With the belt tied, it's hard to tell how big the dress is.
With the exception of a few stuffed animals, I have never really sewn from a pattern before. In fact, I haven’t sewn very much in the way of clothes–especially something as complex as this dress. Most of the work was done by my grandmother (a very experienced seamstress who’s made all kinds of clothes, including one of my prom dresses), but I was there to watch and help the entire time. After helping her make one, I feel like I could fairly competently make another with few problems. After all, the sewing is the fun part.
However, the process of selecting a pattern, figuring out what size you wear, and then picking out the right fabric and matching thread is downright daunting. Last week when I went to select a pattern at Hancock Fabrics, all the Vogue patterns were on sale for $3.99. That helped me to narrow my options quite a bit. I eneded up deciding on Vogue Easy Options V8575, and I made dress E from that pattern. I already knew I wanted something pretty fitted (unlike most of the dresses in my closet, which fit me like potato sacks). Furthermore, I wanted to stick with 100% cotton for comfort and breathability (if my every item in my closet was made of jersey I would be happy as a clam). The stretch cotton I chose was also on sale, so I ended up paying around $20 for the pattern, fabric, thread, and fusible interfacing the pattern required. Still, I spent about two hours in Hancock Fabrics picking all that out, and I wasn’t very confident in my selection until the dress was finished. Now, of course, I love it.
I'm not sure why the dress came out three or four sizes too large.
But it’s way too big for me, though it fits my mom perfectly. I’ll probably end up giving it to her and making another for myself. Still, I’m not exactly sure what went wrong. I chose the size pattern I needed according to my measurements, despite my horror at that size, because I’ve heard that patterns run kind of small and I expected to buy something a bit bigger than what I normally wear. Still, the pattern I bought was a full five sizes bigger than most of the dresses in my closet. I probably should’ve called my grandmother at that point, who also seemed dubious when I showed her the pattern. However, after taking my measurements we decided to make it that size just to be safe and take the dress up if we had to. Which we did. A considerable amount.
Next time I plan on making it a size smaller (the smallest option the pattern I bought allows), gathering the front and back pieces a considerable amount more, and taking in the side panels a good bit. I’d love to make the longer version as well. A couple of the options offer sleeves, but I think I’ll keep it sleeveless so I can wear it year-round. I’m also thinking about other color possibilities: maybe a print for the bottom and belt with a coordinating solid for the bodice, or solids like white and gray or navy.
For those of you who have experience in sewing from a pattern, have you encountered this size discrepancy? Can you offer any advice that might help guard against this problem?
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