Pink & Turquoise Funfetti

Well, I thought I was on a roll there, getting nice and caught up with the blogging situation, but I lost my forward momentum.

So, while the colors of this dress are quite suitable for the Summer season, I actually completed this dress last Fall.  I even got around to taking timely photos (you may notice some Fall foliage in some of the pictures).  Then the images sat around and new sewing projects beckoned, and the folder got buried on the computer and I forgot about them.  But I never forgot the dress!

As I mentioned in this post, I finally got around to playing with one of those multi-sleeve patterns.  

I have long bemoaned the fact that sleeves are so very boring these days, and those wonderful patterns from the Thirties and Forties with five or six different and scrumptious sleeve options in one pattern envelope have intrigued me for years.

Well, Simplicity reissued two of them.  And while I hope to someday tackle each and every one of them, I had to start somewhere.  This tied wrist sleeve option is far from the most interesting, but I felt it worked nicely with Simplicity 8248 and my choice of fabric.

The starting point of this entire project, however, was my shoes.  The Cora Sandals were purchased without a thought as to what I would pair them with - I just had to have them.  It turns out they go with a whole bunch of things in my closet, but while rummaging through my rayon stash, I happened upon this confetti fabric which was a perfect match!  The only question was which pattern to use.

There are a few silhouettes which I am repeatedly drawn to, usually from the 1950s and 1940s.  I have branched out into a 1960s silhouette in the last few years and found that I really love that petticoat floof that comes right out of the waistband and mushrooms into a very full skirt.  But I also have a made a few dresses with a 1930s silhouette and the streamlined look is pretty great, too.  And I do love tea length!

And that is the story of this frock.

I happen to have a few other pairs of shoes that deserve a dress made especially for them, so I should get to work on that!

Dress & Belt:  Made by me, Simplicity 8248 & Simplicity 8695
Shoes:  Royal Vintage "Cora" Sandals

Rayon Confetti

As soon as I saw the Simplicity multi sleeve patterns that were released as vintage reproductions, I knew that I would have to come up with a project to utilize them.  It took me some time, but I finally decided to pair one lovely sleeve option with another recent vintage reproduction, Simplicity 8248.

I should have taken more pictures of the process of grafting in the alternate sleeve, but I was distracted and forgot to document that portion of the project.  Basically, the multi sleeve pattern includes a generic bodice front and back which fit with the sleeve draft.  And while the armscye of the dress pattern (taking into account the yoke and bodice seam allowances) did not match the sleeve pattern bodice piece, it was close.  I was not going to be bothered with redrafting the small differences on my dress pattern, and I figured that the drapey rayon would be forgiving.

And luckily, I was correct.  The pieces went together quite smoothly.  If they do not match up, you would have to alter your bodice armscye to match the generic bodice pieces that go with the sleeve pattern.  It's not difficult, but it does add an extra step of tracing pattern pieces and melding them together.

The rayon was a purchase from Craftsy a few years back.  It was more lightweight than expected once I got it in my hands, but it works nicely for this dress.  And I just love the color palette!

I decided that I wanted to use the pattern envelope styling and have a contrasting fabric for the collar edge, pocket edges, and belt to break up that crazy color explosion.

Thankfully, I found a pink rayon satin stashed away that worked.  It is not an exact match to the pink in the print, but the two different fabrics compliment each other very well (and not having to purchase anything new for a project is always nice).  And I just may have re-discovered my love of a 1930s silhouette!