White Lace Maxi Skirt

A few years ago I saw this lace skirt on Net-A-Porter and loved it:

It's by Alice + Olivia and was made of silk and tulle. I added it to my "Lace" Pinterest board and went searching for a fabric. Eventually I found just what I wanted at Moodfabrics.com, but it sat in my stash for several years and is completely sold out. The fabric is an ivory nylon lace, and I layered it over a lining of white tricot. I wanted this skirt to be washable and not too formal, so I went with a comfortable/stretchy fabric for the lining.

African Wax Print Maxi Dress

For the month of January, the members of the Mood Sewing Network were given the opportunity to work with an African Wax Print, also know as Ankara fabric. I've never looked too closely at these fabrics. They come in such big quantities, and I've not needed 6 yards of anything for a garment, so I skipped right by them. When asked, though, I thought - why not? It might be fun to work with a new-to-me fabric. I chose the Gold and Dark Navy Waxed Cotton with Gold Metallic Foil, the one with the foil leaves. There is also the same colorway with peace signs in foil instead, if that is more your style. I did a ton of searching through google images and even created a board on my Pinterest account of garments made in this type of fabric. What I really wanted was a jacket and fitted pants combo, but I wasn't sure where I'd wear it, so decided on a maxi dress instead. I got out all my fabric hog patterns to choose from, in order to use as much of the yardage as possible.

Vogue 9183 - Winter white wool dress w/ black lace overlays

I've just finished a classy wool dress for fall/winter that I'm in love with! The idea for this garment has been floating around my brain for years and I'm just so pleased to see it turn out exactly how I imagined.

I knew I wanted to play around with lace motifs and needed a lace that I could cut into that wouldn't fray. The one I used is from Mood fabrics and is all sold out but here is a black 3D guipure lace that's similar. The white is an ivory wool twill also from Mood fabrics and also all sold out. (Sorry!) Mood as lots of other wool twills available. Their anemone red is a particularly beautiful color that would go great with black lace.

The pattern I used is Vogue 9183. It's a simple shift dress that's fitted through the bust and skims over the waist and hips. I was intrigued by the neckline of this design and the absence of side seams. I did not make a muslin first as I figured it wouldn't need much fitting past the bust. I cut a size 12 through the bust and waist, tapering out to a 14 through the hips. Thankfully it fit without needing any adjustments.

To make this dress I sewed the ivory wool body pieces together first and put in the zipper. Then I put the dress on my dress form and figured out how I wanted the front lace piece to lay. When it was completely pinned on I took it off the dress form and slowly stitched the lace on by hand with millions of tiny stitches. I went all around the perimeter of the lace and did some stitching in the middle as well. When that was finally done I put it back on my dress form and repeated the process for the second lace piece. Then I had to figure out the lining because this patten is unlined. Usually putting in a lining just involves using the provided bodice pieces but since this dress has a neck facing that's folded over and incorporated into the design, the lining was no picnic.

Dressform pictures:

Here's a closeup of the neckline. I think it looks kind of 60s mod.

I used an antique white china silk for the lining.

The sleeve head seams were covered in bias tape for a clean finish.

This dress took forever to complete! I actually thought I'd finished it a few weeks ago and posted it to the Mood Sewing Network for October. However, the more I looked at those pictures the more I felt like something was off. Every once in awhile I'll change my mind about an aspect of my sewing after I see it photographed, and for this dress it was the sleeve length. Perhaps elbow-length sleeves just aren't flattering on my body or maybe something was off with the proportions. I'm not sure. I cut the sleeves off to the shorter length and trimmed a bit of the sleeve head along the way. I like this sleeve length much better. I'm still not completely satisfied with how the sleeves look from the back of the dress but I am moving on. And trying to not be obsessive. That's hard for a perfectionist.

Note: All fabrics used in this garment were purchased with my Mood Fabrics monthly allowance, as part of my participation in the Mood Sewing Network.
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McCall's 3830 - White lace skirt

I have wanted a white lace skirt for several years now. They were all over fashion blogger's websites awhile back and I kept pinning them to my "sewing inspiration" Pintrest board. After swatching several white laces I finally settled on this beautiful white re-embroidered lace from Mood Fabrics. It had the textural qualities I was looking for as well as the large scalloped edges. For the underlining and lining I used a soft taupe silk crepe de chine, also from Mood.

The pattern is my TNT straight skirt pattern, McCall's 3830, which I have made numerous times. In order to have an uninterrupted scalloped hemline I had to peg the skirt slightly, making it more of a pencil shape then a straight skirt. I used the exact same sewing techniques for this skirt as I did my green lace skirt, so you can visit that post if you want more information. (Also I can't get this skirt over my dressform's hips for any nice interior pictures.)

For this skirt I opted to use some white Petersham grosgrain ribbon for the waistband. This is an easy method for making a waistband that doesn't need any handstitching along the inside. I have done this once before for yet another lace skirt, and was quite pleased with the outcome.

I was careful when cutting out the lace to match the motifs along the center back seam. I tried my best to match them along the side seams as well, but because of the pegged hem there is some slight twinning there. You have to really squint to see it though, so it doesn't bother me. I'll bet you didn't even notice it until I pointed it out, right?

Other then the extra care that goes into sewing with slippery silk fabrics, this was an easy garment to stitch up. I think I have enough lace skirts in my closet now. ;)

This little girl wanted in on the photo shoot!

Note: Both fabrics were purchased with my Mood fabrics monthly allowance, as part of my participation in the Mood Sewing Network.