This quilting cotton has been in my stash for close to twenty years. I love the print, but I only purchased about two yards, which left me with very few choices when it came to a pattern.
And then I spotted this one in the McCalls catalog. Unfortunately, when I went to purchase it, there were no copies available. But the design stuck in my mind, and when I realized that View B required a very small amount of yardage, it was the only suitable dress for this fabric (because I am extremely stubborn and that's just the way my mind works).
Obviously, I finally got my hands on the pattern. The next issue was deciding how to work around the motif placement. The white bits are somewhat linear, but not in a perfect grid, so I wanted it to look intentional.
And I think I accomplished that, for the most part.
The bodice is lined, but I did get to finish the skirt with my favorite rayon seam binding.
And I ended up lining the bodice pieces with self-fabric. I did this for a couple of reasons.
First, I didn't have a great match in any solid colored cotton in my stash, and I didn't want any show-through.
And second, there were really only scraps of fabric left, so I figured that I might as well use them on the garment and not have a few tiny bits to save.
This project went together fairly easily.
And I do love a squared neckline!
I also love a puffed sleeve . . . although I am not a fan of gathering. It's never been my favorite part of the process, but it's a necessary evil for this type of sleeve. I do love the 1940s styled sleeve that controls the excess fabric puff with a bunch of darts, so I am making a mental note to look for more patterns with that detail.
One of my main concerns with this fabric design was not wanting to slice and dice up more of those little framed vignettes than absolutely necessary. This skirt was quite helpful in that regard.
For the bodice, that was a little more complicated.
But I took my time with the fabric layout, and that extra care served me well.
Looking at these photos, I rather like the extra wide band at the bottom of the sleeves . . . which still need to be folded in half and stitched in place. Maybe next time I will cut those pieces in duplicate to maintain that width in the finished look.
The zipper was lapped at center back.
That went together without incident. And no, the skirt pattern doesn't match. There was just no way around it with the fabric that I had.
And here is where the width on those sleeve bands ended up. Still cute, and probably more in proportion with the rest of the dress. If I ever make the maxi length version, it might be fun to use a wider band . . .
And now I'm going to have to take a moment. This dress was constructed last summer, and my beloved Tino was still around to help out with the hand sewing. I miss him every day.
I know that some people avoid hand sewing, but it's one of my favorite parts of the process. And I know that it was the same for Mr. Valentino. Any excuse for more lap time was okay with him!
So will I be returning to a high waisted silhouette for my go-to silhouette? Probably not. But it was fun to try this dress style.
I am very pleased with how this turned out considering the limitations that I had to work around with my limited yardage.
And it always feels good to find the perfect pattern for a fabric that has been languishing in the stash for far too long!
