A five-year-old mime - 3/5/15
A bit of an odd title today, but that is exactly what I feel like in this outfit. :) Tired of always wearing black shirts under things, I figured I would add a bit of interest with some stripes, but I don't think it quite worked. Anyway, today's outfit features a me-made dress that didn't quite turn out as planned. The fabric is a light-weight wool knit, and I thought I would make a cute little dress I could wear with tights and a shirt in the winter, and just by itself in the summer. Unfortunately, it ended up just a tad too short. Even John, who usually tells me I'm too conservative in my skirt length, agreed it wasn't appropriate without leggings. It may be relegated to a bathing suit cover-up in the summer, but we'll see. I did dig through my stash to see if I had any coordinating fabrics I could use as a border (color-blocking, anyone?), but I didn't have anything that would work.
The pattern is self-drafted, and the idea is sound, but I definitely would make some tweaks. I only had a yard of the fabric, so the skirt isn't very full, so I would make it fuller next time, as well as lower the waistline at least 2", and lengthen the skirt another 2". The top is a basic tank shape, and the skirt is two gathered rectangles. I was wavering on whether to making it a higher waist or a drop-waist, and I definitely erred on the side of too high.
In an effort to improve my sewing skills and the quality of my finished product, I also spent quite a bit of time on the neckline and armhole bindings. I did the usual knit finish of doubling up the binding and sewing it to the edge, and then I went an extra step and folding the outer edge of the binding around the trimmed inner edge of the binding and top stitched it to the dress, entirely enclosing all the raw edges. I'm pretty sure there is a term for this technique, so please let me know if you know it! Anyway, it does add bulk, but it just looks so nice.
.jpg)
The pattern is self-drafted, and the idea is sound, but I definitely would make some tweaks. I only had a yard of the fabric, so the skirt isn't very full, so I would make it fuller next time, as well as lower the waistline at least 2", and lengthen the skirt another 2". The top is a basic tank shape, and the skirt is two gathered rectangles. I was wavering on whether to making it a higher waist or a drop-waist, and I definitely erred on the side of too high.
In an effort to improve my sewing skills and the quality of my finished product, I also spent quite a bit of time on the neckline and armhole bindings. I did the usual knit finish of doubling up the binding and sewing it to the edge, and then I went an extra step and folding the outer edge of the binding around the trimmed inner edge of the binding and top stitched it to the dress, entirely enclosing all the raw edges. I'm pretty sure there is a term for this technique, so please let me know if you know it! Anyway, it does add bulk, but it just looks so nice.
Comments