Summer Swing Dress

For the clothes that I don't make myself, I pick up at clothing swaps. My boss in college used to throw a big one where I could get some professional clothes, and lately some of my girlfriends have been putting on a semi-regular one. I find a lot of great stuff and it's perfect for trying things that might not be "me" to see if I like them. One unexpected hit was a striped swing dress I picked up from my friend. While she and I have very different body types (broad shoulders versus narrow, a few inches in height, etc.), her dress fit me almost perfectly! It was one of the pieces I took with me to Europe for three months and I wore it all. the. time. It was great for hot days, comfortable for traveling, and fun to wear.

Unfortunately, during our time in Prauge, I took a load to the cleaners because there were no laundry mats or machines in our building. And this dress didn't come back with the rest of them. We tried to go back to ask about it but ran into a language barrier and couldn't find it. It wasn't a huge loss though because, luckily for me, I can sew!



Pattern: McCall's Knit Swing Dress #7622
Fabric: 2 yds jersey
Cost: $30

That was a few years ago and I finally decided to replace that dress this week. As the weather was heating up around here I was really missing it. Luckily, McCall's #7622 was a perfect match and even had a few more options!

One of the options that I used was the V cutout. It's supposed to be in the front but I put it in the back. I had to cut the back in two pieces because of my limited yardage, but the center seam actually made it easier to sew the V. Instead of a facing I just turned the raw edge under and stitched. The cutout lends a nice touch, don't you think?

I also made two other changes to adjust for fit. I cut in the shoulders by about two inches to show a bit more skin. And the collar was also much too loose so I ended up taking out about 4(!) inches. That snugged things right up. Otherwise it's a very easy dress to fit. And I don't usually do this but I left it unhemmed :)

Another fun feature is that this dress has pockets! There were separate pattern pieces included, but I attached the pocket pieces to the main dress pattern and cut them out as a cut-on to the dress. This made construction super easy - just stitch up the side seam and around the pockets and you're done! It even holds my phone without too much trouble.



I am wearing this as I type and it is so comfy! I know it's the end of August but in the Bay Area that usually means warm days ahead!

1 comment:

  1. Pretty. I’ve also tried one of these and like it. A chunky necklace and bolero and i’m Good for work as well in the summer. Will ah e to try to see whether I like it for winter with boots and tights. Abbey

    ReplyDelete

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