Style Arc Kristen Dress, Colour Blocked and Modified.

I had a long narrow strip of the lovely mosaic print scuba knit that I used for my Style Arc Fay Skirt left over in my stash. It was too good to throw away, but not big enough for an entire garment. This is what I came up with:

I used the Style Arc Kristen Dress pattern which I have made once before here. It's such a simple design...a blank canvas.

I redrew the front pattern piece, adding a 20cm wide strip down the centre and two side front pieces. I also substituted the crew neckline with the Cowl neckline from the Sewaholic Renfrew Top.

The fabrics I used with the scuba knit are a navy and an off white ponte. All fabrics were purchased from Spotlight last year. The zip was eliminated as it is completely unnecessary in a knit and I also left off the pockets.

I did add some long fisheye darts in the back after trying it on. The fit was a little too "sack like" without them.

I am quite happy with the fit now, still relaxed but with a little shape. I'm not sure if I like the cowl in off white. I am wondering if it would have looked better in the navy. Hopefully it will grow on me because I really don't feel like unpicking it, and I have just enough navy ponte left over to make a skirt, so I don't want to waste it cutting another cowl.

You can see the lovely print in the close up photo. I also top stitched the joining seams between the panels with a twin needle. All the hems were turned up 2.5 cms and topstitched with the twin needle as well.

This was a nice and easy dress to make and it's very comfortable to wear too.


Happy Sewing

Tilly's Coco at the Beach

I have made another Tilly and the Buttons Coco Dress.

For this one I made a slight alteration to the lower half. I slimmed down the side seams below the waistline using the shape of the Style Arc Kristen Dress. Also, I used the SA Kristen Dress pockets (they are bigger than the Coco pockets). 

As I did for my first Coco, I cut a straight size 5 based on my bust measurement. I did add a little extra length to make it more age appropriate.

The fabric I used for this Coco was a great quality navy and white striped ponte. It was quite hefty and provided a lot more structure than the fabric I used for my first Coco. I purchased this fabric from Spotlight at Nowra, NSW back in July**. 

Funnel Neck

I made the funnel neckline again. I love this feature. I decided to run the stripes vertically to provide interest. I wanted to add some gold buttons with a nautical theme but couldn't find anything like that locally. I ended up choosing these red heart shaped buttons which add a splash of colour. I may change them if I find something more suitable.

Pockets and cuffs

I cut the pockets and cuffs with the stripes running vertically too. I think this helped break up the horizontal stripes and looked better. The ponte had limited stretch so this was not a problem.

I love this Coco and I have worn it numerous times already. I just throw it in the washing machine, hang it on a coat hanger on the clothesline to dry, and then straight back in the wardrobe (no ironing required). This ponte is great quality too and has not pilled at all.

All photos were taken down at Denham's Beach (South Coast of NSW) by my son, who was home on a short break from Uni over the weekend. (I wanted to take these photos on the beach but I was dreading taking the tripod and remote to such a public area. I'm a little self concious and like the privacy of my own yard.) Jesse was very obliging, even posing for a photo himself.

**We called in to Spotlight at Nowra NSW on our way to Sydney for my "Surprise 50th Birthday Party"  (of which I was oblivious of at the time). My partner (now husband) was being very kind and allowed me to spend a good hour and a half fabric shopping, with very little complaining. This was a real treat for me as I rarely get to shop in real fabric shops (most of my fabric shopping is done online). I managed to spend quite a bit of cash and the cashier declared that I had saved almost $100 on my purchases, because I had a VIP card. I was almost afraid to ask how much I owed. Anyway, I now have some lovely fabrics and lots of plans.

Kielo Wrap Dress Refashion

A few months ago you may remember that I made the Kielo Wrap Dress by Named patterns, in a winter version using a charcoal grey ponte. See blog post here. Although I was happy with the dress, I just didn't love it on me. I have a rectangular shaped figure and I felt this dress made me look like a brick. All those ties wrapping around my waist just added bulk. It has been languishing in my wardrobe taking up valuable space, so I decided to make it more wearable for me.

Kielo Wrap Dress refashioned

My refashion was very simple. I unpicked the side seams and removed the waist ties. Then I used my trusty shift dress pattern piece, to recut the side seams and hemline. (This is a frankenpattern of the Tilly and the Buttons "Coco dress" and the Style Arc "Kristen dress")

Pattern laid out to recut side seams

The neckline and armholes remain unchanged. I also left the armhole darts in place.

My new shift dress

The back darts remain unchanged.

Worn with a belt in an attempt to create some waist definition.

I must be happy with my new dress as I have worn it to work several times already. Much better than languishing unworn in the wardrobe. It's great to layer with a bright cardigan (Style Arc Nina made pre blog) and easy to dress up with a simple scarf. This is how I have worn it to work:

I really must attempt this refashion thing more often. I have some near new men's tees that could be made into something else if I put some thought into it. There is so much inspiration out there in blog land.

Happy Sewing

The Kristin Dress

I am on holidays from work this week...so lots of time for sewing. I have quite a big sewing project on the go at the moment (more about that soon), but I felt like a change of pace and thought I would try the Kristin Dress by Style Arc as an instant gratification project.

Kristin Dress

KRISTIN DRESS: This new fashionable knit dress is so versatile, shorten it and wear it with leggings or wear it as a dress with your boots or ballet flats. Put your own creativity in by adding contrast pockets, why not try leather, this is the latest new look! 

I made the longer version with the full length sleeves. As you may have noticed, I did make some alterations to the pattern. I couldn't be bothered putting a zip in the back so I folded back the seam allowance and cut the back piece on the fold, eliminating the back seam. I wasn't keen on the crew neck so I redrafted the neckline and drafted some new neck facings to match. Increasing the neck opening also eliminated the need for a zip. I can easily pull this over my head.

New neckline on original pattern pieces.

 I used a Dark Charcoal Marle Ponte De Roma purchased online from Lincraft. I cut a straight size 12 and didn't make any alterations regarding size or length. I am happy with the length and the sleeve length was perfect for me. The fit was quite roomy and a little "sack like". Maybe some long darts in the back and some more shaping in the side seams would improve the shape? I might think on that a while.

Front with pockets

Back

Side

 Here are some more details:

Neckline facings top stitched.

To top stitch the neckline facing, I machine basted around the edge of the facing from the wrong side. This gave me a guide line to follow when I top stitched from the right side. I top stitched a few millimetres away from the basting stitch so that I could easily remove the basting stitches afterwards.

Top stitching on pockets and sleeve hem

All seams were finished with my overlocker.

I have styled my Kristin Dress the same as the pattern envelope, with a scarf tied in a bow. For cooler weather it would look great with a big thick woolly scarf and you could layer it over another top for extra warmth. In warmer weather it would look great styled with a long statement necklace. I think the Kristin Dress is really a blank canvas, especially when made up in a neutral coloured fabric. Just the addition of a colourful scarf can really dress it up. It's very comfortable to wear and hides any of those unwanted lumps and bumps.

Happy Sewing