Dress making for me is a real no brainer. I like sewing, I'm really stingy and I like to be a little bit original. I admired the Cath Kidston Garden Birds dress but it sold out, I found the fabric on eBay and so decided to make my own!
Here are some tips for complete total amateurs like me:
First up, you know how sewing blogs and books etc tell you to measure your pattern and adjust it to your size? Well yeah. Do that. I stupidly assumed because I fit a certain size in a shop it would match the pattern. Nope. It didn't. Which resulted in me having to do some DIY on the back of the dress to make it fit. Make sure you measure the usual, bust, waist, hips but also across your shoulders, the length of your torso etc.
Next up, make sure you have enough fabric! I can imagine you reading this rolling your eyes and saying "how much of an amateur are you!?" The answer is very and I still managed to make a dress! It's that easy.
Anyway, I did not read my pattern and realise that you have to double it up to have enough fabric which resulted in me having to do some jimmying of fabric and the back being a teeeeny bit longer than the front (but it looks like it's supposed to be like that, result!)
The whole thing took about 4 hours and cost £15. I highly recommend it, it's a very satisfying and makes you feel very smug when someone says "I like your dress" and you reply "oh thanks, I made it".
Next up, a felt wool skirt and a floral tea dress. When I have some pennies that is!
That's fantastic! I would love to give this a go but don't feel quite confident enough with the sewing machine yet...one day! X
ReplyDeleteAll you need to be able to do is stitch two pieces of fabric together, try practising making cushions and bunting and then move onto something a bit more complex. Dressmaking is fairly straightforward, give it a go! xx
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