Saturday, August 18, 2012

New Look 6949 in Milly Silk Twill

New Look 9649


Fabric: 
Silk twill by Milly purchased from Emma One Sock
Black silk dupion - Spotlight

My gosh! I just realised it's been over a month since my last blog post. I must admit, things have been a little slow around here on the sewing front. I've been struggling to find the motivation to complete tasks which means my pile of UFOs has almost taken on a life of it's own. Last week I rearranged and tidied up my sewing space and found all sorts of projects, pattern pieces and near-completed outfits that had completed fallen from my radar (including the above dress). Maybe I should dedicate this week to finishing them all off...maybe. It sounds good in theory, but isn't actually consistent with my current  attitude. 

Anyway, I decided I should finish New Look 6949 in time to wear it to a concert last night. I find that events really are my main motivator when it comes to completing a garment. All that was left to do was hand sew the hem and facings down. I took it to work yesterday finished it off in my lunch breaks. 

The original inspiration for this dress was this Kate Spade Heleen Dress. This tunic/kaftan style of dress has always interested me on some level. I've never loved this style but have always been attracted to others wearing it. Sure, it's not cutting edge fashion, but the wearers always look comfortable, cool, a bit arty and a bit groovy. 



I had always intended this dress to be a winter dress which added to the urgency of getting it completed. Winter is definitely on the way out! I had always pictured wearing it with a cardigan, beads, black tights & covered shoes. Knee-high boots would be awesome however (sadly) I don't own a pair. How do you justify owning boots when you live in Cairns? You'd only get to wear them 3 days a year. For the other 362 days they'd provide the perfect living conditions for a mould colony.


As you can see from the above photo the neckline is not sitting flat. I think I messed up somewhere when I was sewing down the facings. It has ended up quite skewed. It was flat before sewing down the facings so should be easy enough to fix (fingers crossed). I decided to just run with it last night as it was hidden somewhat by the beads and bag strap.

Side view
Pattern alterations: 
- I added four darts to the back to give the dress a little more shape. Looking at these photos I could probably take it in a little more.
- I increased the width of the slit at the CF.
- I redrafted the front neckline to accommodate the black contrast as an attached piece rather than an external facing. 
- I did a square shoulder adjustment.

Back view

Well, I'm glad I got one wear out of it before winter ends. It's not a super-exciting 'wow!' dress but exactly what I was on the mood to wear - I did feel comfortable and a tad arty & groovy!


13 comments:

  1. The fabric is perfect for this style of dress, and I agree, arty, goovy and I will have to take your word for the comfortable.
    It also looks like a great transitional dress - are bare legs and sandals cooling enough to wear Silk twill through Autumn and Spring?

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  2. Yay for getting some motivation back. I adore your fabric choice. Your concert outfit looks fabulous.

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  3. This is a really different look for you...and it looks great! Very funky! Perfect for a concert. I don't know what I'd wear to a concert these days. Could you wear it as a summer dress as well, if you change out the accessories and swap the tights for summery sandals?

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  4. I like it a lot, especially accessorised as per your plan. You sure have an eye for awesome fabrics.

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  5. You look very glamorous in your new dress - love the touch of black at the neckline.

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  6. It looks great - beautiful fabric - there you go, worth finishing huh?

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  7. Very groovy! I think it really suits you.

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  8. It is very artsy and groovy! I really like that silk twill. You always use the best fabrics. I like that tunic/kaftan style of dress, too.

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  9. Very groovy indeed! I love it worn with al the black like you envisioned :)

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  10. What gorgeous fabric! I love the black contrast at the neck - it's a wonderful rendition of the Kate Spade inspiration piece. Warm bright colours suit you so well!

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  11. Well, I love it. Great shape and beautiful fabric. I agree that tunics are groovy!

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  12. Perfect. What a fresh, fun look.

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