A Little Autumn Dress

Pattern:
The pattern is New Look 6922. This is a screamingly simple knit dress with a gathered neckline. I replaced the cap sleeves with a bound armhole. I also omitted the back center seam, placing the back at the fold and removing the seam allowance.

The pattern starts at a size 10; I cut the front in a size 10 and graded the back piece down to a size 6.

(Apologies for the blurriness. Most of the pictures came out more or less out of focus, but I figured this was better than waiting for a next opportunity to take pictures!)

Be aware that this dress is fitted. The amount of ease is something you have no way of knowing from the cheap sketch on the pattern envelope. It looks almost sacky on the envelope, but the minimal ease makes this prettier than the pattern shows.

As the assembly was very quick, I chose not to skimp on the finishing, so I stitched the binding and the invisible hem by hand.

(I was remarking in this shot that the leaves from this tree were looking pretty bad)

Fabric:
The fabric is my last bit from my regular visits to Amsterdam 2 years ago (sigh! Finding knit cotton prints, or even solids for that matter, is utterly impossible here). I usually stay well away from autumn colours, but figured that the orange was sufficiently scattered among the dark brown that I could pull it off. The brown is cool, not warm (I can pull cool browns and reds, but not warmer shades), which is ultimately why I got the fabric.

I really like the modern paisley motif, and the colours make this a nice seasonal dress. I wore it as is (with sandals) earlier this month, but now that the weather has cooled off, I plan on wearing it with a cardigan, nude tights, and the shoes that I’m wearing in the pictures.

I am back to sewing much more regularly – not much, as September was hectic, but my sewing mojo is definitely back, and it feels great!