Feeling springy over here! Flowers are coming up and legs are bare again. We’ll probably have snow again next week, but I’m taking advantage of these opportunities.
But actually I sewed this project last fall and finished it this winter during a "finish all the WIPs" period inspired by the Wyldwood Creative JFFI Challenge. And then I waited until this week when it was warm enough to get photos!
This is the Chalk and Notch Fringe Dress pattern. The Fringe is a woven dress and blouse with two views and options for a button up front, elbow sleeve and sleeve tab, or notched front with a cuff.
I was a tester for this pattern when it was originally released several years ago, but it's since been re-released with a larger size range and more cup size options. It now goes up to size 30, designed for a 58 inch bust and 59 inch hip, and it has A/B and C/D cup options.
The fabric is a linen viscose noil from Stash Fabrics in the dark teal colorway, which sadly doesn't appear to be available anymore (but the red! the rust! the plum! and have you seen Robin's red linen viscose noil Elodie?!). I love the weight and fabulous drape of this fabric! And the rich color is very beautiful.
I opted for the Fringe Dress's View B, the pullover with the notched front neckline. The armholes are finished with a cuff.
I cut a size 20 Fringe with the C/D cup, according to my measurements. Strangely, though, it turned out very large overall. It's quite loose through the body and too long in both the bodice and the skirt. It was just sort of hanging off my body in an unpleasant way.
In the end I decided to add elastic to the waist, forming a casing for the elastic by pressing the seam allowance between the bodice and skirt by 1 1/4 inches up towards the bodice. I topstitched the casing and threaded the 1 inch elastic through.
It's not the most elegant solution, as some of the skirt gathering got a little bit wonky and caught up in the topstitching, but I don't think you can really tell much since it's camouflaged by the gathering resulting from the elastic.
This elastic casing took the skirt and bodice up in length a bit, and gave a little bit of waist definition that makes it much more wearable for me.
I love the neckline; I had been wanting to try that notched neckline since making this version for my mother a few years back.
In the end I love it! It's very comfy and cute.
