Made by a Fabricista: The Classic Erica Dress

Happy Saturday Loves! I hope you all had a wonderful Holiday and a great start to the New Year! I really did NOT do any sewing as planned during the last week of 2019 and this first week of 2020. I pretty much spent the break relaxing, sleeping and working with my Cricut machine. Honestly, I did NOT feel guilty as I sewed more than 52 items in 2019. I could NOT believe how many items I made after I tallied up the garments. 2020 will be a slow sew year as I am focusing on more crafting and building specific sewing skills such as couture design and coat making.

My first make of 2020 is "The Erica Dress," an indie pattern collaboration with Erica Bunker and Style Sew Me Patterns.

When the pattern was released, I knew it was a must make as I fell in love with the open back, the sleeves, and the side slit. I requested this beautiful designer Boysenberry Rayon/Nylon/Lycra Ponte knit the minute it was posted on Fabric Mart. If you know me personally, the knit I mostly sew with for my Fabric Mart makes is PONTE knit.

I just love the fact that Fabric Mart designer Ponte knit has great recovery and stability. I have sewn with Ponte knit quite a few times in 2019 (here, here and here). Unfortunately, this color fabric is sold out, however, any medium weight knit or Ponte knit will work for this pattern.

My favorite blend, of course, is the rayon lycra nylon blend ponte knit as it is a little bit more structured than a polyester blend. The viscose blend is also great for cardigans as it drapes beautifully and falls between the rayon and lycra.

Based on my curves and a more fitted look from the waist to below the hips, I graded between several sizes from the small bust to the medium waist and the large hips. I also wanted it to be longer so I decided to cut the XXL length. The look I was going for was for it to be shorter than a MAXI and longer than a MIDI dress.

The dress is shortened by folding over the waist area!

I opted to size down for specifics reasons to see if this pattern could give a fitted look from the hip down to the thigh area to see how it would drape if hacked into a maxi. To create a shorter dress, I folded over the midsection, for a cute flirty look.

Here are a few tips when grading between multiple sizes from my own failures and personal experience:

Grade at the same place for all pattern pieces (front and back pictured here).
If grading between multiple sizes eg. small to a large, grade from the small to the medium and them to the large.
If grading between 2 or more sizes, try grading with a meter stick first then a curve ruler especially for long skirts and pants.

I definitely see a few hack possibilities with this pattern and have already cut my first one which is a top for Valentine's day with some PINK Ponte knit. I shortened the sleeves to fit above the elbow and reduced the neckband by 3 inches. In addition, I will be using 2 buttons on the back of the neckband for closure. I am so happy that Erica Bunker did a YouTube video sew-along of the pattern and top hack which definitely helped as I am a visual person.

I am back in the swing of things and will be making a few cardigans over the weekend. Thank you so much for reading and don't forget to stop by my Instagram page to watch my IGTV video saved on the grid with an up-close look of the dress. What are you working on this weekend? Do you have any specific sewing goals for 2020?

One Love,
Marica - Overdriveafter30

Made By A Fabricista: Falling for Knits

We are now well into Fall, even though the temps are still relatively warm here in Texas. I love the fall season and dressing for Fall. When it comes to the conversation of knits vs. wovens I typically sew mostly wovens. So for this post I decided to sew completely knits! With the holiday season right around the corner I saw these three dress styles as perfect for Friendsgiving/Thanksgiving gatherings. The first look is a tried and true pattern Simplicity S9372. Using this gorgeous burgundy ponte knit , I like how this pattern fits throughout. I chose this color to add to my typically neutral palette in my closet. I also wanted something I could wear to my sorority meetings and found this color perfect. It's an easy sew with back fisheye darts and invisible zipper to add to the tapered style. The neckline and armholes are finished with bias binding giving it a clean finish on the inside. I used a universal needle to sew a...

Made By A Fabricista: Closing 2025 with a Lined Jacket

Hello again, sewing friends! It seems we have arrived yet again in the grandest season for layering, all this oncoming cold weather. I like ending the year with something warm and very useful. Seems based on my past Fabricista posts, I love to sew year-end outerwear, and this round is no different! I challenged myself with a new lined coat (wait, jacket? Coat? I feel like the presence of wool changes things?). Anyhoo, since the lovely Chalk & Notch Den Jacket has been in my queue, I proceeded ahead. I like the large pockets, the option to line or not, and the extra bodice and sleeve seams for topstitching. Sewing this coat is not at all difficult, but the many pieces and loads of topstitching will take a bit of time. My version took me a few multiple-hour sessions to complete. I sewed a size 2, which matches my measurements, and I made no alterations. Hint: for a quick size test, just employ the lining pieces. Gorgeous, muted blue as a soft wool flannel ? This is ...

Made By A Fabricista: Chalk and Notch Wren Dress: My Buffet dress for the Christmas season!

I recently sewed the Chalk and Notch Wren dress using a beautifully soft black voile from Fabric Mart, and it turned into such a satisfying, enjoyable project. The pattern itself is very easy to understand and straightforward with clear instructions, intuitive construction, and a relaxed fit that makes the sewing process easy. A buffet dress in the sewing community is a dress that is loose fitting, so you can eat at the buffet without your dress being uncomfortable afterwards, lol! Because the voile I chose is extremely thin and transparent, I opted to line the bodice and first tier. Adding a lining not only provided modesty but also gave the delicate fabric a bit more stability, especially around the neckline and button placket. A helpful tip when sewing a lining into a lightweight bodice is to treat the lining and the main fabric as one. I sewed the bodice as you would for a lined bodice, and the first tier I sewed the pieces together with a basting stitch to make the process...

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