Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Simplicity 2222 - Zebra/Black Romper Dress

 Recently, I have been planning a capsule wardrobe.  Easy separates that are as quick and easy to wear as they are to make.  Things like knit tops, skirts, pants, capris, vests, and cardigans.  While picking out fabrics and patterns, I was inevitably dragged away from my plan by this cute romper dress.
 It is Simplicity 2222, a Suede Says pattern.  
 I made this once before, back in 2011.  I made a Pocahontas dress for a Cowboys and Indians party.  You can read my blog post about it here.
 I dug out the dress only near the end of my sewing to see what I had done for the buttonholes.
 Five years and two sizes later, it's hilarious how the fitting problems are exactly the same!
 My old version was very snug across the bust, and I had to arrange the buttons accordingly.  This time, the exact same thing happened.
 Besides that, though, I feel like this one isn't as comfortable or flattering as the first one, but I think I'll warm up to it over time.  I am two sizes bigger, after all!  And I preferred the bodice when it was hanging freely (before I attached the skirt).  The blouson style probably isn't the best one for me.
 The back view looks pretty good, though, so I think I'll come around to it eventually.
 In my old version, I remember that the neckline, armholes, and racer back fit beautifully and were absolutely comfortable.  Perhaps that is why I'm underwhelmed with this one.
 I had to cinch in the bias binding a lot around the front armholes, and then I sewed it flat the rest of the way around.  And for some reason, the curves of the racer back did not want to behave!  I pressed them as flat as I could, but it's not as nice as I would like.  Thankfully, this is a very busy print, and no one will ever notice.  I think I'm starting to forget about it already.  :)
 The back seems to sit really well as opposed to the front.  From the back, it looks slimming, but from the front, I look very chesty!  Thankfully it looks better from far away.
 Or from a different angle.  So, in wearing this in real life, I should look just fine.
 I see myself wearing this to church.  I can't really envision much else at this point, but once it hangs in my closet for a few weeks, I might just fall in love with it all over again.
 That happened to me this past weekend with this top.  For the first handful of times I wore it, I just wasn't feeling it!  And now, I absolutely love everything about it, and I can't wait to make another one. Funny how that works, hey?
Anyways, back to the story.  I had a blast sewing this thing together.  I used orange thread and orange serger thread, and I decided that is my new favourite way to sew with black.  I'm wearing it inside out so you can see how colourful the guts of this dress are.
 And I unscrunched the waist blousing so you can see the waist seam.  The pattern instructs you to sew it in a 1" seam and put in drawstring, but I knew it was a little short, so I sewed it at 5/8" and inserted 1/2" elastic.  I'm pretty sure I did the exact same thing to my old version.  Speaking of short (!!!), I lengthened the skirt by 7 inches!  I am 5'10", but I normally don't have to add more than 3".  I have a feeling this pattern is designed for junior sizes, as well as the styling, obviously.  
 I think the vertical lines of the facing are more flattering than the horizontal orange ribbon.  Oh well.  That was the highlight of my design, and this time it didn't turn out the way I envisioned it in my head.  I also feel like this bodice needs an FBA (full bust adjustment), and it would hang way better.  
 And judging by the wonky way the racerback and baggy armholes were, I would prefer a facing.  Speaking of facing, I didn't interface this one.  I figured it would drape better.  And it does.  Mission accomplished.  
 I did, however, remember to sew in my label before I topstitched the neck edge.  I very rarely sew my labels into my own clothes, except for jammy pants, cuz you need to know where the back is!  But I'm glad I did this time.  It gives me a sense of pride and accomplishment.
 Here's a couple more shots of the "inner guts".  
 I feel like I haphazardly picked out colours for this dress, and the result might just be a little "Becky home-ecky".  But I love orange thread!  So there!
It don't look too shabby on the hanger, either!
Overall, I'm a little "meh" about this dress, but like I said, I will warm up to it.  Now, I am ready to do a quick knit project.  I still haven't decided what yet, but I have quite an assortment of pattern and fabric pairings all over the bed.  One of them will jump out at me.

Thanks for reading!

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