6 Month Sew-iversay!?! THE DRESSES

Hear ye!  Hear ye!

Its my six month sew-iversay! 

Is that thing? I don't care! Champagne and cake all around! 

Basic Tank Dress V1 // Dixie DIY Ballet Dress V3

Tiramisu V1 //  Stretch and Sew 305 V1

Above, you can see the stuff that has already been blogged (like software, the V's refer to the version number). Below, you can see the other stuff. I'd say these photos pretty well illustrate the fact that I have grown a little... uninspired trying to back blog all the garments that I've made. I feel like I'm trying to play catch-up and it makes it hard to focus on the new stuff. Plus, some things just don't deserve a whole blog post, though I do want to keep a record of most everything I've made just so I can keep track of the evolution of my sewing through time. So, here is a major photo dump of things unblogged thus far: THE DRESSES. 

 

Dixie DIY Ballet Dress V1 (muslin; now wearable for festivals!) // Dixie DIY Ballet Dress V2 (muslin; now wearable with shorter sleeves!)

Self Drafted Everyday Dress V1 // Tiramisu V2

 

Basic Tank Dress V2

I had a major photo session this weekend (lots of wine and some quality time with the self timer on my camera) and I think I've got everything photographed that  I've made up until the six month point. Today, the dresses. Tomorrow, the rest of it. I did full photo sets for all of the garments so some (if not all) will get their own blog posts at some point. Let me know if you would like to hear the details on anything specifically, otherwise I suppose I'll just choose at random. I'd also like to make sort of a "projects" page that would have a thumbnail photo of each garment and a link to that garments full write up. This would be mostly for my reference, but might be useful for others as well. Anyone have any clue how to do that in blogger?

And for the SIX month grand tally:

29 finished objects for ME

3 finished objects for OTHERS  

I'm only counting the wearable stuff here, there have been a few wadders. And trust me, the wearable stuff gets worn most days.  I'm quite pleased with that fact, since I started sewing so that I could create the garments that I've always looked for in stores but have never been able to find. For example, jersey knit dresses with sleeves? Now I have seven (seven? wow!)!

 

Also, don't forget to drink your champagne! Bottoms up, ladies. 

 

Gray Patterned Tiramisu

Dress: Made by me, Tiramisu Dress by Cake Patterns

Sweater: Anthropologie

Leggings: Sock Dreams

Boots: Vintage

Here is another dress I finished before I decided to jump on the sewing blogger wagon. I can't remember the order in which some of these projects were finished, but I think I made it back in December, sometime before Christmas. And you better believe that I have been wearing the ever-loving crap out of it ever since. When I first saw the Tiramisu Dress pattern posted about somewhere on the sewing blogosphere, that was the moment I knew that I would inevitably be sucked into the black hole of sewing. It turns out that that premonition was correct!

Oh, and before you ask. Yes, I do know that these photos were taken from an incredibly unflattering angle. I was just too lazy to find my tripod on the day I was taking the photos so I used a stool, and then once I did find the tripod, I was too lazy to retake the photos. So please add like at least a 10% more flattering filter to your eyes when viewing these photos. Thanks!

Although I do love this dress, I had some issues with the fit during construction and still have some issues with the fit now. Even though I am fairly certain that I measured myself and the pattern correctly, when I first put it together, the bodice was ABSOLUTELY ENORMOUS. I wish I had taken a photo a the time, but I was too distraught to think of it! I think part of the problem is how short-waisted I am, but I'm not sure that accounts for the whole situation that was happening! I took about 2 inches out of the shoulder seam on both the front and back and removed about another 2 inches from the bottom of the front bodice. I then had to redraft the neckline to make it wide enough to look even remotely like it was intended. I then took two inches in on each side bodice/midriff side seam. The skirt, however, fit perfectly right off the pattern and I think the suggested length is super flattering. The last adjustment I made was shortening the midriff by about half, which I knew was probably an adjustment I would have to make from the get-go. I am so short-waisted that long midriff pieces look ridiculous on me. Since I'm such a newbie, I was kind of making up these adjustments on the fly and just trying to, in the famous words of Tim Gunn, "make it work!". I'm sure there is a much better way to go about doing these modifications.

In the end, I think I shortened the bodice a bit toooooo much. I bought some cheap jersey to make the first attempt at this dress, and it has ZERO recovery. Whoops! By the time I was done making all those bodice modifications, the material was so stretched out that I think I OVER adjusted. After a few washings, the material has recovered and the seam under the bust sits a bit high. Whoops!

I am extremely pleased with my double needle work for the hem! BTW, this photo is a much better representation of the actual color of the dress. I-Phone camera beats the Nikon everytime! So much for expensive cameras (or maybe I should just learn how to use mine better)!

There's the backside of the hem made with the double needle. I love the double needle, but my machine doesn't I think I've broken at least one on each project. That shit is expensive!

As for the next Tiramisu, I think I will consult Steph's 30- Minutes a Day Tiramisu Sew-a-long that she is just wrapping up right now. I can't decide if I should transfer my alterations to the pattern I have already cut in the size that I used for this dress, or try to cut a significantly smaller bodice for the next go around. All in all, I love the crap out of this dress! Though I struggled a bit with the sizing (I probably should have waited for Steph to publish the sew-a-long, but I was too impatient), I think the design is absolutely perfect for my everyday life. V-neck, jersery, pockets, and a flattering full skirt? Check, check, and check. This dress is exactly what I have been looking for. In fact, I'm wearing it right now! I see many Tiramisus in my future!