Simplicity 1197

The Story:

I sometimes visit clothing websites to inspire my next sewing project. During one of these visits (ModCloth), I fell in love with a cute floral trench. Upon seeing the coat on the website, my thought was, “Wow, I love it so much, I must have it!” This rarely occurs, so I decided to listen to myself and go through with the purchase. Then, upon opening the package and viewing the jacket in real life, my thought was, “It’s so busy and colourful, what will I wear with this thing?” Because my me-made wardrobe is pretty busy and colourful too, I decided to make something new to pair with the jacket. And that’s how this dress came to be!

The Fabric:

I used two shades of faux suede for the colour blocking. The faux suede is so soft and comfy to wear, but working with it made me a bit nervous. I was particularly worried about stretching the fabric around the contrasting neck band and front. I made a muslin to get some practice in, but despite this, I still ended up stretching the faux suede a bit around the neck. Not the end of the world though! The next one will be better.

The Pattern:

I made one alteration to the pattern: I ditched the short sleeves and went sleeveless. I lined the dress with a cotton voile. My favourite thing about Simplicity 1197 is the neckline and how it continues around the back. The dress looks good, feels great, and ended up pairing pretty well with my new trench. The only missing ingredient is springtime weather to start wearing them!

Here are some pictures: