Fabric choice
Silk chiffon recommended for experienced sewers. The dress can also be made from jersey or fine cotton, however, and silk satin is a suitable choice as well.
Tip
For this dress, it makes sense to sew a muslin from soft untreated cotton in order to test the width proportions (enough tension on the pleats, but the draping shouldn’t be constricting).
Cutting out
1. Front (fabric) 2x
2. Front (lining) 2x
3. Back (fabric and lining) 2x
4. Collar (leather or faux leather) 4x
5. Lozenge (leather or faux leather) 1x
Place paper pattern on fabric and pin, paying close attention to the fabric pattern.
The pattern contains no seam allowances, which must be included as follows:
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Seams 1.5 – 2 cm, according to desired width of French seam
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Hem 4 cm
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Shoulder 1.5 cm
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Centre-front at facing, as indicated in pattern
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Collar sections, each 2x with 1 cm seam allowance and 2x without seam allowances
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Lozenge, 1x with 1 cm seam allowance.
TIP: Cut out fabric with the rotary cutter. This will allow you to spread out the fabric nicely and cut it while it’s lying on the work surface.
Instructions
TIP: We recommend using the straightstitch plate when working with this fine fabric.
Close darts
Close darts on back (fabric and lining) and on front (lining only).
Sew dress lining:
Close side seams, shoulder seams and centre-front seam up to neckline. Press centre-front seam allowances apart and neaten separately. Fold neckline facing inwards; turn under narrowly and edgestitch. Turn under short edge of neckline end as well and sew.
Sew dress:
Close side seams. To prevent the seam allowances of this fine fabric from becoming a source of annoyance, the seams are sewn as French seams. Close shoulder seams. Close centre-front from hem up to beginning of pleat draping, again with a French seam. Place pleat draping on centre-front as indicated on pattern and secure with a few stitches inside of the lozenge marking.
Line Dress:
Place lining and dress together with right sides facing and sew together along the armholes. Fold seam allowances towards the lining and narrow-edgestitch on the lining side.
Turn dress right-side-out. In the centre-back, neaten edges of dress and lining with one another to the left and right of the neckline up to 10 cm below the zip. Insert the concealed zip in the seam. Sew centre-back together for 10cm below the zip, dress and lining together. Close bottom part of centre-back seam of dress with a French seam. Close and neaten centre-back seam on lining.
Drape dress and lining on bust. Pin pleats on the lining in the centre-front. Fold facing of dress inwards, pin onto lining, and secure by hand so that no stitches are visible on the front. Fold the pleats at the shoulder seam and secure with a few stitches.
Embellish lozenge with a decorative stitch. Turn edges under. Place over the pleats and below the neckline on the dress and lining and edgestitch on. The zigzag foot with non-stick sole is the best choice for doing this.
Sew on collar:
Turn under seam allowances of collar sections, holding in place with Wonder Tape or textile adhesive if necessary. The inside collar sections are worked with an open edge.
Place outside and inside collar sections on the neckline edges with the dress lying in between. Edge-stitch collar sections together. Attach the magnetic closure in the centre-back. Sew in a thin shoulder pad if wished.
Hem dress and lining:
Narrow-hem dress and lining. The lining hem should be slightly shorter than the dress hem.
Cutting out
1. bag section (leather / faux leather) 2x
2. base section (leather / faux leather) 1x to fabric fold
Cut out all pieces with 1cm seam allowance.
Plus, (seam allowances either unnecessary, or already included):
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1 strip 4.5 cm x 55 cm (outside strip section)
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1 strip 2.5 cm x 55 cm (inside strip section)
For the lining, the bag section and base section are glued together and cut out. Cut out lining 2x or 1x to fabric fold (base), depending on amount of fabric (seam allowances must be added on).
Embroider base section:
First roughly cut out base section and embroider – only then cut out to finished size. Reinforce base section with Fibrint interfacing, or with fine Decovil interfacing.
Prepare closure tabs:
Turn under seam allowances (1 cm) of outside strip section. Place on inside strip section without seam allowances and narrow-edgestitch together along the edges. Tip: Use Zigzag foot with non-stick sole and increase stitch length to approx. 3 mm.
Cut strip apart to yield 1 strip of 43 cm and 1 of 12cm length.
Attach the snaplink hook to the longer strip and its counterpart to the shorter strip. Affix strips to bag sections.
Sew bag together:
Sew front and back bag sections together with the base section, catching the strips for the closure. Narrow-edgestitch.
Sew together side seams.
Close base darts. Attach base nails.
Sew lining / line bag:
Close side seams of lining, leaving a bit open for turning on one side. Close base seam if necessary. Sew base darts. With right sides facing, stitch together lining and bag; turn right-side-out. Narrow-edgestitch bag. Attach magnetic closure: 8 cm from the top edge on the front, 1 cm from the top edge on the back. Sew turning opening shut by hand, or edgestitch closed with the sewing machine.