Dress with rushing on the neckline and straps

Front

Continuing my attempt to recreate my dresses, this time I chose a design with a gathered neckline and an elastic waist. I used the same patterns as in the previous dress — the A‑line skirt and the strappy bodice — but added 5 cm at the center to allow for the gathering.

Square‑Neck Dress with Two Skirts

Some time ago, I saw this dress in a shop and decided to try it on. I liked the design, but two details bothered me: it had sleeves, and the fabric was far too transparent. Since I can now make my own clothes, I took a photo so I could try to replicate it at home.

How I Copied a Dress: Part 2 – Sewing

Original

To recreate this dress, I chose a viscose similar to the original. My first idea was not to include pockets — they usually don’t sit well on my body, get wrinkled, and I end up having to adjust them all the time. But in this design they’re well positioned and that doesn’t happen, so I decided to keep them. To add a special touch, I used a brightly colored fabric both for the finishing and for the pockets themselves.

How I Copied a Dress: Part 1 – Patternmaking

Original

To avoid spending time sewing pieces that I later realize don’t suit me, I decided to take a more practical approach: replicating dresses I already wear and love. I went through my wardrobe and, since almost all my summer dresses are good candidates, I started with the simplest one.

Exploring Patternmaking: Three Strap Tops from the Same Base

A piece I wear constantly in the summer is a strap top, so now that I’m learning patternmaking, I decided to experiment and create a few designs from my basic blocks — and this process resulted in three different versions.

First version: testing the darted base 

Doing appliqué flowers to embellish a kimono style jacket

My last project is a kimono style jacket, I drafted the pattern using my bodice block and made a pilot piece using a duvet cover. The end result was nice enough I felt I could where it.