McCall's 6069 Jersey Dress - 3rd time around

First thanks to all for your comments on my previous post, the navy faux wrap dress - just to address a few queries;

- the pattern is from an old issue of Burda Style magazine, May 2007, it might be possible to get a copy on ebay or it might even be somewhere on the Burda Style website, but how you search for it is a mystery to me.  There are a couple of similar patterns available that are worth checking out;
Simplicity 1653
Simplicity 2369

- Speaking of the mysterious Burda Style organisation, Perfect Nose provided a link to the French site which has a better picture.  Goodness knows why even the archive magazine content on each site is so different;
France from 09/2006
Germany from 08/2009
Russia from 01/2004 
and English language version still nothing since they deleted it all a few years ago
Argh, don't get me started!

- thank you to Sewing Sveta who confirmed that wrap and odour are indeed written the same in Russian, proving that computers aren't ready to replace human translators yet (though I have no doubt there are more sophisticated translation programmes out there than the free google one).

========================================================================
Moving on to another dress........

With the obvious exception of the Aussies and Kiwis everyone seems to be moving to autumn sewing, but I am still firmly stuck in summer and very behind with this blog.  I will get some photos of me wearing this and a few other makes soon - I am going on holiday soon to Italy and will get some on location photos I promise!

I recently wore my maxi version of McCall's 6069, a very easy and popular pattern from a few years back and was reminded what a great summer dress it is, so I whipped up another one from this stripy rainbow printed jersey.  Unfortunately the pattern is no longer available on the Mccall's website.

When I say whipped up, I really do mean it - the pattern envelope states this is a 1 hour dress in terms of sewing time and I probably wasn't far off that.

For this version I copied an idea that I pinched from previous reviewers and used the plain square necked front of view C as the back, instead of having a cowl front and back.  It worked perfectly and, surprisingly to me given that it has no shaping whatsoever I can even wear the dress backwards though I doubt I will.

The only problem with the square neckline is that is is faced and despite understitching and topstitching it still kept creeping out, so I just trimmed it off close to the row of topstitching.  I would normally bind edges in a knit but I wasn't confident handling those square corners.

I can't believe I have never thought to make the long sleeve version of this so maybe if summer ever ends there will be a version 4.

Burda Style 05/2007 - 126 Navy "Wrap" Dress

These days I love making things from my old copies of Burda, the tracing seems so easy compared to recent issues.  However it is really hard to find online pictures of the pattern, this was a tiny image on the Burda Russia site (funnily enough again it is a dress with an "odour", it must be a mistranslation from wrap or faux wrap - any Russian speakers out there please enlighten us).

This is a dress from 05/2007 - 126, a simple v neck dress with a half front overlay that ties to a short tie inserted in the opposite side seam.  The original dress is georgette with a knit lining so I figured it would work in a knit and made it in a navy jersey.

As such, I could eliminate the centre back seam, zipper and darts in the back.  I also eliminated the front bust darts just by easing the excess into the side seams and raised the v neckline, by a bit too much if I'm honest, but I'm more comfortable with that than too low.  Next time I will be a bit less conservative!  I totally forgot about making a corresponding adjustment to the overlay (until literally just now, writing this!) so mine don't line up like the pattern picture, but I think that's OK.

When I cut the pattern out I added extra length at the hem and decided after trying it on to leave it quite long, just for a change in my wardrobe really, there are lots of longer length skirts around now and I'm getting used to the look again.  From the scraps I had left I made an elasticated waist half slip to wear under it as the fabric is quite thin, fine for tops weight, but a bit flimsy for the bottom half I think.

Overall this is a super comfy, versatile dress that doesn't look like all the other jersey dresses in my wardrobe!  It really is like wearing a tshirt, I can just throw it on and forget about it.

As usual I found it really hard taking decent photos of dark dresses, but here you go....

 Something you don't see often on this blog - me in flat shoes!

 It can also work with heels and a bit of jewellery & a clutch bag (which you will have to imagine) for a dressier look.

Burda Style Magazine - 07/2013 - 111 Faux Wrap Skirt

After the trials of the nearly doomed dress* I wanted a really simple project and I wanted to use up some very loud linen that had been in my stash a few years.

(* I really appreciated all the comments thank you, I have worn it and am quite happy with it, it's just not the dress it was supposed to be.  Like JT commented I too wonder if it is a grading issue and maybe the original designer sample they start from is fine, so if you take a small size (I usually go with a 12) you might be OK.  In any case this is definitely one to muslin before anyone cuts into their lovely silks.  If it works for you, please let me know!)

I had some reservations about this skirt, it is one of those Burda patterns that isn't much more than a rectangle and they are often disasters, but I figured at least it would be a quick disaster!

This is a faux wrap skirt - the wrap is actually just a deep fold in the front.  The back is a normal darted pencil skirt pattern piece and the front is just a very wide plain skirt front.  The original pattern has two layers which makes me think you could make it reversible if you can figure out something clever with the ties.  However it does need a press stud or hook and eye otherwise there really isn't anything to stop the fold from sliding down.





I just used a single layer of fabric and added facings to the waistband and I left the side seam pockets off.  I've also just noticed that my ties are on the wrong side, don't know what happened there.  Well, I do - Burda instructions.



Given how simple it is, it turned out alright, I'm not crazy about it and I think it will benefit from being washed a few more times to soften up the fabric a bit, but I think it will be great for pool/beach wear when you just want something simple to take you from the hotel breakfast to your sunbed and from the sunbed to the bar.  For now that's just a dream, but thanks to Google translate, this description from Burda Russia cheered me up no end.

"Charming old couple - a silk top with makeshift shoulder straps and a double skirt with a longer bottom layer of contrasting color. Wearing a skirt finished, lay in front of a deep fold and lock the strings - at the expense of the simulated odor."

Vogue 1343 Tracy Reese Dress

I've just finished this dress by Tracey Reese.  I really like the details in this design, but in case you are the type to scroll over posts let me do you all a favour and say DO NOT BUY THIS PATTERN!

Vogue 1343

The details are great

The skirt is great

The back is great

The instructions are even really good and give you a nice finish on the inside (not so good when you need to rip it all out)

BUT

The drafting for the bodice front is appallingly BAD.  Seriously the drape on the cowl was heading towards my waist and although the bodice is meant to be loose fitting I don't think this is what the designer intended!

I know lots of people have trouble with the amount of ease in the Big 4 patterns and I have been one of them, but I have generally found Vogue designer patterns to be at least consistent, and especially within the pattern.  It feels like the front got mixed up with a different grading system entirely.

In Vogue's defence I used a knit (one of the recommended fabrics is a matte jersey which I think must mean a stable not very stretchy jersey, like a double knit) and I did not cut it on the bias, although I suspect it would have come to my knees if I had.  And in my defence, the only review I can find had exactly the same problems, I bet there are a lot of unfinished versions out there too.  Interestingly Merche has just had similar unexpected sizing issues with a Rachel Comey pattern so maybe something weird is going on at Vogue.  Anyway I used a combination of the fixes used by the pattern reviewer and Merche to come up with this.

The fabric is a camel & black printed jersey, and for those of you who wanted me to pair my last outfit with red accessories, your advice didn't completely fall on deaf ears, wearing a pop of red with these colours helps bring the dress to life.

Hopefully I've convinced you not to try this, but if you do I really recommend using a cowl front from a different pattern.  After making my changes I really didn't have the heart to do all the neat finishing on the inside again so I changed the construction.  Briefly the changes I made were;

• First I tried to not have to undo all the perfectly finished yokes so I took it up at the shoulder seams by at least 2 inches and reshaped the armhole a bit to compensate.  This helped but more was needed if I wanted to ever move in this dress without flashing everything to the world.
• Begrudgingly unpicked the front yokes and front facings
• Added an elastic casing to the front bodice
• Shortened the front yokes by another inch or so
• Joined them at the neck edge so I had a finished edge there and serged them onto the bodice front
• Applied a facing strip to the back neck edge
• Serged the shoulder seams and applied facings to the armholes

So all in all a very frustrating project and I'm glad it's over and that I managed to rescue the dress.  I feel all wound up just from typing this!

I'm back from the UK

Folks, I am back from my visit to the UK which happily coincided with the beginning of a rare heatwave, in fact I think it is currently hotter in the UK than it is in Hong Kong.  It has taken me a week to get over the jetlag this time for some reason (increasing age no doubt).

I'm catching up with literally hundreds of blog posts, still have a few things I need to write posts for and I've started a new dress, but in the meantime here are some photos from the sunny Sussex wedding.  Before the wedding I was visiting friends and family in the sticks so it turned out my accessories purchasing options were pretty limited, but I did manage a fascinator and some earrings.  In the end despite my reservations about the pale colour it was just the thing for a hot sunny day.

These "hedge people" were walking around during the reception, I'd never seen anything like it before, potentially nightmare inducing, but I thought they were brilliant.