A couple of years ago I realized that I had no summer dresses and I like summer dresses. As you can see from the background of my photos, I live really rural. Living really rural means that most of the time you can wear whatever you want and, unless the UPS man indulges in some stealthy driving, no one is the wiser. I finally decided that just because no one sees me, it doesn't mean I should live my life in my most disreputable clothing. And thus began the summer dress collection, which I wear instead of saving "for good".
This challis dress, made from Vogue 8727, was one of the first I planned to make, but for some reason, after I cut it out, I kept pushing it aside to make other dresses. I think it might have been because it's fully lined and that meant hemming two full circle skirts.
The front has a large curved waistband with a gathered upper bodice. (I'm sure there's a name for the large curved waistband, but I'm not familiar with it.)
There's a whole lotta skirt going on.
This is such a lovely dress! I love full circle skirts anyway, but this one has a beautiful bodice to go with it.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that the skirt is lined - I wouldn't have thought it necessary given the amount of fabric in the skirt anyway. What advantage does the lining have?
That is an excellent question, Helena, and one I should have thought about before blindly following pattern instructions and lining a gigantic skirt. My initial thoughts are that the lining helps support the droopy challis fabric. If one made the dress out of something with more body than challis, then I wouldn't line the skirt. The cotton batiste lining feels great right now, but I wonder if the extra fabric will make the dress feel hotter in the summer. I'll report back in on that.
ReplyDeleteThis dress came out beautifully! How did the extra fabric lining pan out? Would you recommend adding a lining because of the challis?
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