of a button front straight skirt, so I opted for the A-line skirt this time. I used a rayon challis from Mood that I purchased a while back, and the drape was perfect for the flowy-ness of the skirt. I only had 2 yards to work with though, so I had to be very frugal with my fabric, and the pattern called for more. To "make it work", I used a coordinating lining fabric scrap for the center front facing, and pieced the belt.
On the "up" side of things... it was very easy to construct and went together quickly. With the belt cinching up the waist, there are no fussy fitting issues with this dress. That being said...
On the "down" side of things... I thin, there is far too much ease built into the skirt of the dress. I graded down, using a 12 for the bodice and an 8 in the skirt. Seriously. There's still plenty of room in the waist and hips, without adding too much fullness.
This will be a great dress for the warm early months of fall, and I can add my leather boots and a jacket to carry me into the later months.  The shoulder seam is just wide enough to be mistaken for a cap sleeve, too, which is nice.
 
Overall, I'm really happy with this dress. 2 more yards of stash gone! I've decided to join Carolyn and go on a fabric diet for awhile. I've stitched up 6 1/2 yards of stash over the last few weeks (2 sleeveless tops and another dress, nothing really "earth shattering", so no blog posts), and have another 2 yards on the work table now! My plan is to reward myself after every 10 yards sewn, with 2 new yards that I may purchase. With just another month left before I head back to work, we'll see how it goes.  At the start of summer, I had grand plans to sew a new fall wardrobe. We'll see what I can knock out before Labor Day hits...
 
Thank you for the kind comments about my "The Point of Sewing" post and the new puppy. I submitted the story to Threads (at the strong urging of 2 big sisters), so we'll see. As for Murph, he's been with us a week now, and has such a nice disposition. He's grown quite fond of me (the feeling is mutual), and can be found sleeping underfoot when I'm in the kitchen, and behind my chair in the sewing studio.
 
Such a sweet boy!

15 comments:

Jenny said...

Great dress! I've been meaning to make that one but I keep putting it off - can't seem to find the right fabric. Your little pup is so cute!

Unknown said...

I'd strong recommend something with nice drape, like this rayon challis. If it's too stiff, all those waist gathers will add thickness...

Bunny said...

Murph is adorable. What a great little friend! Love the dress. Just keep Wally and the Beav away from that shifty Eddie Haskell!

Linda T said...

So cute! the dress and the pup!

Dawn said...

I love that print. RED!

Lori said...

Cute dress, great print. Good luck with the stash sewing, I like your plan of rewards.

Sarah Liz said...

Gorgeous dress - love the print you have used. Funnily enough, I pulled this pattern out today, wondering if I had enough to make it - I have only 2 metres of fabric - your post is timely :)

Gail said...

Funny you should post this dress today. The Australian Sewing magazine Stitches featured this pattern in denim and it looked rather interesting. Love your version.

Diya said...

Lovely Dress and good modelling for the snaps:) .. -Diya ,TheHobbyHarbor

Jean said...

Pretty dress! But Murph steals the show! So adorable! I've been angling for a German Shepherd to join our family, but my husband is protective of our cat and concerned re: the potential for conflict. I'll just have to enjoy your photos!

Unknown said...

I'll be sure to keep them coming then, Jean!

Sandra said...

Thanks for sharing this sewing project with us. I recently purchased that pattern with the intention of making the A-line skirt option, too. I'm going to see what fabric I have that's drapey and then try going down a size for the skirt portion. Oh and it looks lovely on you!

Jenny said...

Thanks so much for the advice - I was about to use something slightly stiff and thought I would revisit your review. I'll definitely wait till I have some rayon challis on hand. I love rayon challis!

Anonymous said...

Just jacked off to these pics

Anonymous said...

I'd love to put my head up that sexy bitch's dress. make her have a massive squirting orgasm