Vogue 2903 in Blue

Is there any polite way to tell someone sitting next to you in a meeting that they are truly driving you nuts with their gum chewing and popping?  I recently pondered it for 60 excruciating minutes in a row.  The only thing that came close was a joke like, "Wow, you are really chewing the hell out of that gum, aren't you?"  Yes, indeedy, THAT was the closest thing to polite I could think of.  Luckily, it didn't make it past my filter.   So, I made a dress.

This is Vogue 2903.  I made it before for a costume for a redneck-themed party and I really loved the fit.  It was in a stretch camoflage fabric.  This time I sewed it in a cotton blend.  I am not sure what the fiber content was.  It was $1.00 a yard, so the cost of the dress was about $5.00.  I was thrilled to find it.  It is a nice weight and I didn't have to line it.

 Here is the pattern picture.  I ended up making a sleeveless version.  I made some bias tape to wrap around the armholes instead of the sleeves.

 Last time I made it, I didn't put in the pleats - partly because I didn't have a lot of time to finish the dress, partly because the instructions for them confused me.  Here is a pleat.

 Here is the pleat from the back, all ironed in place.

 The trick was just to sew a line straight from the seam and then iron it.  I spent a long time trying to figure that out. In the end, I am not sure if I like the pleats in the dress.  I like the flowy look in the previous version I did.  This one doesn't have that same quality.

 The main issue with this dress was my sewing machine.  This is what the sewing machine was doing to the outside of the (very visible) stitching.  The tension looks off, but nothing I did to adjust it seemed to work predictably.

 And inside (on the underside of the stitching line when I was sewing) was even more of a mess.

I took out some stitching several times until the sewing machine acted right.  So, my question is: what issue is this?  I adjusted the stitch length, the tension... what issue is this?  Is it just time to get a better machine?  Has anyone else experienced this?

V2903 - Retro in Camouflage

I had an event to dress up for that had a Redneck/Camo theme and since I don't miss many opportunities to walk around with big hair and lots of makeup, I did it 50's style.   Unfortunately, I didn't get pictures taken when my hair was big and rockabilly, but I did get pictures of the dress, made from Vogue 2903.

This is the original pattern.

V2903 Pattern

I meant the dress to be a joke.  It is 50's.... and camouflage. But the thing is, I REALLY love this pattern. It is super figure flattering.  I don't have nearly as nice of a figure as it looks like in this dress.  Which everybody knows is the sign of a good dress.

One thing I changed was the pleats.  In the pattern, there are large pleats in the skirt section.  I started to make them with the knit and it was a complete fail.  I ended up skipping it entirely and the way the fabric falls, it almost looks like they are there, anyway.

I used a stretch knit for the fabric, so although the pattern has a zipper down the back, I skipped it.  It easily fits over my shoulders without having to fuss with a zipper installation.

I also got to make a size that didn't include and much ease.  I love that about knits.  A close fit AND the ability to breathe.

On the bottom of the skirt, I just used a serger and didn't hem it.  I figured hemming was too much for a redneck theme.  And it is handy since it is my least favorite part of making the dress.  Does anyone like hemming?  It always seems like a tedious detail after you have done all of the fun work.

Hems - the redneck way

Bottom line: I am going to make this again in a different fabric.  Maybe even another knit.  I'd like a dress I can wear in public without being stared at so much (for all the wrong reasons).