This Anne Klein maxi dress pattern for Vogue was actually my favourite pattern from the summer collection. I think it was a combination of the floaty fabric and the pleated bodice.
I know that almost everyone out there has already started thinking of autumn sewing, and to be honest, I am no exception. Our weather has already cooled down considerably and we have had some fairly torrential downpours. BUT:
1. I really wanted to try sewing chiffon (something I have never done).
2. I was really enthusiastic about sewing this pattern when it first came out. I had the fabric and the notions sitting in my cupboard and I knew if I didn’t do it before August was over I probably wouldn’t consider it again until next summer.
The bodice of this dress is where all the work lies. The pleated effect is achieved by sewing gathered sections on to stays which in turn are supported by sew-in interfacing – so all the stay sections have to be hand basted. There is a fair amount of hand sewing (largely basting) in this dress. The lining sections are also interfaced with sew-in interfacing (I suppose I could have just got iron-on for the lining?) I managed to get hold of some charcoal grey sew-in interfacing, which goes well with my (another) animal print chiffon:
Here you can see the upper part of the bodice with the gathered overlay sew on to it:
Inside shot showing lining:
So, if you don’t hear from me for a little while this is the reason why!
Oh, I believe today marks one year of my starting this blog. A huge thank you to all my readers and all those of you who leave comments on my posts. It’s great to be part of the online sewing community.
Hopefully be back by the end of next week with the finished dress…..
Love the dress – good luck with it and happy blogiversary!
Thanks Mrs. Alex.
This is going to look gorgeous, can’t wait to see it finished. Congratulations on your first blogging anniversary.
Thanks very much Sam.
Oh this is such a lovely dress. I really look forward to seeing it finished!
Thanks Liz.
I’m anxiously looking forward to seeing this dress and hearing comments. I tried working with a lower quality chiffon once and that was enough. This will be gorgeous on you!
Hi Marlene. Keep watching this space!
Im so excited to see this *squeal*….I’ll live vicariously through you on this one because although I love this dress, it didnt make the cut when I ordered patterns last time around. I trust you are not fretting too much with the chiffon 🙂 Hurry hurry, we want to see 🙂
Hi Angelique. Thanks. No, chiffon is ok so far. Will try and hurry things up, but hey, can only go so fast on this one… 🙂
Im just kidding…take your time. Im sure its going to be a knockout when its done! Good luck with whats remaining.x
It’s looking really good so far…
Thanks New Ribena.
I too love this pattern and what attracted me was the bodice and flowyness of the skirt! Love the progress shots. Are you treating the chiffon differently to sew this project? What kind of material are you using for the lining? So far it is looking great, cant wait for the final dress and your modeling shots. Make sure you show us the flowiness of the dress! Keep up the great work.
Thanks Rosalia. I will put up details in my next post of how I handled the chiffon. So far it seems to be behaving itself! The lining is acetate. I didn’t dare go for anything expensive as this was my first time working with this fabric and this pattern.
I think your dress is going to look great. You are definitely a detailed sewist which is needed for working with such exquisite fabric. Looking forward to seeing the completed dress but ‘no pressure’ – take your time and enjoy the process.
Thanks Sewforward!
looking good, that is quite a challenge, chiffon and pleats. can’t wait to see the finished dress.
Thanks Beth! Yikes. No pressure 🙂
Well, you know I love the fabric- I can’t wait to see this on you- it looks like a really fun sew.
I can’t wait to see your finished garment! I bought this pattern when it came out as well but I’m the same as you, too afraid to work with chiffon again after 1 too many failed garments. I hope it continues to go as well as it looks now!
Thanks carrie. Hopefully the finished garment will be nice!
I am currently working on this dress and am stuck on step 19 and 20. It is not intuitive to me, and I can’t figure out the part of “sewing invisibly” along seamline. Any suggestions or help? I’ve had people look at it and if you haven’t sewn it, you don’t really get it. I am also struggling just how it all fits together.
Thanks!
Oh dear it’s been a few years since I made this dress so the only thing I can think it means is sew EXACTLY on the seam line (using a matching thread) so the stitching is not visible and won’t be visible once the lining is attached.
Thanks. Think I’ve got it figured out.