As soon as I read about the Red Dress contest over at Pattern Review I decided I wanted to enter. I do so love red dresses, so I have no good explanation for why I did not have one already. Oh, just remembered I do have a red ball gown, oh yeah. But I’m talking about a dress that I can actually wear. You know what I mean…
When I was a teenager at school a teacher once opined that red was “my colour” and that little factoid has stuck in my head ever since. But I do find red a quite challenging colour to mix into the wardrobe (I have a short list of stupid rules about the colour red and what other colours it can and can’t be worn with; that I won’t bore you with just now) So I just have a few select red pieces. A dress not being amongst said pieces, so it was time to remedy that!
This beautiful scarlet rayon jersey has been sitting in my stash since my last birthday, when a group of my friends very thoughtfully gave me a Fabulous Fabrics voucher for a birthday present. I know, I have the most amazing and fantastic friends, right?! They know me so well! I used my birthday voucher for this fabric, along with some other fabric that is still in the stash.
Vogue 1087 is a simply gorgeous dress pattern, and I was cross with myself that I had used such el cheapo fabric for my first version, that did not go the distance. I’ve been really wanting to make the pattern up again sometime… The same old problem about finding the right fabric and the right time, yeah. Well I had found some great fabric. The contest finally sparked that “right time” for my red dress to take shape.
I made a few changes to the pattern this time; which I have outlined in my new review below if you are interested…
And just saying girls; want your husband to really sit up and pay attention when you walk in the room? Make yourself a dress like this one…. Word. My husband absolutely looooves my new dress!
Details:
Dress; Vogue 1087, red rayon jersey
Sandals; akiel, from the op shop
below: no zip, and naturally one can still slip it on perfectly easily… my advice? save yourself the trouble 🙂
Pattern Description:
Fitted dress, below mid-knee, has pleated and tucked front forming wrap effect. Front extends to back at sides, back has zipper and hemline vent. No side seams.
Pattern Sizing:
12-18. I made mine to be a size 12 at the hips and re-graded the bodice to be a size 10.
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you had finished sewing it?
Yes
Were the instructions easy to follow?
This is the second time I have made up this pattern. The first time I made it up I wrote about steps 12-13 being tricky to work out and I ended up with the wrong side lapping over at the front and had to unpick and fix it up… well, after studying the instructions I am confident that they are wrong here. If you follow the instructions to the letter as many other reviewers did then you WILL end up with the wrong side lapping over, and it is not your mistake. To get the fronts lapping over the way they are on the line drawing you have to lay the OTHER side over first in step 12. The simplest visual way to describe the correct way would be like a mirror image of how they have drawn each the two diagrams here, if you like.
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
I just love this pattern; the fronts folding across each other and wrapping around the body to make a gently draped X along with that curved triangle seam on the front skirt; these shapes combined together are very flattering to a woman’s curves. The pattern pieces are very unusually shaped and the complexity of the construction makes the dress a nice challenge.
Fabric Used:
Rayon jersey
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
My first version of this dress, a size 12, was too loose and floppy for my liking in the bodice, and frequently fell off my shoulders. So I re-graded the pattern to be a size 10 at the top and graded out to the size 12 around the hips. I felt like this was quite a dressmaking achievement for me, since it is a complex pattern rated Advanced with unusually shaped pattern pieces, and I did not have a size 10 printed on my version and had to grade it myself by eye. I’m pretty relieved how well-fitted it worked out!
Just like I mentioned in my first review; I see absolutely zero need for a zip in a stretch knit dress… really!? why is it even there in the pattern?! So I cut my bodice and back neck facing on a centre fold and so eliminated both the zip and the whole seam.
According to the pattern, the darts on the back of the skirt are supposed to be facing out (sewn wrong sides together). I don’t think so. Mine are on the inside of the skirt, where they should be.
I altered the final stitching of the front pieces to the bodice piece, to sit in a position that I preferred. My neckline is more “wrap” than “squared” as a result.
A bit of experimenting revealed that any sort of edge finish was going to show through on that figure hugging skirt; so I left the edges of the seam allowances here raw; for a smooth look on the outside. All the seams were sewn on my machine but all the bodice edges, the armhole edges and lower hems are invisibly hand-sewn.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
This is already my second version of this pattern, so definitely!
Conclusion:
I just love this pattern, and this dress, and my husband really loves it too 😉
This is my entry into the Red Dress contest
As soon as I read about the Red Dress contest over at Pattern Review I decided I wanted to enter. I do so love red dresses, so I have no good explanation for why I did not have one already. Oh, just remembered I do have a red ball gown, oh yeah. But I’m talking about a dress that I can actually wear. You know what I mean… 
