Sunday 22 February 2015

The "Graphic Alert Dress

For ages now, I've been trying to avoid popping into fabric stores, because once in, my self-control disappears, despite the fact of my very plentiful stash.

This dress is not going to help the cause...



I'm sure many of you are familiar with the scenario: mid-project, you've run out of an essential sewing ingredient (white thread, or a black zip, for example), so you decide to pop into a fabric shop to get that boring little necessity. While you're there it seems it wouldn't hurt to look over the remnants table, and then peruse the latest offerings...

Ooh, now THAT is pretty (and isn't it similar to the fabric that {insert name of fellow sewist} used in that {insert garment} she wore/posted recently?).  I wonder how much is left? It's probably going to sell really fast now - if I wanted some I'd have to get it now... Hmm, well I'll just grab this bolt and think about it while I look around the shop a bit more. 

Oh, and that one's on sale! I'll bet that would be a perfect match with the {insert fabric type} I've got at home. The price isn't bad either, really... I'll just hold onto this one too while I look around. 

Soon enough your arms are full, and you find yourself at the counter, buying quite a bit more than intended - OOPS!

I do try to save my fabric shop visits for those times when I *have to* go, but restraint has always been a challenge...



A couple of weeks ago, in the middle of The Fabric Store's 30-50% off sale, and perhaps encouraged by Instagram reports from a few of the Sydney Spoolettes, I decided I should quickly pop in to check whether they had a very particular blue and white fabric I had in mind for a Capital Chic Martini dress. They didn't - when can you ever find exactly the fabric you have in mind? - but I found lots of other fabrics that it seemed only "sensible" to buy while the sale was on. 

There was one - just one! - fabric I loved and left behind. This fabric was a canvas, graphic and bold, and didn't look to have been very popular, as the bolt was nearly full. Unrolling it across the other bolts I could see it would be a challenge to cut for clothing - the panels of lines that converged and fanned out ran the risk of making odd shapes on the body - but I couldn't help but see it as a wild and beautiful dress. Sigh....  I took a couple of photos with my mobile phone, rolled the fabric up again and walked away.

Even as I drove home, I was regretting it, and wishing I'd bought some. The next couple of days were busy, with no time for fabric or sewing, and then finally it was the weekend. As early as sport and family commitments would allow I raced back to The Fabric Store and found my fabric - still there, thank goodness! Now half price? I'll have two of those large panels, please!



A quick wash and air dry later, and the fabric was spread out on my living room floor along with a bunch of Vogue patterns. The main idea I had in mind was to use the movement of the lines on the fabric to make a dress with a "V" shape in the bodice, and a big, flared skirt, but after a couple of rough sketches I also worked out that I wanted strong shoulders, a high neckline, cut-on kimono sleeves, and skirt without pleats or gathers.



I found an approximation to these shapes by shifting lots of pattern pieces all over the fabric, laid out across the living room floor, for an hour or so. The combination I came up with only just fit where I wanted it - some corners were lopped (only if within seam allowances, of course!) - and because I wanted to cut the dress in a single layer so I could keep an eye on symmetries, I ended up only roughly pinning pattern pieces in place but then drawing a cutting line around them in lead pencil. 

Here's the combination of patterns I used:

For the bodice, I started with the bodice pattern pieces of Vogue 9021 (previously made here),
then pinned the bodice pattern pieces of Vogue 8811 (previously made this dress here and here) on top to set the sleeve shape, side seam placement and bodice length,
then lengthened the sleeves as much as could fit on the fabric width without hitting skirt pattern pieces.

For the skirt I started with the skirt pattern pieces of Vogue 8811 (previously made as a skirt here), cut with grainline down CF and CB,
then pinned the skirt pattern pieces of Vogue 8993 on top to determine waist width and skirt length.

And so this ends up being mostly Vogue 8811, a vintage Vogue reissue, looking very modern due to the graphic fabric print, but I think I can still call this strike one in my vintage pattern pledge.


In these next couple of photos you can see how I positioned the print on the bodice and upper skirt.

I have a "sweetheart" effect on the front bodice, strong "gridiron" shoulder markings to make my shoulders look more impressive, and a modesty "fan" in the front (just because that amuses me) along with some other lines that flare outwards to emphasise the difference between waist and hips.  I tried to get the bodice arrows pointing upwards ending right on the neckline, but I couldn't quite manage this so the topmost arrow has its point chopped off.

Dress front, in the flat
On the back bodice I have more of those "gridiron" shoulder markings, and a crossover pattern emphasises my scapula. There's a white narrow "V" down the centre back to pretend there's no fabric there, and arrows come upwards from the skirt to the waist.

Dress back bodice, in the flat

The whole dress was cut with a little extra room in the side seams as I didn't want to risk ending up with something too tight, and my experience of the vintage Vogues is that they can be quite narrow in the waist compared to modern Vogue patterns in the same size.

After sewing the shoulder seams, and bodice front to skirt front, bodice back to skirt back, I got a bit excited at how the dress was taking shape and basted BOTH side seams together to try it on. Oops, classic late night sewing, how was I going to get the dress on? I had a go at slipping it on - stubborn! - and surprisingly, it slipped on fine! I am guessing that this is one largely unheralded benefit of being a classic pear shape? Anyway, the upshot of that discovery is that this finished dress has NO FASTENINGS and yet does have a bit of a waist shape :). Admittedly this is not the most fitted of waists, but it's fitted enough for a flare of skirt at the hips and a slight increase in width at the bust, it's comfortable, and I think it's absolutely good enough.




To finish the dress I used white cotton bias binding on the neckline and sleeves. Because this dress has a high neckline that I didn't want to lower, I left the top couple of inches of the CB seam open to let my head get through the neckline. The fabric is structured enough that at this stage it doesn't seem to need a button or other fastening to stay in place, but of course I'll add something later if needs be. The skirt hem is simply serged then folded over and stitched in place - I would have preferred to use some more white bias binding but I had nearly run out of bias binding (I couldn't risk another trip to the fabric shop!) and had got to the point where I just wanted to finish. 

You can see that with a thick fabric like a canvas, the kimono sleeves get some interesting folds - I expected this, and I like the look of the folds. To some extent perhaps these folds could be removed with darts, but I think you need that extra fabric with kimono sleeves.



So this time around I am VERY happy with what I've made - playing around with several patterns to get the graphic look I wanted absolutely worked, and I think it was well worth the extra pre-sewing time it needed to get the lines and curves exactly where I wanted them.  Looking at these photos, please assume a broad grin creeping over my face, because that's how I feel - this is one dress I would have paid good money to own even if I hadn't made it!


And now someone's got to finish tidying up this lawn, don't they....



Good luck with your unplanned fabric purchases, and see you soon!


- Gabrielle xx





42 comments:

  1. This is exactly why you should never leave lovely fabric in the store! Luckily for you it was still there. Fabulous dress.

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  2. Such a great dress. I LOVE that fabric and you've done it justice in that dress, and the clever pattern placement, which I think, accentuates the dress even more. I'm all for no closures if you can avoid them!

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  3. Great frankenpatterning! A slim white belt would complement the dress nicely, I think...

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  4. Fabulous dress! You did a masterful job of using that very unique print in such a flattering way and while frankenpatterning at the same time. I am so impressed.

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  5. This is such a good story,and completely vindicates my own fabric acquisition tendencies. Its an amazing, clever dress, with such well thought out pattern placement. If only cyclone Marcia had not cut me off from the Fabric Store sale this weekend, sigh.....

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  6. I adore this dress. The style & pattern placement are perfect. Thanks for sharing your thought processes (fabric shopping & dress construction!). I love learning how fabric becomes a garment.

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  7. You vision and execution is sensational! Well done!

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  8. You did an amazing job with the print placement Gabrielle! It is so satisfying to make something we love. Congrats on that!!!

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  9. Bwahaha, modesty fan! I love it. Gabrielle you should be so proud of this dress, I would be. You have hacked until there was no more hacking to be done. That's amazing. I want to be you when I grow up ;) The fabric is simply stunning and I love that you didn't need a fastener of any type, yet you retained the fit and flare. Perfect, just perfect :)

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  10. Stunning dress and the time was very well spent, and so glad that is is producing that gleeful grin. My keyboard is covered in coffee!

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  11. I think we can all agree this fabric needed you. It called to you, and it was not within your power to refuse it. My goodness you are SPECTACULAR! I think this is one of the finest examples of pattern placement I've ever seen <3

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  12. Psychadelic, I didn't leave empty handed either! Great use of serendipitous fabric!

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  13. Awesome dress and perfect pattern placement!

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  14. Truly spectacular! Truly inspiring! Love everything about it.

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  15. My favourite of all your makes! I really love it and oh that modesty fan! Too fun x

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  16. Wow! This dress is soooooooooooo striking! It looks very cutting edge with that amazing pattern placement. Super top job!

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  17. I know, I know - when it all works out, it feels like such a compelling argument for more! Thank you :)

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  18. Thank you Debbie, I'm kind of amazed that it all worked out!! Yes, it feels quite liberating to have no closures... woohoo!

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  19. Thank you Ghainsom! I am terrible at accessories, so thanks for the suggestion - I'll give a slim belt a go :)

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  20. Thank you Audrey (blush), you're very kind!

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  21. Thank you :). It only takes one example to build a case for more fabric buying, doesn't it - though at some point I feel like I really should try to get through all my existing stash fabrics! I hope the brunt of the cyclone didn't hit your area - is your place OK?

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  22. Thank you Anna, and I'm really glad to hear the back story was of interest!

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  23. Thank you Margo, it was fun to work the print placement out, and yes, it's a really good feeling :).

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  24. And once you start seeing modesty fans, you'll just keep seeing them :P. Thank you Jillian, I am feeling very pleased with this one - it's not a triumph of fitting, but those lines are actually doing what I wanted them to, and that is cause for a lot of quiet, internalised celebration :).

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  25. Thank you Christy, and I wish I could think of a clever use of "totes" in my reply but I can't!

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  26. Thank you Bernice, what a compliment - I aspire to sew cutting edge clothes!

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  27. Thank you Sharon; I know I would have been disappointed with myself if I hadn't bothered to work out the pattern placement - though my knees hated scrambling around on the ground! PS sorry about the coffee!

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  28. Not yet and to make matters worse I sent a friend to the sale and now she has added 4 garments to my sewing list! But I have used a stunning tablecloth to great effect in this week's blog post, so thats reduced the stash! http://sewniptuck.com/2015/02/23/quick-quick-lickety-split/

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  29. I am so totally loving this dress. Everything about it is stunning. Oh and I very rarely come out of store either empty handed or with what I only went in for....

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  30. I was laughing at the bit where you say you didn't dare return to the shop to get more binding! Love the care you took over the fabric placement. Great dress.

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  31. Beautiful and so clever. Love the modesty fan!

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  32. What a tour de force of a dress! Your pattern placement is just brilliant.

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  33. That's just breathtaking. I can understand why the cloth came home with you.

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  34. Lovely! Your print placement is spot on!

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  35. What an amazing print and a great pattern to showcase it!!!

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  36. Flattering! I just read about you on GrayAllDay blog and wanted to email you but can't find a link so here it is. You mentioned that you are working on developing your skill with fitting raglan sleeves. I HIGHLY recommend that you purchase a Silhouette Pattern top pattern "Abbey's Top" 314. The reason is that Peggy Sagers copies high end designers and this top has raglan sleeves using Armani fit. The raglan in this top has incredible fit...I've made 2 of them and there is absolutely no excess fabric under or around the arm. I thought it would be a great way for you to compare the pattern against one you already have. Her patterns really are wonderful despite the sometimes ugly pattern envelope pictures :). Happy sewing.

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  37. Wow. I am SO glad you went back for that fabric. And then had the patience to really make it work - it paid off! This dress is definitely in the category of 'show stopper'. Amazing.

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  38. Your dress is absolutely stunning and well worth preserving.

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  39. Hi, just spotted you by having a squiz through A Stitching Odyssey and couldn't help noticing the same fabric I bought from The Fabric Store. I haven't as yet made anything (I only bought 1 panel). I'm thinking maybe a jacket/coat. Not ready to cut into yet, for once I'm holding back and will give it a good think what to make with it! Your dress looks fantastic. I might have to get the lawnmower out as well, will have to find some grass around my flat though!

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  40. Gabrielle, this dress is out of this world. wowwwww

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