Two New Maxi Shirtdresses

Now I know most people sew with different patterns and that's part of the sewing adventure for them...but me I like TNT patterns where I hack the heck out of them to make the garments I see in my head...or enjoy wearing.

Due to the Corvid-19 quarantine, I'm finding that I want to sew specific garments that will serve me now and later when I venture back into the world.  Unlike most, I'm happiest in a skirt or a dress at home. I'm honestly not a jeans woman. So I've been riffing on my maxi shirtdress while quarantined.

The basis of my maxi shirtdress is the Deer & Doe Myosotis dress pattern. I've changed the following things on the pattern:

1. I added a collar and widen it after using it several times.
2. I lengthened to maxi length using only one tier.
3. The skirt pattern is no longer used to make the bottom of the dress. I now use the width of the fabric twice and a length of 28" for a short dress and 43-44" for a maxi dress.
4. After being inspired by another sewist, I've added a button front to the skirt of the dress.  Allowing it to be buttoned and unbuttoned instead of being slipped over my head.
5. Sleeves - I've made short sleeve, sleeveless, elbow length and long sleeved versions

...and for this first version I've added a ruffle to the hem because I cut it too short!

The Striped Ruffled Hem Maxi Shirtdress ~

Supplies Used ~
- I used a cotton shirting purchased from Fabric Mart last summer during the June Carriage Corner Sew Camp.
- 12 - 7/8" Mother of Pearl shank buttons from the button collection - these are from when I worked at the button company in the 1990s.
- Interfacing from Steinlauf and Stoeller

The main construction change is that bottom ruffle. I also omitted the topstitching on the bodice because I didn't want to mess with how the stripes ran. 

For the bottom ruffle: 
- I cut 3.5 lengths - 4" wide and the width of the fabric. 
- Sewed all of the lengths together and pressed it in half. 
- Then I gathered it to the bottom of the skirt's hemline making sure to match the fold over portion of the button band. 

That's it - easy peasy, well except for the time it took to gather the thing! *LOL*

Some pictures of the finished dress ~

"The Wolf In Sheep's Clothing Dress" ~

I named it after sending an email to a friend and her response was the dress was too sweet for me.  Seriously, she said "too sweet for my sassy personality."  Dayum, I just thought it was a pretty spring dress! But the name stuck in my head and I was determined to call it this in recognition of her comments! *LOL*

I shared a picture of this dress in a previous post.  The fabric was purchased from Gorgeous Fabrics and the 10 5/8" floral buttons are a recent purchase from Pacific Trimmings.  The white linen used on the collar, under collar, front facings and sleeve cuffs are a remnant from the fabric collection. 

As an aside, I'm so thrilled that I've collected and stored all of these bits and bobs over the years. I'm putting some covered buttons on an upcoming dress and while I had no buttons in the collection that worked with the fabric, it was wonderful to head to my covered button stash and pick some to use with the coordinating fabric. All of this collecting has really worked out during #sewstayhome.

Some Construction Details ~

The sleeve cuff - 
o  I cut a 4" band the width of the sleeve 
o  I sewed the side seam of the band, pressed the seam open, then pressed the band in half
o  Used a 1/2" seam allowance to attach it to the wrong side of the sleeve
o  The first band went on no problem - the second one took three tries to get it on!
o  Pressed the seam open and flat then pressed it up. I haven't tacked it down at the side seam yet waiting to see how it wears.

Front Facings -
I've made several of these maxi shirtdresses using a button front opening. Previously, I lapped over the skirt's button front twice, stitched down and then attached the skirt to the top.  However, I kept getting this bump in the center front that I hated.

For this one, an additional 1/2" was added to the front facing to give it a little more width. Then I only lapped the skirt facing over once to match the width of the bodice front facing. The top and skirt were stitched together matching the facing fronts and side seams...

...no bump. Otherwise, everything else is the same in the construction of this dress. Although it has a very small hem. I wanted as much length in the skirt because it was cut short due to lack of fabric. I guess I really do need 4 yards to make one. If I had omitted the sleeves, I would have had the additional length. However, I chose to have the short cuffed sleeves.

A Few Pictures ~

These are the first two in a series of five. The next two are already finished and the fifth one is almost complete. These dresses are about comfort and I'm all about that right now!

...as always more later!