A High-Lo Dress from Simplicity 1621

Well I'm at the tail end of another trend. However, I've seen so much of this look on the streets this summer, that I wanted at least one of my own. Since I had three days of uninterrupted time to sew, I decided to find some fabric in the collection that would go with Simplicity 1621.

I wanted something colorful, not a solid and not a wild print. I settled on this blue & white pinstripe seersucker. To avoid the housedress look, I added white bias binding to all of the edges...the bias binding took way longer to make than it took to sew the dress.

Pattern Alterations ~
This is a very simple dress with only two pattern pieces and very little fitting required.  I cut the XXL size for the body and the large for the top of the dress blending into the XXL at the waist area.  

Construction Techniques ~

• I used the medium bust darts for my version even though I cut the large top.
• The neckline was cut using the small version for depth but I ended up rounding it out a little when I cut it out. I wanted to make sure that it would go over my head easily.
• I ended up cutting about 2" off the center back of the "lo" hem. It was longer than I wanted it to be.
• The pattern suggests that you use a flat felled seam on the center back seam because you can see it from the right side. I didn't do that because for the little bit of hem that you can see, it wasn't worth it.
• So you can see a bit of the seamline at my "lo" seam.

This is a quick and easy sew reminding me of the sewing I used to do back when my girls were younger.  Then I sewed quick & easy items so that I'd have something to wear. Hey I had teenagers and they spent ALOT of my money! I had to make do where I could.

The other thing about this dress is that everything is from the collection ~ fabric, bias binding that I made from the bias tape roll collection, and a stash pattern from 2013.

A few more pics ~

This was the third item I made during the Labor Day weekend and it was perfect for the weather we experienced that week.

Wearability Factor ~
Even though this is the last thing I sewed, it is the first dress I wore after Labor Day weekend.  It was perfect for the heatwave we were experiencing.  

Here's how it wore...
It's a little too long in the front and could be longer in the back to improve the sweep. I shouldn't have removed the inches from the back when I first started to bind the dress. Also, if I make this again, I would eliminate the front seam and cut it on the fold. The underarm seams are a little lower than I like so I would raise them and the side darts need some work. These are all construction issues and easily fixed, otherwise it was perfect for the weather we were experiencing. 

It was so easy and comfortable to wear that I'm wondering if I should try to bang another one out maybe using a rayon before the last of the hot weather disappears!

...as always more later!