Sew Grateful Week : A Grateful Project

Ok, so the idea for today's post was to talk about a project I've done with gifted fabric or a gifted pattern, or with something from a giveaway I've won...  I don't have any gifted things, and I haven't won a giveaway, so I thought I would just do my next post on my Tropical Wrap Dress!!!  I'm sure you'll all be grateful to hear what went on with it over the weekend!

First things first, I inserterted the shirred back piece in between the two layers of the front bodice pieces (the tropical fabric piece and the lining piece).  And in doing so I forgot to add the other half of the tie that ties the dress together.  Sigh!  So I unpicked a bit and sewed in the tie.

I really think shirring this piece was a good idea.

Here is the tie.  One side of the tie is the tropical fabric and one side is green

That was one half finished.  On with sewing the skirt!

I don't think I've complained about rayon yet, so I'm going to do it now - its a shifty bugger!!!  You think you've got it all pinned together right and then you cough and the bloody thing has moved!!!  It is a lovely fabric though, I love the feel and I love the drape, I'm just not 100% in love with sewing with it yet.  It probably doesn't help that I'm making a lot of this up as I go along.  Rayon lovers out there - any suggestions for me?  (I'm looking at you Esz!)

So the skirt consists of a front left piece, and back piece, and a front right piece.  The front right piece is the pretty bit with the tucks and the draping.  The other two bits are basically a pencil skirt thats not sewn together on one side.  I made up the front left and the back pieces and sewed them together and hemmed them (although I just pinned it, cause I'm not convinced its straight yet).

You see, that hem looks crooked... but it could be that my headless helper is on a lean... I'm undecided.

Then I tackled the pretty front piece, which actually consists of three layers of fabric.  The tropical fabric, then cream that the rest of the dress is lined in, then the green which is the lining for this piece.

I sewed more bobble trim on, and then sewed the layers together, just like I did for the bodice.  Then I pinned it to my headless helper and played with the pleats on the right hand side.  Then I pinned the bodice on the top so I (and you too) could get an idea of what the finished dress will look like

This photo reminds me that I really need to finish the little red wool and polkadot satin bolero thats hanging forlornly on that hanger.... so sad!

I still think I need to have a bit more of a fiddle with the waist pleats on the skirt front but you get the idea.  Not that you can see it from this view, but I really like the way the green shows up on the draped bit on the side of the skirt.

I feel like I didn't actually do much with it on the weekend.  My sewing time was reduced a bit, but so much thinking is going in to the process at the moment that its really slowing me down!  There isn't that much left to do really, so this weekend I hope to have the dress finished and the bolero started.

Then it will be on to sewing the giveaway skirt - one of you is going to be soooo lucky!!!!

Beccie
xxx