Maxi-dress made by me!

 

Another catch-up from the end of 2024...Christmas Eve to be precise! 

I decided at about 3pm on Christmas Eve (while busy making food for Christmas lunch) that I should make myself a new dress to wear on Christmas Day - based on the fact I wanted something to wear that would match my newly manicured nails (see pic further down below) and I remembered I had this tropical print rayon in my dress-making fabric stash that would be ideal.

It is a Butterick pattern 6051 and I was obviously in a hurry so did not do any proper measuring for fit, but being a maxi it wasn't too crucial as it is loose-fitting anyway. The bodice was a bit tricky as the pattern called for two bands of elastic at the waist (if I make the dress again I will just do one!) so I found myself still up at midnight trying to thread through the elastic.  

See how beautifully the fabric matched my nail colour?!?

I hemmed the dress on the Christmas morning before we headed off to my cousin's for lunch (we have a summer Christmas here in New Zealand, for any of my northern hemisphere followers who are thinking I may have been a bit cold for the day!)

Summer top - a return to dress-making

Decided I should make use of my sewing machine to get back to making some of my own clothes (in an effort to get some shirts that fit the length of my torso rather than all stopping at my bellybutton).

It's been a couple of decades since I've made any clothes (and even then I didn't make very many) so I decided to start with a simple tank top. This will certainly be a good choice to add to the wardrobe as hopefully the last two (very hot) weeks are an indication of what to expect for the next two months or so!

Called into Spotlight during the week and got this Simplicity pattern at half-price and the lovely navy blue paisley rayon was 30% off  - it has made a great tank top as it feels light and cool.  

Was a bit worried about sewing with a 'slippery' fabric but I'm not trying to win Project Runway so a few crooked lines are no big deal and I think it has turned out pretty good.

It's a nice, easy pattern that probably took me only about two hours in total - I will definitely use this pattern again: I plan to try making a version with more of a scoop neck, as well as slightly wider shoulders and also will add another 2-3 inches onto the hems (I already added two inches when I cut this one out, but would still like to see a slightly longer top).

I have a pretty arrow-print poplin to try Top A with (with the detail at the back). I also have another gorgeous rayon covered in hummingbirds that I want to make into a blouse, so this was a practice run for sewing with rayon.