Vogue 1020 - Side ruched animal print dress

Can you take another dress? How about another knit? I didn't really notice this pattern until I saw the white blouse Erica did and thought it was so cute. However, I'm not a huge fan of tunic-length tops on my body, so I opted for the dress instead. When they write "close-fitting", they mean it!!! I cut my normal 12, and it fits, but I've got to make sure I don't eat any big meals while wearing it because there's no way of hiding a full stomach.
It might be hard to see here, but there is ruching all along the left side. This pattern lends itself really well to busy prints since it's such a simple design. I found this fabric at Hancock's and fell head over heals for it. Turquoise, brown, and in animal print? They must have had me in mind when they made it.
This was very quick to make. My fabric was pretty thin, a must for all those gathers, and I was able to do french seams down the sides without any bulk. I did bias tape around the neckline to get a nice topstitch, and also at the sleeve/bodice seam for a clean finish. This pattern calls for an invisable zipper on the right side but I found that totally unnecessary. It has so much stretch that it fits easily over my head.

Here's the pattern picture. I like the dress and tunic, but am not planning to reuse this pattern for any of the other garments.

Up next is Simplicity 2858, in a gorgeous maroon butterfly brocade. I'm doing the shorter length jacket (also in maroon) on the pattern envelope but with the smaller collar and loops around the buttons.