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| Style Arc Hazel Dress |
This Style Arc Hazel Dress was actually made way back in May. You may have seen a sneak peep during Me Made May. I think I only got to wear it once before the weather turned cold, so it has taken until now to get some descent photos for the blog.
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| Style Arc Hazel Combo |
I chose to make the dress with the sleeves and I also included the pockets. The fabric came from Spotlight. It was some sort of knit, not as heavy as a ponte, had a nice drape and not too much stretch. The two tones are actually the right and wrong sides of the fabric. I decided to use both sides of the fabric to add interest and highlight the design lines of the dress.
The neckline, hemline and sleeves are finished off with a facing. I initially tried to hand stitch the hem facings, but they looked terrible in this fabric, so I resorted to using the twin needle which gave a much better result.
The sleeves are very "bat wing" shaped. This is a bit of an issue if you need to raise your arms above your head as the whole dress lifts up and you can reveal far more than is socially acceptable. The shape of the sleeves also restricts what you can wear over it. I have no cardigans or jackets that would work with this style. I found that the dress tends to slip back off my shoulders, when sitting and the front neckline rides up and chokes me. This may be due to my forward sloping shoulders? but is quite annoying.
I like the look of this dress, but I do find it annoying to wear due to the reasons mentioned above. Not sure if I would make it again.
Happy Sewing
This is a nice style but I understand the issues you had with it. I often find garments slip back and choke me if the armholes are the same height back and front - rebalancing them usually fixes the problem.
ReplyDeleteThanks Siobhan, you might be on to something there.
DeleteThis looks really great in you! Maybe it's a statement dress? The kind you wear to an evening event where you want to look polished, then slip into Jammie's as soon as you get home. It's a really lovely style on you.
ReplyDeleteThanks Nancy D. I do love the look of the dress, but it's just not very practical to wear.
Delete...sigh...it looks lovely. But, I totally understand what you're saying. I've had the same issues with large sleeves. I wonder if the sleeveless version would be better for you?
ReplyDeleteInteresting what Siobhan wrote about a fix for choking!
Thanks Sue. The sleeveless version may be worth a try.
DeleteIt is very cute but one is enough! How annoying re the sleeves and the neck issue. Most probably forward shoulder/head. We seem to all have that now with computers.
ReplyDeleteThanks Vicki. I do sit in front of a computer all day at work. I need to learn how to do this adjustment.
DeleteI thought this looked a little unseasonable. And cocoon dresses with Batwing sleeves look nice, but as you say, it is not easy to wear a layer over the top - although New Look had a pattern for a kimono sleeve jacket - I think you made that - that would go over the top. I guess you can also put warm layers underneath. And if all else fails, the fabric could be recut - they are quite sizeable pieces.
ReplyDeleteAs you said Sarah Liz, the dress looks nice. Just a shame it is not nice to wear.
DeleteThe dress looks good, but I'd find the sleeve and neck thing annoying too. Oh well, sometimes you just don't know until you've tried.
ReplyDeleteThanks Paola. It may work better with a forward shoulder adjustment. I must investigate how to do this.
DeleteIt does look lovely, but I can imagine the problems you're describing. Wide necklines can be really annoying for this reason. I do like the pockets in this dress, very reminiscent of the Rachel Comey skirt that was so popular a few years ago. May you could redo the neckline to be narrower, and the sleeves to stick straighter out, so it doesn't ride up? :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Carolyn. The neckline is not particularly wide, but it is shallow and combined with my forward shoulders, the dress just wants to slip back. The pockets are very similar to the Rachel Comey skirt that you have so many wonderful renditions of. If the sleeves went straight out instead of sloping down, they would work much better, but that would probably create more problems with excess fabric under the arm. Maybe I will just chalk this one down to experience and move onto one of the other great patterns I have in my queue.
DeleteThe lines on this dress are lovely, but the issues you have highlighted would make it a no go for me. Neck choking for me means I haven't done my forward shoulder adjustment, makes a huge difference.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Sharon, the lines on this dress look great and I was able to highlight that by using both sides of the fabric. Such a shame it is not very practical to wear. Must learn how to do the forward shoulder adjustment.
DeleteIt's a pity you find this dress so annoying! Isn't there anything you can do to keep the shoulder seam in place? I once had a dress with a V-neck front and back that kept falling backwards. In the end I added a tiny piece of velcro to the seam that clinged to my bra straps, problem solved!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip Marianne. Something like that could work well.
DeleteIt is so nice to read a review giving such an honest opinion. I have this pattern, but may hesitate to make it. Perhaps I'll toile it first.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sue. I do try to give honest reviews and I usually have nothing but praise for Style Arc patterns. This one looks great but is just a little impractical to wear. A toile first would be an excellent idea.
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