Paradise Roses

Greetings from Paradise, aka Málaga, Spain!

I'm currently here on holiday with my boyfriend and took the opportunity to snap a few pictures of some recent, summery makes, while out and about in the city.
These pictures were taken in the Parque de la Alameda, a 33 hectar park, filled with flowers and sculptures, located between the promenade, the inner city and the castle.

This is my 4th version of the super popular B6453, a Gertie for Butterick pattern heavily inspired by the Pinup Girl "Jenny" and/or The Pretty Dress Company "Priscilla" dresses. While being my 4th version of this pattern, it is my first non-hack, as the rest has different skirts and/or neckline variations. They will come to the blog in time, so keep tuned in to see those.

The fabric is Liberty of London cotton poplin in the gorgeous "Carline" print in the pink on cream colorway. I got 3 meters of it as part of my birthday gift from my boyfriend and I am very happy to have sewn it up this fast (only took me 4 months, lol). I still have about half a meter left over, and I might turn that into an accessory of some kind, but I guess only time will tell.

If you have ever had the opportunity to work with Liberty of London fabric, you'll already know what a pleasure it is to work with. It is thin and crisp, very opaque and insanely soft to the touch. It behaves well under the machine as well as both scissors and the iron.

I did a few minor adjustments to the pattern. First, I made fixed straps out of personal preference. I also cut the skirt on the lengthwise grain as opposed to the crosswise grain as the pattern says. I did this by cutting 2 panels of the entire fabric width and 1 panel half the width. The smaller panel is at mid front with the side seams at the side front. The skirt has the same hem circumference as the original.

I made a toile before sewing the first dress, and took 2 tiny wedges out of the front armscye and the underbust seam on the size 10 bodice. No other fit adjustments were made.

From a bit more wear, I think the bodice could be shortened about a cm or so, with the straps being lengthened by the same amount. In my fitting, I must have shortened the straps a bit too much to compensate for the slightly too long bodice, and as a result, the princess seams sits just a bit too high and doesn't lay as nice over my bust as it could have.

It is only nitpicking, tough, and nothing as far as to stop me from wearing the dress.

I interlined the bodice in a soft, brushed cotton. The bodice isn't fully lined, and the interlining adds the opacity and comfort of the missing lining, while supporting the bodice fabric, giving it a bit of extra structure. The interfacing is an extra fancy lightweight woven iron-on interfacing stolen borrowed from my mothers stash. Thanks, mom!

I absolutely LOVE the finished dress, and have already worn it for a few occasions. For now, I'll enjoy swanning around in it here in warm and sunny Paradise, but I have a RTW cardigan in the exact green color of the print to help me wear it year-round in not-quite-as-sunny Denmark.

Yours,
Angelica