This month I made a dress using a rose floral wool knit from Mood fabrics. The slight translucency of the fabric reminded me of the envelope example from Vogue 1285, which I have waited 3 years to find the perfect fabric for. I’ve never worked with this thin of a wool knit before and was afraid the fabric would stick to itself too much, especially at the front skirt overlay. Thankfully that wasn’t an issue. Since this fabric contains some wool, it’s a slightly warm dress, and I’ll probably save it for early fall or spring of next year.
I’ve always loved the unique neckline of this design but was never sure what to use for the interfacing along the collar and sleeve bands. Recently I read online of someone using organza as interfacing, so I decided to try that instead of a fusible. This blush silk organza was the perfect match. I sewed it along the edges of each piece that needed interfacing like you would when underlining something. It added the needed stability to those areas but didn’t stiffen the fabric like a fusible interfacing would have. This is a very exciting revelation for me! I never know what to do with see-through fabrics because of the interfacing issue. I’ll definitely be using silk organza as interfacing in the near future.
I thought long and hard about whether to make the darts inverted like the pattern design, but ended up sticking to the designer look. Yes they’re a different look that isn’t to everyone’s taste, but to me they look playful and interesting. I did choose to sew the bust darts on the inside of the dress. Despite being (normally) small busted, I didn’t like the look of those fabric flaps in that area.
I cut this out in my normal Vogue size 12 and had no fit issues. The side zipper was eliminated since the stretch of the fabric enables me to pull it on over my head. I also skipped the sewn in lining because I could NOT find the right color tricot to make it out of. Instead I’m wearing a nude color cami and half slip. The insides are all sewn with french seams since the fabric is so thin and tends to run.
This collar was a bit fiddly to sew. I slip-stitched the under side of the collar along the inside and left off the topstitching. I also put a dab of fray check where the collar notches meet the bodice to prevent any issues in that area. I really like the textural qualities of this fabric, which you can see better in the close-ups.
Two small snaps were inserted where the bodice fronts overlap to keep everything in place.
Sadly this Tracy Reese designer pattern is now OOP, but I’m sure you could find it online on etsy or ebay if you are interested. Not too many people made it up, which surprises me since knit mock wrap dresses seem to be popular amongst the sewing community.
Note: This fabric was purchased with my Mood Fabrics monthly allowance, as part of my participation in the Mood Sewing Network.
