I can't remember where I first caught a glimpse of the Snapdragon Studios' Summer Jazz Dress, but I do remember thinking "It shall be mine." The ladies at Snapdragon Studios had given a sneak peek of the dress back in May, but released the pattern as part of their first collection a few weeks ago... I snapped it up pretty quickly, printed it out and got to sewing.
I loved how relaxed and flowy the dress looked. It's perfect for, as the designers describe, a summer jazz concert (Oh, DC, how I miss your Friday jazz in the sculpture garden!), but also for throwing over a swimsuit at the beach, heading to the farmer's market, etc. etc. I like the shirt/tunic version, too, for pairing with leggings or jeans. The neckline was one of the features I really liked: a soft, pretty v-neck.
I decided to make mine out of a rayon challis I have had in my stash for a while: Amy Butler's Sari Bloom. This stuff is super slippery, silky and soft. Kind of a pain to sew with due to said slipperyness and also because it shreds like a mofo, but the silky softness wins out. I feel like rayon challis is the perfect fabric for this dress: it maximizes the drapiness of the sleeves and skirt. Good stuff.
The logistics of making the dress:
- My bust measurements put me squarely between 2 sizes and I couldn't find finished garment measurements, so I queried the designers to see what they recommended. They thought perhaps I should go down a size and I probably should have listened. I chickened out for fear of having a too-small dress and went for the larger size. It's a bit roomy... d'oh!! Why, Meg, why did you not listen?!
- Soooo, to make up for the extra fabric, I pulled the elastic significantly shorter in the front; I cut it from 9 to 5 inches. Then I unpicked the darts in the back, cut another elastic casing, and mirrored the elastic gathering in the back, albeit slightly less tight (more like 7-8 inches). I think it worked pretty well and stayed true to the style of the dress, but gave it a bit more shape in the back. Next time I'll definitely size down, but I might maintain my elasticized back because I like the symmetry of it.
- Honestly, I had some trouble understand the neckline finishing instructions in the pattern. Instead, I ended up following this tutorial for mitering inside corners with a bias tape facings. Worked pretty well! I used store-bought bias tape because I was worried making and working rayon bias tape would be the death of me... so fiddly!
- Hemming the sleeves was a chore because they are so round, kinda like a circle skirt. I couldn't get them to turn under twice without being a lumpy disaster, so I went with a slightly uncouth method: serged the whole hem then turned it under once and stitched. Gets the job done, but maybe not the prettiest method!
All-in-all, I am pretty pumped about this dress despite my silly sizing mistake. It's so flowy and comfortable and flattering! Tim and I are heading to the beach for 4th of July weekend and this dress will definitely make an appearance for shoreside cocktails.
This dress is really cute and looks like it would keep you nice and cool in the hot weather. I love the neckline too!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! It's super comfy for sure... I can't wait to make some more of these!
DeleteVery cute! The colour and shape are great on you. Gosh, I alway use that uncouth hemming method ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks!! I use that method pretty frequently, too ;-)
DeleteI love it! I had just assumed this was a jersey knit, pleasantly surprised. It looks great!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Teresa! Rayon challis is my new best friend after this dress... I love it.
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