sewing the rose dressAnz Banking Internet

The dress I posted yesterday (which was actually me from Monday) ticked a lot of boxes – lovely print, light cotton, nice full skirt ect – but it had one big flaw... the cut was crap. This is what happens when you are used to vintage dresses. You get spoiled by great, well fitting cuts! When you can find the perfect fit of course :) But this summer rose print dress had such a different shape in the bodice; like so many modern clothes, the bodice was really long, as though it was made for a very tall person (at 5'4'', I don't think I am exactly petite), the shoulder straps seem to be set quite far apart, and there is no room in the bust, even though the waist is quite big. (And a roomy waist is great for me in January!) When I wore it on Monday I found out just odd this fit was.

So, how to fix it?

I am not going to do a major job on something so close to fine for its purpose, so I need something quick and simple – and within my modest sewing skills.

First, I made a fold in the front of the bodice, as you can see in the first picture. I lined up the seams and pinned it in place, taking about an inch, maybe and inch and a half.

The armholes are really quite high, which wouldn't be such a problem now that the bodice is shorter, but the bust is strangely small, even for modest curves. The small armholes themselves aren't the problem – they aren't too small for arms, and moving and so on, but this is the easiest way I can think of to put more room in the bodice at the top. The dress basically had an Elizabethan corset effect – uncomfortably flat up the front and them boom! cleavage a-go-go – (but for such a long, tall, broad shouldered person!), which I am sure is just fine with some people but it's not really the look I am after! So, by opening the sides of dress a bit more under the arms, it gives more rooms for those overrated luxuries, such as breathing.

So I cut several inches down the side seams, making sure not to go too low – or you bra will show at the sides. Again, not the worst thing in the world but I want to avoid that here.

Pin down the triangles so that the arm hole runs straight.

Chose a thread that matches the colour closely. As you can see, this dress is completely lined in a second layer of light cotton, so I won't need to stitch all the way through – so the stitches won't show from the outside. Yay!