New Look 6243 Commission

I've been working on another commission to make New Look's 6243 in size 14. I finished a few days ago, and just sold it. I don't have a sewing machine at the moment, so all my work is hand stitching. All in all I'm quite proud of how it turned out- and she seemed to really love it which is very rewarding.

I used view A along with the trim from view B, but I used ribbon instead of fabric for the waist bow. I thought it would tie in the contrast fabric along the top since they're made of complimentary designs, and I think it did so nicely.

There were a few things to it I had never done before- mainly the invisible zipper and the neckline and armhole binding. The binding was a little tricky; I used the lining material and had picked a slippery fabric to work with so getting it smooth was a bit of a challenge.

find this dress here

The pattern called for a whip stitch to be used on the back of the binding to make the stitch invisible, but I opted for a straight stitch all the way through, just from personal preference. I think showing a seam or two along the edge is a bit more interesting, it's like a subtle embroidery. I like it for much the same reason I like a bright lining- it's just a little bit of something extra that's sort of a surprise. You don't really know it's there unless you own it or look closely.

The invisible zipper gave me more trouble than the binding. I don't usually use them- like the stitch details I prefer an obvious zipper (see photo right) so a lot of my work doesn't call for it. It took me a few tries to get it right. I ended up basting the lining and shell together, and then basting that to the zipper after marking the zipper where it should hit on the waistline, so everything would match up nice and neat. It was a pain, but it was a great learning experience, and I think I can say with confidence I can do another really well in the future. It definitely showed me that basting is my friend lol

The finished product.

Some of the detail work.

  

I'm definitely proud of the final result. After working on it so long it was a bit strange to sell it lol I've gotten used to thinking about it and seeing it hanging up on my wall. Now that the work is done, I miss working on it. Luckily I've got a few other projects going on, and the girl I took the commission from wants me to make her a lot more pieces (somewhere around 10 I think) so hopefully we get started on the next one soon!