McCalls 6953: Knit and Voile maxi dress

 

I've been a bit obsessed with mixed fabric dresses lately, I love a knit bodice and a woven skirt, seems the best of both worlds!

Pattern detailsn (same as last time I made this dress);

• sz20 with d cup
• 1" fba
• 1" wedge from back neck alongside of the zipper
• 2" petite bodice
• 1" wedge out of bustline length
• lowered neckline
• added waistband
• added pockets from Simplicity 2588

There were a couple added adjustments since the bodice is a knit;

• Took in the sides by a total of 4"
• Took out length in the bodice of about 2"
• Cut the back on the fold
• Gathered the skirt instead of pleating it so I could make the dress a pull-on.
• Bound the neckline instead of lining the dress.
• Added a 4" facing to the hem to help weigh it down

I do need to take some length out of the upper chest as its buckling slightly. It looks like the princess seams are ripply too but in real life they sit flat.

Fabric:
Cotton spandex knit for the bodice from Spotlight and a cotton voile for the skirt that was left over from my Cambie dress

I'm happy with how it turned out and I'll be making more mixed fabric dresses soon!

SBCC 302: Cosmo maxi skirt

I'd been contemplating this skirt for awhile and then I saw Thornberry's version and downloaded it straight away!
I've been wanting a simple pull on knit maxi for ages - I made up Simplicity 1616 (unblogged) which was ok.....but not swishy enough and it was really short. Agreeably this pattern is specifically towards petite so is too short as well but at least you know it before you cut it out.

Pattern Details:
Size 1XL
Added 3" to the lengthen line
Added 3" to the waistband height (I'm 5'7" and I like my maxi's to graze the floor)

Fabric is a spandex knit from Spotlight that's on sale (I bought a few metres of it and am thinking about going back for more!)

I am so impressed with this pattern - I never have to do this few adjustments and the fit is pretty spot on. I could potentially go up a size and I think I will for the next version but other than that its kind of perfect! And so swishy!

I do have a couple of nit-picks about the instructions though, I found the waistband attachment a bit confusing - there are no notches or markings on the pattern piece, I went with the grainlines to work out what was the sides and top of the waistband. The instructions on how to attach were a bit odd too.

But overall, highly recommended.

McCalls 6953: Rayon maxi dress

 

I think this summer's uniform is going to be the maxi skirt for me! I've been wearing my Gabriola skirt heaps lately so it just seemed natural to make a maxi dress as well.

This pattern has a few variations, I made Amber the hi-lo hem version and this is View D with the maxi skirt.

So the adjustments;

• sz20 with d cup
• 1" fba
• 1" wedge from back neck alongside of the zipper
• 2" petite bodice
• 1" wedge out of bustline length
• shirring panel on side
• lowered neckline
• added waistband
• added pockets from Simplicity 2588

I'm not overly happy with the bodice, it took 1 tissue fitting and 2 muslins and I'm still not completely happy.

Every time I try one of these cup size patterns I end up adjusting the fit more than if I'd started with a basic B cup bodice. This time I started with a d-cup bodice and had to do a 1" fba on the first muslin then had to take a big wedge out of length on the second - its like I need the width but not the length I'm finding - I really should add to the side seams which would let me do a smaller fba and also allow for an easier sleeve adjustment each time.

I had to take a wedge out the back neckline along the zipper as it was gaping, same as I had to on Amber's dress. This is not a common adjustment for me so I tend to think its more of a fault on the pattern.

Fabric is a rayon from the clearance table at spotlight - its a nice weighty rayon. I used a cotton poplin for the lining and a cotton sateen for the waistband. The photo below is more true to the colour.

The dress isn't designed with the waistband but I found it was just too much pattern without it, this fabric really needed a break.

I think the next maxi dress I make will be a frankenpattern of this skirt with the bodice of Vogue 8648, I just need to find some more decent rayon!