Winter 2018 Sewing Plans

Garment Sewing Theme: Going Indie with Florals

I made an Appleton by Cashmerette earlier in the fall, plus I've recently made some other indie designer patterns, and all of those projects went really smoothly and resulted in successful garments. I am starting to think that a lot of my failed projects in the past may have been due to non-ideal pattern drafting for plus sizes in the big name patterns.

So, with that in mind, my sewing plans for the rest of the winter are a bit heavy on Cashmerette since they are basically the queens of amazing plus size patterns.

I'm also trying to be a bit more thoughtful in my fabric choices, utilizing all of the valuable learning experiences my previous fails have afforded me.

I've been digging mature floral fabrics lately so lots of florals are on the docket.

Washington Dress

I have always admired the Washington Dress. Especially now that I've completed an Appleton and love it, I'm eager to try another Cashmerette. What has held me back for the longest time (and part of why I like it) is that it requires three different fabrics that have to go together.

I tend to get fabric I like then try to figure out what to make later. This pattern required some pre-planning, going against my natural instincts.

I ordered this amazing floral double knit from Michael Levine that is going to be the bodice:

I also ordered what turned out to be a super shiny black vinyl for the belt part. I had hoped it would be more of like a faux leather with a more subtle sheen. So that sucks. If I ever want to make Babu a cat suit, we're all set.

I also ordered a black bull denim for the skirt. That also, unfortunately, is not going to work. It's way too stiff. I thought it was going to be more like jean denim or canvas.

Luckily I have a black woven fabric in my stash that I was thinking of using for a blazer or sheath dress that will do for the skirt. As for the belt, I might still try to hunt down some black faux leather that creates enough of a texture change for contrast without introducing anything too busy.

Rivermont Dress

Another Cashmerette pattern on the list, this one is called the Rivermont. It's a sheath dress but I think in a thick knit it might be comfy and relaxed -- kind of like a workhorse winter work dress.

There are other professional photos of the dress by the designer, but I like this review picture from the site as I think it captures the vibe I'm going for:

I got this floral sweater fabric from Michael Levine thinking I'd make a long cardigan but it might actually be too heavy for that purpose. I am hesitating a bit though because I worry the recovery on the knit might not hold up to a dress. I might just have to go for it.

Appleton

I definitely want to make another Appleton wrap dress and I was thinking of using this DTY Floral knit that I got in the same order as the fabrics above. It seems to have the right weight and stretchiness for a wrap dress, and it's definitely a winter pattern. Tres dramatique! The Appleton is another Cashmerette pattern.

Burda Sheath Dress

Unlike Cashmerette patterns, it's incredibly hard to find photos of finished projects for Burda patterns. They name their patterns with a confusing number system and vague/too specific descriptions (this one is "Princess Seam Sheath Dress (Plus Size) 06/2014 #133" but I also saw one that was head-scratchingly named with the fabric used in the sample) so it's hard to search for. I feel like people definitely have to be making them, but I just can't find any finished makes so it's hard to say if this dress will work for me.

I did make a digital Burda pattern before but I made a ton of unwise design modifications that make it hard to say what the unadulterated experience would have been.

I like the square neckline and the simplicity of it. It's pretty similar to the Rivermont in silhouette and basic concept. Of course the devil is in the details and there's no way to judge without just going for it.

I have no fabric in mind for this and it doesn't need to be done in winter since it's short sleeved, so this might be more of a Spring 2018 project.

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So that's the plan! I've already taped together and have the Washington pattern ready to go. Now that I've finished up a few other projects that I wanted to wrap up, I might be ready to dig in!