Well, this is the last challenge of Refashion Runway, Season 3. Beth, the Renegade Seamstress, chose Asymmetry for this challenge. Originally, I wasn't going to sew along since inspiration hadn't struck me. But then it happened! Looking through my refashion closet, I felt impressed to do something with this super soft, super stretchy, gray dress. It sported a turtleneck, long sleeves, and absolutely no shape whatsoever! But, I really liked the color and feel of the fabric. So I got to work.
I began by chopping off the lower 27" to use as the skirt portion of my dress. By using the lower half of the dress, I could take advantage of the finished edge of the dress already in place. I then took it in on the sides to fit.
The next step was to fit the top. I used a t-shirt to give me an idea of fit and also how to cut for the new armholes.
I knew I didn't want a turtleneck, so I cut it down to 1 1/2".
I then folded it to the inside and serged it, creating a 3/4" wide ribbed neckline.
Now it was time to join the two together. This could have been left as two pieces, but stitching them together eliminated the need for a waistband for the skirt and a hem for the top.
I cut about 10" from the top of a thrifted half slip, and cut off the elastic waist. Since the slip was naturally flared, I stitched a new tapered seam on each side to even it up. I wanted a straight "tube" for this next part.
I pinned the tube to the top of my skirt, right sides together, then stitched.
I needed a casing for some waist elastic. So I stitched again about 3/8" away from the first stitching. Then it was a matter of threading some elastic through the casing and fitting it to my waist.
Next, I stitched the top of the tube to the bottom of the top, right sides together. The photo below shows the whole thing stretched out. You can see that I took in one side of the top more than the other. This seemed to help the fit better since one side was going to be "pleated" and the other side wasn't. When the dress is on, the slip fabric folds upward to the inside allowing a nice rolled edge to the bottom of the top portion.
I needed to tackle the sleeves. I used the same t-shirt to give me an idea of where to cut. I decided on 3/4 length sleeves, taking advantage of the nice existing sleeve edge. One good thing about knits is that it can be so forgiving when sewing...which is great!
I used my dress form for the final step, which was draping the pleats and adding buttons. I began by placing pins at 1 1/2" intervals.
I then took the top pin and folded it towards the next pin. I repeated this two more times. I tacked the pleats in place along the seam.
I added buttons from my stash just to the front of the seam.
And that was it! I now have a very soft and cozy dress as we head into the cooler temperatures!
I like to link to these great parties!
