FO - Gertie/Elisalex mash up 2

Hiiiii

Just a quick stop to show you version number 2 of this dress, (its been a shitty day and this is a cheery dress all right)
Lots of changes made to both pattern, and method of sewing after sewing the previous version. This one looks a million times better than the previous one, which will only ever be worn with a cardigan. A long one at that :-)

I just want to make a quick note. The second version is made of quilting / decorating fabric, and I much prefer it for this dress. It does not wrinkle so bad and the support it gives in structured bodice is awesome. Lined with cotton and bemberg it makes for an easy dress to wear during one of these unheard of days of 'summer'.

I must also point out that I have not used a zipper in either version of these dresses. It fits over my head so I didn't bother. Plus I have LOADS of shop bought dresses with zips and I have not once needed to use their zips. So I saved myself the hassle.   :-)

I also gathered the skirt lining to the bodice, and its shorter so I dont need to worry about how to finish the bottom. In fact this lining is so easy, I tore a suitable length of lining fabric, gathered and attached to the bodice, and finished using a rolled seam finish on my serger.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Also I noticed that there was plenty of room at the waist, and so I rectified by that for my third (and favorite) version, my eyeballing and cutting of small sections of tissue at the waist. I think it worked out - phew !!

Well - I do like a pretty inside :-)

Cheerio for now,

K xxx

FO - Elisalex/Gertie mash up

Hiiiiiii

Yet another beautiful day here in Devon !!

Yesterday I was a little hungover (as you might imagine after drinking a whole bottle of champagne on Friday night :-) )and set up all my sewing stuff in the garden and sewed to my heats content under the shade of a parasol. Man I am so jelly of you folks with designated sewing spaces ! Such a difference in having everything set up in one place. No having to set up sewing machine, then deconstructing to set up serger. Back and forth, back and forth like that ! No wonder it seems to take ages to sew anything.

What a treat to have it all set up and raring to go. I made the most beautiful dress (I think !) in just half a day, including various moochings to the cooler inside of my house, and a frosty drink :-)

This dress is the predecessor to yesterday. Its the (heavily modified to fit) bodice of the Elisalex, mixed with Gerties (heavily modified to fit) pencil skirt.

I not only had to make the individual sections fit in themselves (full bust adjustment anyone ?), but then join them all to make a dress. I had to match up seam lines, darts to princess seams, you get the picture.

And I don't know if its just me, but I had to make changes to the top of the skirt (which fitted perfectly as a skirt !?!) in order to make it fit me round the waist when used in a dress. I am going to document those changes at some stage here to remember what I did for future pattern mash ups.

Anyway here is the first version of this mash up. Created with work in mind, particularly for those days when I have to work in the courts.

Excuse the wrinkles ! You wouldn't believe its freshly ironed !! I made this in apparel fabric, and I am going to do a post soon on my thoughts of sewing apparel fabric .v. quilting (decorating) fabrics.

Its cotton, lined in green cotton voile and navy bemberg.

No pretty hem on this on as I wanted to try a new technique and used my machine blind hem foot for the first time.

This version wasn't perfect by any stretch (um will you check out those back bodice wrinkles !!), but I will only wear it with this cardigan while at work, and I think they look made for each other :-) 

I have made 2 more versions since, including yesterdays, and after lots more pattern adjusting after making the above version I think it now pretty much fits me perfectly. Which I am stoked about because in my earlier days of sewing I found it painfully hard to try and fit a dress to my body, and after hours of flat pattern adjusting and muslin's I gave up, crying with defeat.

ooooo man this post is long. If you made it this far, well done !!

I am off to sit in the garden.

Cheerio

K xxx