The Tweed Dress

Hello Readers. My project today is a dress. I don't have many dresses so I was happy when I saw this at the latest clothes swap. It zips up the back so I thought it would be easy to take it in on the sides. It also has two front seams that I can use as guide to take it in even more, if I need to.

Look at the great tweed fabric. It is soft and thick. It will be great this winter. It was in great shape, it is just a little too loose in the body.

I started by putting the dress on my dress form. I was going to pin the sides to mark where I wanted to sew. I didn't think the white pin heads would show on this fabric. You wouldn't be able to see where I marked it for sewing.

I used a big blue marker so you could see it. (It's the only thing that showed in photos.) I will cut off those marks when I am done. I am taking the dress in on the sides and also using those front seams as a guide to take some of the bulk out of the front too. The neckline and shoulders fit well already.

Here is an after shot showing what I cut off from the sides. I also made very small darts in the front, along the two front seams. This was to define the waist. I stitched 1/4 of an inch inside the front seams and it really brought the waist in. I ironed it all so the new sewing blended in.

I didn't remove a massive amount of fabric but the overall look and fit is much better. It is just as comfortable as it was before, just more flattering. I left the length as it was, just below the knee. 

Thanks for reading, now go make something fabulous for yourself.