... well, as any of you in sewing circles know, everybody doesn’t work at the same pace. And, I'm tired of waiting.
This dress was something like 1300$ at Saks 5th Ave earlier this spring… but this pattern from McCalls (M5701) would only cost me about 11$ - with shipping! 
Even cheaper would be this dress from Simplicity (6643) currently on sale for 4.99...
The thing I love most about this dress is the back… 
...How.Fly.Is.That?... And I could kick myself, when I was at Paron's over the weekend they had these very zippers just begging to be bought for like .25c or something… DagNabIt!
...How.Fly.Is.That?... And I could kick myself, when I was at Paron's over the weekend they had these very zippers just begging to be bought for like .25c or something… DagNabIt!Anyway, there are a few differences from the D&G dress and the McCall's pattern… Chief among them is the back!
But... (now, this is the figment of my imagination that thinks she's a master tailor talking here…) I think I could cut the two back pieces in half (since there is no CB seam showing, I'm assuming they're cut on the fold) and add a CB zipper. I would have to cut the bottom piece regardless, to get the design detail of the D&G dress....((ahem))
Also, the pocket placement is placed more to the front, plus the hip and hem circumference would have to be tweaked to get the more tapered look of the RTW version, but the neck and shoulder lines are spot on!Now, this Simplicity version already has the CB seam.
But, it doesn't have pockets, but those can be added...
Another concern is the dart placements. With a really graphic fabric, I think the print would look too patchy in front.
Yeah.... the more I think about it, the McCall's version is looking like a real winner here…
Holla!
8 comments:
Girl that dress is SO hot! Can't wait to see your version!
Girl, I just sewed that New Look pattern last month! I have been turning this over in my mind all morning and my only-2-years-sewing mind says I would sew the New Look pattern and use only the bust darts (don't trace out and sew up the waist darts on front or back). This might give you the added fullness around the waist and hips that your inspiration garment shows that the New Look pattern doesn't have when you sew it exactly according to the pattern.
My big reason for avoiding the McCalls is that the pleating or gathering on the back will not lend the same impact to an exposed back zipper, and in fact, the zipper may not lay correctly because of that extra fullness. Your inspiration garment appears to be very flat on the back.
(I sound so official and know-it-all sometimes, so I'm sorry if this comes across very expert and authoritative! I'm not meaning to be, but I am just looking at it from "what would I do if I wanted to re-create this dress?")
I've thought about a couple other things but it might make this post way too long... But let me know if you have more questions about my thought process. I don't know how you feel about "wearable muslins" but I might buy the New Look pattern and sew it up for fit -- you can always add those waist darts after you've assessed the fit and made a super-nice work dress. Then, if New Look works without those darts, you can re-sew in the desired fabric to emulate D&G and all is well! If New Look doesn't work out for this D&G dress, you have a nice work dress and get the McCalls pattern and try it out.
Can you tell I think way too much about these things???
McCall patterns are on sale for 4.99 at sewingpatterns.com. I would choose the McCall pattern because of the pockets and lack of darts.
Antoinette, PEASE believe me when I say I was running around that same thought tree right with you!
I had planed on retracing the back of the McCall's dress to eliminate most of that gathering at the back... I say most, because my....ummm.... figure, doesn't necessarily lend itself to really slim fitting garments like the D&G version... I was expecting more of a looser/hanging fit in the back.
That was another reason I was kind of second guessing the NL pattern, the darts were giving it a more tapered look that I wanted for my version.
Anyway, I will definitely keep you posted (and maybe ask a question to two) once i make up my mind on what to do...
... and it just so happens that McCall's is on sale today....((big smile))
And a big LOL about the "very expert and authoritative" line... you should have heard me in the fabric store the other day trying to tell a woman how to decipher the colors on sewing machine needles.... PRICELESS!
Lashell... I am AAALLLLLL over that SP.com sale... Trust!
You´re clever! And you´re right, the back is great- can´t wait to see your dress...keep watching you;-)
LG Bathina-Daniela
oh gosh... fab dress... can't wait the final product!
go for it!!
Hey Monica...
I made this dress last year (you can see it in the header pics... the black dress on the end)
I'm still working on inserting the exposed zipper into the McCall pattern though.
There is so much extra fabric in the back detail that the zipper is just not laying right.
But I'm still work on it!
MsM
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