How I did it: I found fabric that I liked that would go with the pattern I had, purchased it, and prewashed it. The following steps took three days of actual work, although the days were spread out to when I had time. The first day I cut out the pieces and sewed the eight pieces into a front half and a back half. The second day I sewed the two halves together and did the finishing work around the neck and sleeve holes. Then I hung up the dress for a while to let gravity pull on the fabric for few days, so that when I did the hem, it would stay even. The third day I got someone to help me pin the hem while I was wearing it, and then I sewed the hem.

Lessons & tips: Choose fabrics that you really love, since there is no point in putting the work into sewing something for yourself if you don't like the fabric. At the same time, make sure that the fabric is one that will go well with your coloring.

Knit fabrics are a lot of fun to work with, and don't require as much ironing as woven fabrics. Sergers are invaluable for sewing knit fabrics, since serged seams are stretchy, just like the fabric, and are less likely to break at inconvenient times. I used a serger for the seams of the dress, and a regular sewing machine for the neck, armholes, and hem.

Jul 20, 02:54PM PDT | 0 comments | 3 cheers