Sunday, June 23, 2013

Travel Maxi Dress DIY

On a whim, we decided to road trip to LA and visit some family.  In preparation for the 6 hour drive, I decided to slap together a maxi on the serger.  The words "slap together" did not work for me as my attempt to quickie sew backfired and I wound up tearing the dress apart 3 times (working up till 2 am the night before the trip).  I still need to properly hem the thing (right now it's narrow hemmed by my serger which is too visible of a hem for me), but this works for now and it lived up to my needs of comfy travel garb.

Machines: Regular sewing machine w/ twin needle for gathering and serger for all other construction.  LOVE the built-in stretch of serger stitching on knits!

Materials: 2 yards red ponte roma fabric (this is quite heavy, but very stretchy - modal might have been a better choice, but I wanted to use something I had on hand)

Difficulty: Easy if you don't try to shortcut it (I eyeballed instead of pinning - bad idea)

Dress Pattern: Modified bodice from McCall's M5893 (cut the neckline extra high then drew the asymmetry and cut), self-drafted skirt, bodice edges finished with facings rather than full lining to make sure it didn't get too thick / hot (ponte)

Another asymmetrical neckline

Long and drape-y with gathers at the center front and back.  This helps with tummy camouflage and I think the vertical lines look elongating (at least I hope so).  Belting it made it seem slimmer IRL, but the pictures here don't seem to look that great.

 The color IRL is more like this bright red from my original instagram

Will post about the fabric stores and food here soon!

17 comments:

  1. so cute! I luv the neck line!!

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  2. This is gorgeous!! Looks comfy for travel but still chic for a dinner out. Lovely!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Caroline! It's so much more comfortable to travel in something that doesn't constrict your waist / legs!

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  3. Wow that's a great maxi :) Your kids are gonna have the best clothes with your sewing skills :)

    katattack2000.wordpress.com

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  4. nice! the asymmetrical neckline is really cool.

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  5. I love it! It looks very chic and comfortable!

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  6. i love this maxi! it looks amazing belted. can't believe you put it together the night before!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Amber! I found a neutral knit print on our fabric shopping trip and it reminded me so much of you. Will have to figure out what to make from it :)

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  7. super cute dress! i love how you're skilled enough to quickly "slap" together a dress.

    Maggie
    lovestylehappiness.blogspot.com

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    Replies
    1. You're giving me too much credit! It took MUCH longer than anticipated :)

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  8. Love that you can just DIY on whim even if it takes longer than you thought. Heck, it takes me hours just to hem, hehe. Great color!

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  9. It came together so nice. Gorgeous red. Your double belt is great. I will make sure to view your next food post on a full stomach. :)

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    Replies
    1. Could not get my act together on the food post, but it's definitely upcoming! :)

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