I am very thankful for Rachel and her help with Simplicity 1998. With her help I managed to save it…kinda. After unpicking the neck binding the fabric stretched out quite a bit. And I was given the advice (thanks IngeMaat) to steam the heck out of it to make the fabric recover.
Unfortunately I forgot to do it. Totally forgot. And after attaching the neck binding for the fourth time since starting this dress, well, I wasn’t going to unpick it. But that’s okay. I will be sporting the boatneck/Madonna-circa-Papa-Don’t-Preach look. And I am okay with that.
Rachel measured me, all of me: high bust, full bust, shoulder width, hip to floor, etc. With these figures we realized that my initial cutting of size 22 was oh so wrong. I ended up needing a size 14 at the neck, left the arms at 22 for length, an 18 at the bust and waist and 20 at the hips. The dress is definitely not swallowing me like before.
It’s roomy in the back but not too much.
I’m quite happy with the results. I got a wearable dress and the fabric was not wasted. The neckline could have been better but I can live with the 80s look.
Making this dress made my bad sewing habits come out front and center.
1. I very rarely measure the flat pattern and compare the measurements against my own. Had I done this I would have seen that there was 16 inches of ease built into size 22! Just so you know, the size 22 was for a high bust of 44 and I’m 43.5 so I wasn’t wrong to go with 22. I was wrong to think the ease was minimal.
2. I never pull or manipulate my fabric to make sure the grain lines are even. Bad Mela.
3. I wish I would remember to use a pressing cloth. I always end up with shiny bits on my fabric. Yuck!
4. I want to learn to love the rotary cutter. Cutting knit would be so much easier if I would just learn to use one properly.
5. Fitting would go so much easier if I basted my stitches, checked the fit and went from there.
6. I must start looking up the proper settings for my machine depending on the fabric I’m using. And find out the proper needle size. I initially used a jersey needle in size 75/11 but it kept skipping stitches. After a bit of research I went with 80/12 and it worked perfectly.
Thank you Rachel for your help. And thank you Simplicity 1998 for making me realize I have some bad sewing habits to work on.
Pincushion Treats 
Yeah so glad I could help and it does look so much better. I would add darts on the back and this pattern will be a TNT during this period.
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What’s a TNT pattern?
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TNT means Tried and True – a pattern you can always count on and use over and over with variations.
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I’m so glad you were able to save it because you look adorable! I love your whole ensemble. And you are definitely glowing these days, ma’ dear!
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Thank you Gail! I’m glad Rachel helped me sort that mess out. I would have butchered the thing trying to figure it out 🙂
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Cute!
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It looks so much better, well done! I like the boat neck and the casual look, and that colour really looks great on you!
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Thank you! I wish I could have used the steam method. I just totally forgot. So silly of me. But at least the neckline worked in the end. Phew.
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That’s the most important thing, it worked out! Steaming or no steaming 🙂
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Way to persevere – it’s a winner now, and looks both comfy and stylish!
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Love it! And damn you look fine.
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*Blush* Thanks Barb. It’s quite a cheerful dress. Definitely puts a bounce in my step.
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Your dress turned out wonderful and looks very flattering. Great styling, too, but I think you always do your styling very well.
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You are glowing in your sun-ray dress mela! Those are really good lessons to take note of…I quite often just cut out a size ‘on automatic’ not thinking about the ease factor. Great work on this one 🙂
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Aw, thanks Winnie 🙂
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Looks great now! That neckline really suits you – you have a graceful neck/collarbone combo. We all have bad sewing habits, but good on you for admitting them!
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Thank you! I think admitting is the first step in trying to fix them. My mistakes often drive me crazy.
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Great work, this looks much better and knowing you’ll be happy wearing it now must make the extra effort worth it. I love the colour too – gorgeous!
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Great save! I actually rather like the wide neckline in the pictures too. And it goes brilliantly with your boots and tights.
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Oh that is SO much better! Well done for persevering – it was definitely worth it! 16 inches of ease? That’s ridiculous!
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Isn’t that nuts?! I just can’t fathom the logic behind that much ease built into the pattern. Not a bit.
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It looks awesome on you. The colour is so rich and to be honest, I quite like the neckline. It also sounds like this was a good learning experience… And I must confess I share a lot of those sewing bad habits!
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Thank you! I am glad the neckline worked because I really didn’t know how to make it smaller! 🙂
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This looks great! I love the neckline, too– you have lovely shoulders, so you should show them off more often! The color is amazing! The last dress I made is a straight, loose-fitting dress without a waist seam, and I measured the flat pattern for the first time ever and it saved me so much heartache! There was an outrageous amount of ease built into the pattern that would have been a massive pain in the butt to deal with. I have to get better about using a press cloth, too– I get excited and leave shine marks, too. 😦
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Thank you! I am loving mustard/goldenrod so much lately. I mostly deal with independent patterns so I forget that Big Four patterns have so much ease built in. Won’t be forgetting now.
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This is like the lego pattern- it never comes out the same for people, i love the neckline on you!
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That is the best description for it. I couldn’t believe all the adjusting it needed. Nutso.
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Am so pleased you saved this as the colour is divine on you – so autumnal. Rachel is the fitting goddess! Ummm – most of your sewing bad habits are mine too. Oh dear! Is it too early for NY sewing resolutions?
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It’s never too late! I think I may start working on measuring the flat patterns and make that a habit before tackling the others. Have to keep it easy 🙂
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Oooh, well saved project! It looks great and how nice of Rachel to help you out, sewing buddies are the best!
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They really are. Had it not been for her I would have slaughtered the fabric beyond repair until it fit.
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The dress turned out quite cute! And it looks fabulous with those gorgeous boots!! I share several of those bad habits… 😦 Sometimes I’m my own worst enemy; but I endeavor to improve!
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