Cocktail dress

I made this dress the other day. I made a small mistake on my patter (which seems to be a constant thing with me learning on my own) so the bust is about 2cm too small, so there's some pulling action happening there. What do you guys think?

It doesn't look too small on the mannequin in my opinion, but if you're constantly having problems with patterns being too small, there are a couple of things you could do.

(1) Test sew your garment on some cheap fabric (or, Hell, even a bedsheet) to check the fit that way. If it's fine, go ahead and use your real fabric. if not, modify your pattern.

(2) Use large seam allowances so you have some room to go back and let it out just a bit. I mean, 2cm is so small that I don't think letting it out such a tiny amount would make the dress look funny. Especially on such a classic design of dress.

Hehe I do make everything on muslin first. The thing is that muslin leaves some room for mistake , where as other fabrics like the satin that I used on the dress doesn't. It's not a big deal; the mistakes I find on final sample pieces are usually minimal, and don't really change the garment. =D

You are an amazing designer.

evange wrote:

You are an amazing designer.

Oh wow, thank you so much for the compliment. It really means a lot, and just makes me want to keep working harder. =3

Um...what mistake?

lol, that's gorgeous. Do you have an etsy or something?

ashley. wrote:

Um...what mistake?

lol, that's gorgeous. Do you have an etsy or something?

Actually, I did just open a little etsy shop. It has some items that I'm designed and made patterns to, but that my mother sewn together with her painted silk. I hope to have more items soon.

Adorable dress! You did a great job!

EvertonB wrote:

Hehe I do make everything on muslin first. The thing is that muslin leaves some room for mistake , where as other fabrics like the satin that I used on the dress doesn't.

Are you using muslin with a lot of give? the Calico stuff I use is quite tightly woven.

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Are you using muslin with a lot of give? the Calico stuff I use is quite tightly woven.

Yeah the muslin I was using at the time was really cheap. I couldn't find a good one that was affordable. Also, I found out why there was all these problems with the dress.First it was my pattern. I was following a book, and although it's a pretty good book, some of the information is vague and/or outdated. At any case, the pattern I made wasn't symmetrical and although I was able to get away with it on the muslin it showed a lot on the satin. Then there was the cheap muslin that stretched a bit and it looked like a snug fit when it was actually too tight. Then there was also my machine. I thought some details didn't look right because of my lack of skill, but I didn't know how awful my little sewing machine was till I got an industrial one.

I've done so much stuff wrong, that I should make some "DOs & DON'Ts" so people don't end up losing money and time like I did.

Dress looks fab, I love looking through your posts, you're very talented!
My sewing machine is also a bit rubbish with sheer fabrics. Wish I could get an industrial sewing machine, but I can't really justify it as don't sew enough to warrant it, guess it'll have to go on my lottery win wishlist along with a serger...

I would really like some Dos and Don'ts! I have a few books on pattern drafting, but I mostly just drape on a dress form. My clothes always come out not quite right (usually a tad too small)

lost_soul_in_a_fish_bowl wrote:

Dress looks fab, I love looking through your posts, you're very talented!
My sewing machine is also a bit rubbish with sheer fabrics. Wish I could get an industrial sewing machine, but I can't really justify it as don't sew enough to warrant it, guess it'll have to go on my lottery win wishlist along with a serger...

Give this a try:

http://www.burdastyle.com/techniques/how-to-sew-a-perfect-baby-hem

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Give this a try:

http://www.burdastyle.com/techniques/how-to-sew-a-perfect-baby-hem

OMG, thats magic!

Thankyou so much, will totally give this a go!

FrauleinToYou wrote:

I would really like some Dos and Don'ts! I have a few books on pattern drafting, but I mostly just drape on a dress form. My clothes always come out not quite right (usually a tad too small)

maybe try sewing double the seam allowance so you can let it out in these cases