Dress to Client 2 is on it's way!

It took me longer to finish the dress than I anticipated. After she tried on the muslin, there were 4 things that needed changing.

• The neckline too low, and the armholes too big which was solved with the same fix

• Too long

• She wanted more 'a-line' in her A-line skirt.

• There was too much 'poof' in the front

All easy fixes. She wanted 1 1/2" off the front and back shoulder. Here is how I adjusted the pattern -

Then I had to adjust the back neckline to match the shorter shoulders. A little bit on the front, but that was cut off when I cut out the fabric!

So, then I took in the front bodice a bit, to eliminate a little of that poof, so as not to have so much gathering.I took an inch off of the fold, which really meant 2" were taken out of the front. (both sides of the fold line)

Then, to add more a-line to the skirt, I had to use some paper in order to draw a little more flare on the side.

A few adjustments with my eraser and pencil line and it turned out just fine.

Once all those changes were made, I was able to cut out the dress. Cream on the top and lavender on the bottom.
Here is the skirt with extra 'A'

And the finished dress. Some closeups below -

Nice, thread belt loops. And a self tie belt that does hang below the waist in the picture, but once you get a woman in the dress, it won't. :)

I wasn't quite sure how to treat the edges. Did I want facings? or a lining? not so much. In the end I asked for advice on my sewing list and a narrow binding seemed to be the way to go. I cut 1" strips, sewed with right sides facing, then I pressed them over, and pinned. I hand sewed a small running stitch in the ditch and was very happy with the way they turned out.
My client has promised me a picture of the dress being worn, and I'll share that with you when it arrives.

That is the end of the cream/lavender dress!