The Sewing Workshop Bristol Dress

Hi everyone!  It's been awhile since my last post so here goes!  

This is The Sewing Workshop's Bristol Dress.  All three of these knit fabrics were from my stash.  The circle print I purchased at Truro Fabrics in Truro, England last year while on vacation.  The plain gray has been in the stash for awhile and the black crinkle fabric came from this year's sewing garage sale.

I made a size Small, but I think I should have made the XSmall version instead.  There is alot of ease in this dress - as you can see in the photo below - that's why I added the belt.  Now - if I were visiting an all-you-can-eat buffet, then this dress would be perfect as it would allow for multiple trips to the buffet and the stomach expansion thereafter.  However, since I don't tend to eat at such establishments, it's a bit roomy for my liking.

It's hard to see in this photo, but there are no side seams on the dress so taking it in proves to be a bit of a challenge.  I might sew some rather large fisheye darts to each side, or, I could just leave it as is and continue to wear it with the belt.  We'll see if I'm in the mood for altering in the future.....

I'm not sure about the back view - it's lookin kinda sketchy back there. 

I wore this dress to work the other day and had a friend snap this pic.  I knew the dress was quite roomy along the bustline, but I didn't realize just how much until I saw this picture.  Just look at all of that room!  Also - it's funny how the gray fabrics match perfectly indoors, yet when venturing outdoors, the solid gray seems to be just a shade different.

I do love the neckline though and the top yoke.  Of course when I had finished the dress, it looked a bit plain to me so I added these buttons along the neckline.  I like how they pair so well with the circle print fabric. 

All in all - an ok dress - just not as fitted as I normally wear.  The pattern comes with a top version as well so I might make that up in the XSmall size and see if it makes a difference.

On with the stashbustin stats!
Yardage for this dress = 2 yards
Total YTD = 75.41

Will I make it to 100 yards sewn this year?  Time will tell!  With only 1.5 months left to the year and 25 yards to go - it's looking pretty slim, but I'll still try!

Happy sewing everyone!

Star

Brown Bag Challenge - Vogue 1440

For July, my sewing group had a "Brown Bag Challenge".  What is that you ask?  Here's how it works:

Bags of fabric are brought in and each member of the group selects a bag.  You can't see the fabric before selecting it so it's a surprise for everyone.  You can steal a fabric from someone else before you select a bag of your own - and that's what I did!  You then have two months to make something - anything using the fabric from the challenge.  The black fabric below is a striped seersucker and I love it!

This is a Donna Karan Vogue pattern #1440.  The pattern comes with pants, a jacket and this fabulous sleeveless top!

The blouse is completely finished on the inside with French seams and the facings are meant to be turned to the outside and topstitched.  I wanted to use a contrasting fabric for my facings and collar to make them stand out more so I selected a linen scrap that was in my stash.

I also removed the placket in the front.  I wanted my buttons to stand out, not be hidden behind a placket.

Here's a nice view of the armhole.  I found the armhole depth to be perfect and very comfortable to wear.  It provides good bra band coverage and isn't tight either.  The hem calls for a facing piece as well, but I opted to just do a small double-turned hem.

Close-up of the facing:

I love the back of this blouse!

That V at the back is fabulous! And, I couldn't help myself and added an extra big button to the area.

This blouse is a win-win!  Great design, great construction techniques and super comfy to wear!

For those following along on my stashbustin quest - here are my latest totals:
This blouse - 2 yards
YTD = 44.41 yards

Happy sewing everyone!

McCall's 7410 tank top

Here is my latest summertime creation - this tank top is McCall's 7410.  I love this tank top!  It's kinda quirky with the flared hem, but the fit is great and it is super comfortable to wear.

You might recognize some of the fabrics in this top.

- The red/white/black circle print is a mesh that I underlined with a plain black fabric.  I used this mesh fabric, along with red/silver polka dot binding fabric in this jumper dress here.
- The black and white circle prints on the bottoms, I previously used in this skirt.

I embellished one of the plain black sides with red buttons.  Of course I thought it was looking a bit plain with just the black panels and it needed a little something extra.  To avoid embellishment overload, I opted to only put the buttons on the right side.

The back is a racerback style.  

I also added bindings to the neckline and armhole edges.  The pattern doesn't call for bindings along the edges - instead it just has you turn the edges under and stitch.  I like the look of the bindings better.

A simple way to do the math for adding bindings to an edge is to measure the seamlines of all pieces.  Add those numbers together and that is the total length you need.  By the time you sew your seam on the short edges of the binding pieces to make a circle, you will have automatically subtracted the amount you need (approximately 1 inch) to give the binding enough of a sizing difference so that it rolls properly.

The "Wings" on this top are quite big - but it does drape nicely.

And it twirls pretty good too!

One last view of the back and we are all done here!

For those interested in my stashbustin process - here are the latest statistics:

This blouse - 2 yards
YTD total - 42.41

Happy sewing everyone!
Star