"Green" Dress

April 15th was the opening reception for our newest exhibition at The Textile Museum, Green: the Color and the Cause, an exhibition of contemporary fiber artists.  I sew a dress to wear for each exhibit opening, and this time I went quite literal, making a green dress (the color, not so much the cause).  I used Butterick 5601, a fitted straight dress with a waist seam, and fun twisted straps connecting the wide shoulder straps.


I made a size 10 through the shoulders, and gradually graded to a size 14 through the waist and hips.  I get nervous when grading this much, but it really payed off in this dress and the fit turned out absolutely perfect; form fitting, yet with adequate breathing room.  This dress was an absolute success!


The fabric is something new I found at Joann's on a recent trip.  I believe the fabric was called a "weft bottom weave," and it is a cotton/polyester blend.  They had this fabric available in several solid colors, and I really enjoyed working with it for this dress.  It was heavy enough for apparel sewing, but still had a soft drape.  Anyone know what it means to be a "weft bottom weave?"  I'd certainly like to learn more about this new find!

Comments

  1. You look great. Love the colour and the fit is superb.
    Angela

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  2. Really nice dress, it looks great on you!

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  3. Just wanted to let you know we like your version of B5601 so much we posted a link to your blog from our Butterick Patterns Facebook page. Nice job.
    http://www.facebook.com/butterickpatterns

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  4. Looks great and fits you really well! Great job. Saw this on Butterick's Facebook page.

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  5. Nice job. You fitted the dress perfectly and you look terrific!

    Glad I found your blog via Butterick's FB page!

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  6. I recently picked up this pattern. Your version is very cute!

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  7. Your dress looks fantastic! I am now picking out the fabric for this dress from my stash. Curious if you think the back straps are purely decorative, or are they also functional? I might leave them off, at least first go-round, and wonder if this means the straps might slip off my shoulders?

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  8. Thank you so much for all the wonderful compliments and comments!

    Antoinette- I think the back straps are actually functional in this dress. As you said, they help to keep the shoulder straps from falling (which are really quite roomy). I had to shorten the back straps quite a bit, too, to really help pull the shoulder straps up to sit where they belong.

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  9. Wow! the dress fits you like a glove.
    Great job!

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  10. Great job on your dress. I recently used this pattern and also had to shorten the back straps.

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