Criswood Parasol dress, again.

 Made two of these last year.  Reckoned the long one was a bit too long but then after I sent it to my friend I looked harder at the pictures and thought it actually had felt pretty lovely on.  Yes, oversized, but in a subtle way, as long as the fabric choice is very drapey and light. So out of the blue I decided I wanted another one and I wanted it in this fabric I had earmarked for something else.  I wanted a kind of grown up (not pink, not highly patterned...) dress.

I think the fabric is from The Fabric Box.  It is a crepey textured rayon.  It's heavier than the bird print rayon of my first version and that led to some pocket dramas.  Up to the pockets things were going ok. My sewing machine was serviced last year and the results of that service...are that I wouldn't recommend those guys to anyone.  It doesn't seem to be any different than before the service (still barfing furballs, still hesitating and mis-stitching all the time like it got lost along the way, arg!)  I noticed that led to some missed stitches and very obvious stitching, but I don't really mind the look, it creates a kind of obvious facing look at the bodice which is ok.  Possibly my thread wasn't a perfect match but I did use a new needle.  

 

I put the pockets on and they sagged down to the bottom of the universe.  I went ahead and made the whole dress, even let it sit while I debated whether to cut the hem straight.  Decided not to.  I think the hem having a high-low look adds to the dress.  The huge pockets cutting up the flow of the dress, not so much.  With a sad sigh I went forth to remove them and retrofit in side seam pockets.  It's painful mainly because you can't get the insides as pretty, but perfectly serviceable anyway.  Wore dress the next day.  Happy with it!  It is heavier than the pink one was which should have been foreseeable, but that doesn't pull the front or the back down in a bad way, the back tie keeps the dress from falling forward to show too much (nonexistent) cleavage.  I really like the feel of this dress. 

Criswood sews Parasol dress review

 I was inspired to make this dress by Instagram and by a week of warm weather, suggesting that winter might someday end and I might actually not cover my entire body when going out.  (That weather didn't last.  Winter is not over.)  

It's a novel process as you measure yourself and then build pattern pieces based directly on your measurements.  Thus, everyone has a one-size dress.  I'm seeing so many benefits from my foray into quilting, and one of them is that I've gotten over my fear of measuring things.  I would have found putting together a pattern of rectangles to be traumatic a few years ago.  Now the main problem was taping together sheets of paper to fit.  You end up with a bodice piece, a skirt piece, the pocket, and a facing/tie piece.  I duly noted that the gathering would probably be better in a lightweight fabric.  Then of course my stash failed me, because I couldn't get this dress to fit on 1.5m of fabric and I have a very bad habit of never buying more.  This toucan print rayon has been in my stash for so long I no longer love it - my eyes have kind of gotten bored of looking at it.  And so it was time!  

The dress comes together very neatly and is a fun, satisfying sew.  I popped it on and was sort of fascinated.  This dress also is probably much better suited to a taller, wider and more full-figured person.  I don't think it's flattering on a small body.  I don't have any bra visibility at the front or back, though the sleeves are low they don't show much.  The drape makes it quite fun to wear.  I think for summer when a muumuu is just the thing - this is a good classy muumuu.  It is going to my friend R in Tucson since she lives in the land of permanent summer.  When I saw my pictures I did think harder about this dress as I feel good moving in it and I think it has a subtle grace to it with an almost cocoon look at full length.  I'm not rushing to make another one of a drapey fabric, but it's in my head. 

I decided to move on directly to the vision I had had.  I knew perfectly well that this might look like a toddler's dress.  I shortened the dress 8" and managed to stripe match only because it's so easy I would have had to work to not match them.  My striped fabric is heavyweight linen from The Fabric Store and I bought the end of the bolt when a lady walked in the shop wearing a dress made of it and made me totally covet my own.  I also shortened the width of the skirt piece a little bit, about 2", so the gathering would be less. 

 

It does match my vision and it's wearable, and I suspect once summer comes I will wear it a lot.  But it does kind of look like I'm a toddler.  The dress is not actually as short as it seems, or at least when I wear it I don't feel uncovered, maybe because of the volume.  The pictures make it seem super short!  

This was a really fun project even if not quite seasonally appropriate...