I was lucky enough to be a tester for the
Kim dress recently released from
By Hand London. They hit it out of the park with another beautiful party dress. I am especially crazy about the wide neckline as I think it's really flattering and a bit more grown up than a classic princess seam dress.
I decided to go with view B and the sweetheart neckline, although the petal skirt version looks really beautiful too. I omitted the pleats along the bottom because I was sure they would get lost in the busy print I was using. The only other change that I made to the skirt was to add some pockets. In my opinion every full skirt should have pockets. They are easy to hide in the fullness and make the dress so much more wearable.
I did a full bust adjustment because they draft for a size B and used this tutorial from craftsy. I still had a few tweaks after muslining but I am super happy with the end fit. I also decided to line the skirt to help with the fullness. The fabric has a nice weight to it but still drape so I was nervous that the skirt would stick close to my body without the lining.
Because of the weight of the full skirt I decided to use
Tasia of Sewaholic's directions to do a waiststay (Ignore my crazy lining. I promised myself to only use fabric from my stash for the inside). I am so glad that I did. It's nice to have that extra support and not feel like the skirt is pulling on the bodice.
Also, to help with the wide straps I sewed little ribbons to the straps at the shoulder seams before attaching the lining to the bodice front. My bra had detachable straps so I just put the straps through the ribbon to keep my bra straps in place. You could also add a little snap to one side of the ribbon if your bra is detachable. Added bonus is that these little ribbons make it much easier to hang up.
The gorgeous fabric is from
Caroline's fabric store called Blackbird Fabrics. I love her store. I trust her taste and ability to pick high quality fabrics. This viscose was so great to work with. It's super soft but still has a nice structure to it. I think it's out of stock but I heard she will be restocking it in January :) Highly recommend it.
I've already worn the dress out to a holiday party and felt beautiful in it. I have to admit that it's a bit more "sweet" than I normally go, but I guess that's one of the great things about sewing your own clothes - you get to try lots of different styles and silhouettes out. So glad that I took a risk.
