Tuesday, August 7, 2012


Daughter wearing the Burdastyle Theresa dress.



Just a closer look at the structure of the front of this dress.
 This dress came together very nicely. It was a free download on Burdastyle for a few days.  I am not sure if it is still free. It has seam allowances of 5/8ths included!  I would highly suggest that you cut the neckband's seam allowance to 1/4th or 3/8th width. I thought I would keep the 5/8ths and trim it.  It is really too narrow of a neckband to keep the 5/8th.  When you look at the dress on the model, her neckband looks wider than this one. I imagine, they just used a smaller SA on that one.  The directions state that all pattern pieces have the 5/8th SA included....just a word or warning.  For sizing, I cut a 34 everywhere but the waist.  At the waist, I tapered to a 36.  This corresponded to her measurements.  I think the fit came out surprisingly well considering it was a guess for this pattern.  I also underlined the entire dress because it was see through.
 I used 3 rows of gathering stitches because Colette told me so.  Here is the Colette Tutorial for gathering stitches. I really like how they turned out.
The only other pattern change that I made was the width of the skirt panels.I reduced the width by about 6 inches so that it would fit on the fabric. (24 inches total) This would have been a much fuller skirt.

That's about it.  Pretty simple, well thought out pattern that looks really sweet on my daughter.

Sewing hugs!

Claire

Update:

Burda ruffle instructions clarification:

  Ruffles: I folded one side's seam allowance to the back like a hem, stitched a zigzag at the very edge of the "hem" edge. I turned it over and cut off the excess fabric from that hem. Repeat for other ruffle. Do gathering stitches on the raw long edge of the ruffle like Colette in my blog above or zigzag stitch over some waxed floss without stitching through the floss and pull. Mark the very center of the bodice, top to bottom. Butt the raw gathered edges of the ruffle on this center line and make sure the ruffle extends or shortens to the length of the whole front piece of the bodice like the photo and pin then baste or use some 1/4 inch steam a seam to hold it to the front bodice fabric. Next, take your placket and fold and press the seam allowances on both long sides to the wrong side of placket. Place placket on top of ruffles, secure with pins or steam a seam. Edge stitch the placket in place.

21 comments:

  1. That turned out so nice; I love the fabric. What kind of fabric did you use?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Shirley Ann. I think my original response got lost in cyberspace. The fabric was a gift from a friend who was cleaning out their fabric stash. It was a thin cotton with a tiny diamond embossing. It reminds me of a vintage table cloth.
      Take care,
      Claire

      Delete
  2. Lucky girl! That is one pretty dress - has she put in an order for more????

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Absolutely! It has been a long time since I have been so utterly pleased about how a pattern turned out.

      Delete
  3. I originally saw this on Burda's website and had to say how really beautiful this is! I love the fabric so much and thinks it really compliments the dress. Nice job!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Joan! I think it would be really cute with a Liberty of London type print too.

      Delete
  4. Lovely dress...
    Also, I love the SA ruler (Mansfield)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks NewRibena! I am so glad you like the rulers too!

      Delete
  5. That looks really nice on your daughter. Good Job!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Adorable! You're daughter is extremely lucky, this is awesome!

    strugglesewsastraightseam.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Leah! If only I could teach her to sew for herself or at least cut well..(sigh) :)

      Delete
  7. I love the dress! The fabric's print works great with the pattern. Well done!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I love getting someone's de-stashed fabric.

      Delete
  8. Beautiful dress!! Well done! Another to add to my list.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Claire, just found my way here from a PR review. Your daughter's dresses tuned out great, looks like she has been keeping you busy!

    Your blouse turned out great also. My daughter would love the peter pan collar. Seems they are making a comeback.

    Andrea (Satinbirddesigns.blogspot.com)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Andrea! She definitely keeps me busy sewing for her. I tend to sew the same sort of things for me self, so it is kind of fun sewing for someone with very different styles of clothing.

      Delete
  10. say, I've seen this lovely dress! Claire, I'm glad you commented on my review. Made it easy for me to find you and get you on my blogroll!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi! Can you please advise, step by step, on how you sewed the ruffles and placket? I had such a hard time understanding that part. Thanks!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Burda instructions can be confusing. Ruffles: I folded one side's seam allowance to the back like a hem, stitched a zigzag at the very edge of the "hem" edge. I turned it over and cut off the excess fabric from that hem. Repeat for other ruffle. Do gathering stitches on the raw long edge of the ruffle like Colette in my blog above or zigzag stitch over some waxed floss without stitching through the floss and pull. Mark the very center of the bodice, top to bottom. Butt the raw gathered edges of the ruffle on this center line and make sure the ruffle extends or shortens to the length of the whole front piece of the bodice like the photo and pin then baste or use some 1/4 inch steam a seam to hold it to the front bodice fabric. Next, take your placket and fold and press the seam allowances on both long sides to the wrong side of placket. Place placket on top of ruffles, secure with pins or steam a seam. Edge stitch the placket in place.
    Let me know if there is any confusing bits.
    ~Claire

    ReplyDelete