This pattern has been on my to-do list for so many years it's embarrassing.
I've had time to basically internalise details from other people's makes from 10 years ago when they were blogging! I also had time to lose the instructions. Oops. Luckily I was able to get a copy of the instructions from a sewing friend.
I made the smallest size and I did add the darts, but the dress is pretty loose and I don't think the darts have affected it much.
After planning many theoretical versions of this I went with the safest method - a leftover scrap of viscose. It's black with cute starships on it. Not the easiest to work with, it's a bit shifty, but has good texture and weight. This was the leftover piece after making a skirt so I just made the dress as long as the fabric allowed. I knew that full length would be too long for me. I also knew that I would hate the facings, but I did them anyway. I was not able to actually cut straight enough pieces to do anything like rouleaux straps, or straps I could pull a safety pin through, so I just folded a long strip in 4 and sewed it down. I don't think this is as nice, as straps go, and was a bit low effort on my part. Optimally I should have interfaced some of the fabric and then cut straps from it. But I wasn't trying too hard.
This was an easy sew. I did my best to tack the facings down anywhere I could, I also cut the facing a bit smaller, and they still peek out somewhat. I do still hate them. The front of the dress is also very low cut and only hides lower cut bras. I'm holding out on whether I will wear this dress this summer, because my dream version was two layers of yellow silk (so no facings needed) but aside from that particular vision I don't think this has a very interesting shape or any other reason I would particularly reach for it. I would prefer a slip dress that just has bias binding from the start. In fact I'm not sure why I don't just stick with the Orchard slip dress which fit great and was very simple, as well as being a free pattern! I do want something bias cut though, so I might try the Gibbons by Elbe textiles next.
I love this fabric so kind of sad I don't really like the dress! But it comes from The Fabric Shop in Otara so I might actually try to get more.
