Sewing FO: Vogue V8876

This is Vogue pattern V8876. When I saw this pattern in the spring previews, I knew I had to make it because it's just my kind of dress. In fact, it was the only pattern in the new spring collection that I wanted to make. My fabric is a very soft slightly textured mid-weight cotton blend. I'm not sure of the fabric content - I bought it at Discount Fabrics on Irving St., where I've been able to find some interesting stuff but sometimes there are no fiber content labels.

For the mods, I had to take the dress in quite a bit at the sides. The pattern description reads "loose fitting", but I think it should say "very loose fitting". It's also disproportionately wider in the back than in the front, so I cut off even more on the back side edges. I also sewed the back pleat down a little longer so that it reaches the waist and I slanted it in a bit so that the back has a bit more shaping. I bought one of these "fashion zippers" that can be exposed on the outside, but I sewed in on the inside and just exposed the black teeth for good contrast. I omitted the drawstring on the collar. The collar is quite narrow, and the string is useful only if you want to wear it standing up. I tried it that way and thought it looked too vampire-style, whatever that means.

I really like this dress. Yes, the pattern is very loose, but it can be easily sized down by just taking in the side seams. The end result is that it is comfortably loose but it has a lot of shape. Also, it has pockets, which is always fun. I should also mention that the back hem curves down such that the lowest point is about an inch lower than the front hem. That's not obvious from the pattern photos or from mine.

If you're going to make this one, choose your fabric wisely. If it's too crisp, things will stick out in odd places. If it's too soft, things will droop in odd places. Also, the bottom band is two layers of fabric, so if your fabric is on the heavy side, you might consider using a lighter fabric on the inside.