Sunday, March 9, 2014

Complete: Gathered Sundress

Confession: I have a bit of a thing for sundresses. Ever since my sister and I made a pact about five years ago that we would actually start wearing the dresses in our wardrobes (v intimidating - someone might see... hey, we grew up in the 90s, when minimalism + grunge meant that heels with jeans felt wildly overdressed), I've been completely enamoured with the sheer effortlessness of a sundress. Throw it on and you're good to go :) Gotta love that!

Consequently, I've  been on an ongoing quest to find/make the Definitive Summer Dress. You've seen my 70s shirtdress and my sari dress, but here are a few pre-blog others:


Five years old and still a favourite - New Look 6557. And being halterneck, almost impossible to photograph hanging up... Printed cotton lawn, lined in plain lawn. Perfect for looking presentable in ridiculous heat.


Burda 7494. Modified to A-line skirt with pockets (of course). Red lined broderie anglaise. Always feel happy in this, but it's best worn in the 20-something Celsius range.


Can't actually remember which pattern this was, only that I made so many changes it was hard to tell it was that pattern in the end... Good dress for more formal occasions in hot weather, but not a whole lot else. The pencil skirt is just a bit constricting in summer.


Burda 7494 again, sans cap sleeves and with altered neckline, A-line skirt and pockets. Excellent throw on dress - fitted but not tight, breathes beautifully, and has a happy print. Love it.

And now, the latest in the sundress family - Pattern Runway's Gathered Sundress.  This may be my favourite yet...


I found this silk-cotton at The Fabric Store in Melbourne. I adored it on sight; I didn't know you could get silk-cotton! It's the best of both worlds - the luxury and feel of silk and the breathability and cooperativeness of cotton. And I swear, it's like air to wear :)


It's not a solid teal, it's actually a very thin teal and green stripe, with almost a seersucker texture.


I was of two minds during construction - there was enough after cutting out all the pieces to squeeze out a sleeveless top. But, after chatting with my Real Life Sewing Friend I decided to finish this off properly - the way I really wanted to. Therefore, piping!



I love piping anyhow, but piping in striped fabric just makes me very, very happy. The binding on the pocket edges was part of the pattern, and it's one of my favourite details.

This is a pretty easy pattern to put together - it really just has to be fitted at the bodice and waist. This was an XS graded up to between an XS and S at the waist. And it has just the right balance of fitted and breezy that a sundress should have. Being a pretty classic style too, it's going to give me years of wear. To me, that ticks all the boxes!

That's about it for this summer's sewing. I've got a couple of other makes to post, but I'm getting excited about my planned cool-weather projects. After all, Me Made May is approaching...

Hey, just out of curiosity, would you have gone for two garments, or added extra detail to the one??

Have a wonderful week :)

20 comments:

  1. That is the perfect green sundress!!!! I love that pattern, with the gathers continuing onto the curved pockets. I also LOVE a sundress with thicker straps... cause I hate strapless bras!

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    1. Oh, I hear you! Note that none of the others requires strapless bras either... ;)

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  2. Love the dress! I agree with your fabric choice: the piping was the way to go. I feel it makes a garment look more finished and highlights the silhouette.

    This is such a timely post for me, it's really a happy coincidence: yesterday, I searched the web, blogs and patternreview.com for a list of summer dress patterns but didn't get much of a result. Then BAM! here you are with this post. I already have New Look 6557 and are considering the other ones you mentioned. Any other suggestions?

    Ooh, and might I suggest adding the Cambie dress pattern by Sewaholic to your summer pattern stash? It is, in my book, a perfect summer dress pattern: easily fitted, looks amazing and is not constricting in the least.

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    1. I'm so glad it was helpful! The Cambie is lovely, thanks!
      I've had good experiences with Style Arc patterns, and they have a great selection of dress patterns. I haven't tried any Victory Patterns yet, but they look promising if you like a slightly more boho looking sundress!

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  3. Beautiful! Great fabric choice and I love the piping detail and the pocket binding. :) I fear I'm hopelessly lazy and probably would have made do without piping...

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    1. Thank you! I bet you get many more garments done then - instead of calling it laziness you could think of it as maximising productivity... ;)

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  4. This is so pretty. I love the colour! I'm glad you decided to go for the piping etc, they really add to the finish of the dress. It looks so professional. I wish I had the opportunity to wear more sundresses! I'd love to make some, but we just don't get the weather here!

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    1. I guess Scotland isn't really the Sundress Capital of the world, is it! I'm lucky that my inclination matches my climate :)

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  5. I've always loved this pattern, yours is just beautiful and that green on you looks wonderful! I think I would have gone with the piping too. I've so many daggy little left over pieces in my stash that would make up a little top, but never get round to using them up! The piping finishes it off beautifully! I think you're right - summer sewing is nearly over for us :(

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    1. I know... autumn's definitely in the air, huh! I've relegated my last two summer projects to next summer quite happily, because they were both shorts and I was really struggling with fitting issues - I'm sure you can sympathise!

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  6. Beautiful! I love the fabric that you used! I'm a big fan of Pattern runway....I'm currently making the Stella dress.

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    1. Oh, the Stella dress is beautiful! I've got the pattern printed out, but haven't got to it yet. I'll look forward to seeing yours :)

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  7. You have quite a collection of pretty summer dresses! The new green one is my favorite though. It looks so effortless and cool! Well done!

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    1. Thank you! Summer dresses should be effortless, shouldn't they? :)

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  8. Just perfect, I adore that colour! The dress just looks perfectly breezy and easy to where. Lovely!

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  9. This is glorious! I would have saved the scraps then decided I didn't really need a top in the same fabric & would have stayed, unloved .... ok, well, I might have made a scarf if it was suitable ;) The piping is perfect - and I wish I've thought of it - I try to remember next time, Thanks! ;)

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    1. Thanks! I do have a lot of scraps in the stash, so I think that helped in the decision-making...

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  10. Oh I love it, the piping is perfect :)

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  11. Wow, some lovely garments in your wardrobe!

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