dress finished in time for a wedding!

go me! i finished the dress in time for the wedding! actually with a few days to spare. this feels like a record for me because i'm usually a very slow sewer. i traced the pattern and cut the fabric last wednesday night and i finished hemming and sewing on a hook and eye last night! and the wedding is on friday. i really can't believe that i'm not going to be hemming it friday morning, because i thought that would most likely happen. i am very pleased with how it turned out, too. i'm going to get some nice photos that day, so i'm going to wait until then to post photos, although i know you're on the edge of your seat, right?!

a few notes on construction and the changes i made: the bodice is retro butterick B5748. i cut a 12 grading out to a 14 in the waist because the last dress i made was a tad tight in the waist before i let the seam allowance out a little. i ended up having to take in the top part of the bodice back at the zipper in order to get a good fit. i did a center back invisible zipper instead of the side zipper that the pattern called for. i also drafted facings rather than doing a lining because this fabric didn't really need a lining. plus i'm wearing it to an outdoor wedding in august, in the south... for the skirt i realized i didn't have enough fabric to do a full circle, only had a yard and a third left so i modified a really old See&Sew pattern, number 5237, which has a 3 piece gathered skirt, and i just shortened it. and i copied the pockets on a RTW dress and added those to the side seams. worked like a charm! and it wasn't even difficult! but things like pockets really seem to impress anyone who doesn't sew. and maybe i can get away with not carrying a purse to the wedding and can just use the pockets. also, i did not look at the pattern instructions at all. pleased to say, i've been sewing for a little over a year and i can construct a dress without butterick holding my hand, yay!

i've got to say that i think i'm happier about this dress than i have been about anything else that i've made so far. and i can't wait to get some good photos of it. ok fine, i wasn't going to post these, but nobody likes a pictureless post, so here are the lame iphone photos i took in the bathroom mirror - that was before i hemmed it. you can see a better view of what the fabric looks like in the previous post. it's now hemmed and ready to go!

 

 

i'll be back with some better photos soon! plus i won a lovely giveaway from little dress kits! so that will be in the works =) and i've ordered more fabric for some projects that are swimming around my head. and i've been doing a little selfless sewing on the side. my sewjo is back in full effect.