Vogue 8577 Retro Shirtdress – finished!

 

And I really like it. This dress has certainly kept me occupied for the last week or so. I did a bunch of modifications, lots of  fitting, and a prodigious amount of ripping! A look at the original design:

I changed the sleeves to be elbow length, and the skirt to an A-line instead of a very full circle. The latter was the biggest change, since I used the skirt from Vogue 9168, and as I discussed in my first post on this dress, I even changed that.  But it’s still very swishy.  I love the way it fits closely through the hips and then blooms.

One of my biggest concerns in laying out this print was the placement of the large white element. I didn’t want it centered over my bum or the girls.

I was also concerned about losing the design basics to the print. The dress has three pieces – bodice, middle band, and skirt – and matching things up would have disguised all those lovely elements. I did the layout in single layers so I could see where things were going, and it took forever. Honestly, this was my least favorite part of this project. I wanted to sew!

Just a few notes:

• I started with a size 14, and was happy with the fit as a starting place.

• All the pattern pieces are laid out on the bias in the instructions. However, I cut the bodice pieces on the straight grain – only my skirt is cut on the bias.

• This dress ended up with 15 buttons! My buttonhole plan:

• I also practiced the buttonholes on a swatch that was cut, faced and interfaced exactly like the dress – I didn’t want them to skew or stretch on the bias fabric. The pattern calls for horizontal buttonholes, but I don’t like the way buttons slide in horizontal buttonholes. So mine are vertical.

• Hemming this took a lot of time and patience! I let it hang on Emile for 24 hours, then put it on to mark it. Oh my gosh, what a pain to do alone. That bias…I took up 2 5/8″ at the center front, 2″ at center back, and about 3/4″ at the side seams. But since I have a dropped right shoulder, nothing was symmetrical. Best thing – it’s done!

• I love the fabric, which is a 5.5 oz linen/rayon blend from Fabric Mart. It has just enough weight and weave to handle the bias cuts and hang nicely without a lining. The suggested fabrics are gingham, washed silk and lightweight linen. I would never, ever, do this in light silk or charmeuse…

When I first started this project, I did quite a bit of reading about sewing bias-cut fabrics. Some nice links:

• Bias Basics, Sewing.Org
• Bias 101, Threads, Marcy Tilton
• Sewing with Linen, Threads, Susan Khalje

Next up – I’m going to sew Vogue 9168 as soon as my fabric arrives. I’m in the mood!

Bye for now – Coco