Made by a Fabricista: Flirty Floral Denim Dress

Can you believe how fast summer is flying by? It's almost Labor Day! So despite the fact that it has been insanely hot here in the southeast and will likely stay that way weeks after the "unofficial end of summer" it's almost time for me to start sewing for fall.

If you follow me either here or on my blog you know that dresses are my favorite thing to sew and I sew them year round. Simplicity 8264 is a great transition dress due to it's sleeve length and recommendation of heavier wovens such as brocade, damask, sateen or denim.

When I saw this floral printed denim I just had to have it for this dress. Unfortunately it is sold out, I almost didn't get any myself. There aren't any other printed denims available but there are several floral brocades (here) that I think will work nicely.

On to the dress itself...the dress came together easily thanks to clear instructions. My least favorite part was creating the neck and sleeve ruffle. But that is to be expected as I hate gathering as a general rule. Thankfully, there is not much fabric to gather here so it wasn't that bad. Everything else was a breeze.

I graded from a size 16 at the neck and shoulders to an 18 from the bust to hip. My bust was closer to the 16 measurements, but my biceps tend to need a tad more room in the sleeve so I went with size 18 armhole. In the end, the dress was a tad to boxy in the middle for me. My first thought was to add a fish-eye dart to each back piece, but I have yet to draft those. I ended up simply taking in the sides grading from almost nothing at the underarm to about 3/4" to at the waist back out to the hip. I am happy with the fit, but I will be looking for information on how to draft my own fish-eye darts for future projects.

I was a tad concerned about the height of the neck ruffle, but it didn't bother me while shooting the photos even though I'm not a huge fan of anything around my neck. The dress calls for an invisible zipper, but depending on the fabric used I think an exposed decorative zipper would work great.

Though a little too hot to wear now, I'll be wearing this dress come fall and even into earlier winter over tights. Have you started your fall sewing yet?

I won't be posting during the Fabricista Challenge, but you can keep up with my lastest projects on my blog, TipStitched.

See you in October!!!

Made By A Fabricista: Matching Sets Are Always a Win for Me

I think I might have a problem. I’m obsessed with a good matching set. Matching Sets can be considered as a coordinated chic look. A perfectly paired top and bottom that creates a seamless, stylish look with minimal effort. I think that’s exactly what I did. Usually when I’m looking for fabric, I try to have something in mind of what I’m going to make with it. Well, I’m here to report that I totally forgot what pattern I was going to use for this beautiful fabric. I believe I had a dress in mind, but I couldn’t remember the pattern for the life of me. The fabric I chose is called Indian red dandelion soft lavender flower poplin shirting . I’ve used poplin from Fabric Mart several times and it’s always a win for me. I went through several different patterns for the top, until I landed on the Sara Top from Fibre Mood. I’ve had this top in my stash for so many years, and I thought it would be great for this fabric. This pattern is basically 2 rectangles with a chann...

Made By A Fabricista: Effortless ITY

Clothing made from ITY (Interlock Twist Yarn) fabric is effortless, almost like wearing secret pajamas. It is silky and cool to the touch, with a beautiful drape and amazing stretch. ITY fabric is incredibly versatile, and some of the best dresses, skirts, and athletic wear I’ve owned are made from it. Thanks to Fabric Mart’s recent influx of unique ITY fabrics, I was inspired to add some additional ITY items to my wardrobe. I found two beautiful ITY fabrics on the Fabric Mart site that stopped me in my tracks. The first fabric I loved was a funky off-white and multi-color flora and fauna print from a New York Designer. I ordered two yards of this print with a top in mind. Next, I saw a beautiful ITY fabric panel featuring off-white and blue floral print. I’m usually hesitant to buy fabric panels without a plan of how to use them, but I threw caution to the wind this time. I ordered 5 panels, hoping that would give me more than enough fabric to showcase the...

Made By A Fabricista: Sewing Summery ITY

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