Making a Dress - Navy spotted Lolita Sack Dress

I promised during my hiatus on blogging I have been sewing.  

This was the dress I made before I completed the lolita apron dress.

Inspiration

For some reason, I wanted to make a loose lolita dress.  I had the idea of making a dress which I could wear under any overdress or skirt.  So it had to be made from durable fabric which was not too fussy.

Design

As every Otome no Sewing comes to the rescue and this time it is book 6.

 

Fabric

I didn't have a fabric in my collection which would be suitable for making this dress and I thought it would be one of those projects where I would be looking for the fabric for a long time.

However luck would have it, one of my favourite haberdashery shops in Belfast was selling some cotton fabric and one just stood out from the rest.

It was a lovely herringbone weave cotton with white dots printed on top.  It was lovely and I brought the remaining 3 metres of it without battering an eye.

Funny thing is that it was only when I got home when I realised that the fabric was similar to the one used in the book.  Clearly a sign!

Construction

Yeah no photos I'm afraid.  Was just too excited to make it.

Finished

Yeah one sack dress!

This is the first dress I made which has such a high "waist" line.  I thought it would make me look pregnant but it didn't.  Maybe it is the overall look that helped.

Unlike any of my other lolita dress, no bow!

Lovely sailor collar.

I was quite please with my cornering skills.

Pockets because we can't live without them.

Sleeve details.  Just the cotton trim something simple but very striking.

The original design was a bit too short for my liking and it didn't occur to me during pattern drafting that this needed to be lengthen so I went with the easy option and added some frills. 

Which was a good choice as I think it made it less look like a pregnancy dress.

Once I finished making the dress, it dawned on me that it also makes a lovely summer jacket.  So this this actually the most useful clothing item I have made to date.

Making a Dress - Lolita Apron Dress

It has been too long!

Really it has and I have no real excuse but sewing, games and kanzashi have been taking up a lot of my time and unfortunately I always get carried away and forget to update you lot.

So start now I will do my best to report on each of my new creations whether it is sewing, kanzashi or kimono.

So today I have for you my latest sewing project completed today.

Inspiration

Continuing on with my aim to make a lolita work wardrobe I have decided it is time to make another apron style JSK.  They are very versatile as they can be paired with any of my work shirts and are very comfortable.

As always my Otome no Sewing mooks have come through and I have found the one I will based my JSK on.

As this is for work, I omitted the shoulder frills, lace and pintucks along the bottom.  I wanted this to me nice and simple so it could be worn often and it can be washed easily.

Fabric

Finally I am able to make a little dent in my fabric hoard and I decided on a nice grey with shots of red kimono bolt.

There is a faint floral pattern woven into the fabric as well which make it a little more interesting.

Construction

As with all my dresses made from kimono bolt is the width of the fabric.  Luckily the bodice pieces all fit perfectly and although the pattern calls for a circle skirt I went a rectangle skirt to make things easier (oh famous last words).

 Here are pockets and bodice pieces on the fabric.

And here is where the construction photos ends.  I always end ups sewing in the afternoon and the lighting in my flat is terrible so photos are the last thing on my mind.

I will try better in the future.

Finished Dress

Here it is!

Isn't is dainty?

As I used no trimmings on the dress I decided it was a good time to practice my topstitching.  I used red thread to complement the red in the fabric.

As always a lovely bow is needed.

I may have made it a little small on the waist but I had just had my lunch so maybe that is the reason for it being tight?  Well it is a good enough excuse.

And I can't live without pockets so this one just had to have them as well.

Now time to look at my to-do list and tick some things off.