August Sewcial Bee - Late Season Strawberries

8.14.2013

I've had so much fun looking at everyone's pictures in the Sewcial Bee Flickr group. So many beautiful garments and it seems like everyone had a good time.  Thanks so much to Gida Studio for a fun challenge for our second round of the Bee.

So what did I sew for the Bee?  Well just a little mash up of the bodice from Vogue 1027
and my favorite Lady Skater skirt.
My sewing time was limited for this round of the Bee so my mantra was "Keep it simple, Stupid." Guidelines were, use a TNT pattern, minimal or no closers, and for the love of god try to use a knit.  Luckily for me this bamboo knit from Harts.com fit perfectly into GidaStuido's garments inspired by food challenge. Yum strawberries!
I've been itching to make the Vogue 1027 dress again since posting back in May about my first version. It has gaping neckline problems that keep me from wearing it often.  Many of you kindly gave me suggestions for fixing the problem and I was eager to try some out. This is the technique I settled on and it worked great on this knit.
1. Ran a line of basting in the neck edge of the fronts.
2. Very slight gathered the neckline, just the tiniest bit.
3. Used some of the knit tricot stay tape over the basting line on the wrong side of the fabric.
4. Folded the edge over and used the coverstitch machine to finish the edge.
For the sleeve edges I sewed on the facings and then finished the edges with the coverstitch machine.  The facings were trimmed down to the stitching so you get a nice edge finish that doesn't flip out.
There were only 2 yards of this fabric so I couldn't use the huge circle skirt that comes with the Vogue pattern.  Instead the Lady Skater skirt was subbed in with 2 additional inches of length.  Similar look just a little more flirty.
Since I've made Lady Skater mash ups with both Vogue and New Look bodices a quick list of the differences between the patterns might be helpful to others.

Breakdown of the design differences...
Vogue 1027
- Bodice wrap only goes over half of the front
- Pleats on waist seam
- Cut on Kimono sleeve

New Look 6097
- Bodice wraps entire front
- Pleats at side seam
- Set in sleeves

Personally I feel that the Vogue bodice is a little "fancier" because it shows a bit more cleavage.  I love the kimono sleeve, but that does limit your sleeve options unless you're comfortable with pattern drafting. The New Look bodice is more casual because the neckline is not gonna dip as low due to the full bodice wrap.  Set in sleeves make it easy to swap out different lengths and the Lady Skater sleeves fit almost perfectly into the armholes.  So now you know....and knowing is half the battle.

Thanks again to everyone who participated in the Sewical bee.  For those of you who where busy, don't worry we'll do it again. :)

19 comments:

  1. Looks good, I can definitely see the strawberry in that fabric!

    Hopefully I'll finish my August project in time for September's, lol!

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  2. I have and love both of those patterns...I may have to copy this mash up. Yours looks great!

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  3. That's super cute! I'm hoping things calm down around here so I can participate in the next one, or the one after that...

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  4. I love the dress. I am sad that I didn't get to participate in the the sewcialbee this time around. Hopefully next time.
    I love the bodice of vogue 1027. I think that dress might be my favorite I've ever made.

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  5. Such a pretty shade of red! I'm amazed how well your shoes and the actual strawberries match - it can be tricky to match reds!



    You did a great job on this dress! And when you get tired of those shoes, you can send them to me. =)

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  6. I can't wait to see your dress all finished Becky. Loved the fabrics you chose.

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  7. You should!!!, I found the waistline for the two fit together with no alterations. Sweet!

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  8. I'm pretty sure we'll keep having them so sometime the scheduling will work out. *fingers crossed**

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  9. :( Missed you Laura, you could always whip up a food inspired garment just for fun. :)

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  10. Thanks Brooke. When I fall and break an ankle in these I will send them directly to you. LOL!

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  11. Maybe after we get back from my brother's wedding. I think this challenge is such a fun one!

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  12. Every single dress you make is so good! I can't believe how many you've finished this summer... I hope we get a wrapup of the Summer of Dresses!?

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  13. Ooooh, you are a clever one, my dear! That fabric looks EXACTLY like strawberry skin (do strawberries have skin?). So awesome. And, of course, looks lovely on you. I wish I could have participated, but I wrote my final exam for patternmaking on Wednesday so needed to study. I'm excited to see what next Sewcial Bee challenge carries!

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  14. Thanks Catja, I guess learning trumps personal sewing. At least it means you can make some cool patterns in the future.

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  15. You are forever a source of good ideas, I would have never thought to do a wrap up!

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  16. Your combination is so flattering! And you look fab in that color

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  17. Thanks Becki, I feel a bit self conscious in red since it's a "Look at ME," color but I do like it.

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  18. There is somethin' about a red dress! And I love yours! Looks comfy and pretty darn sweet! ~Laurie

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  19. Thanks Laurie, it is super comfy! I've seriously been converted to the benefits of knit dresses this summer.

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