French Viscose Halterneck Dress

Confession...I actually made this last year and have only just now got around to blogging about it! After I wore it on holiday the weather has been so miserable I didn't even feel like photographing it. This is one of those dresses where you fall in love with a fabric online, and when it's delivered you love it even more. Unfortunately the pattern I used didn't hold up to the same standard of satisfaction. It was a nightmare to make and can be tricky to wear at times too. If I didn't love the fabric so much, it probably wouldn't be worn as often....

Fabric


This gorgeous French viscose was sourced from Sew Essential (I think it was £10.99 a metre but I can't remember and they don't have it in stock anymore either). It is a high quality viscose and feels very soft to wear. It sews and presses well, with little washing shrinkage. It's also not see through at all, which you can find with some of these fabrics from time to time. It's a good match for this style of pattern because the elasticated waist needs something of this weight, and it drapes and swishes beautifully with the high low hem. (I ordered 2m and had no left overs)


Pattern

I used a pattern that I got free with Sew Now magazine, Kwik Sew K4206. It's a sleeveless/halterneck style dress that features a neck band that the bodice panels are gathered on to. It has an elasticated waist and a high low hem, which one version of the pattern has with a contrast bottom panel. There is a long waist tie to hold it all in at the waist too. Theoretically it should be a quick sew, but mine was anything but.

Although I consulted the finished measurements to pick my size, this came out huge! I tad taken a lot of time and care to pattern match my bodice panels, due to the obvious print of the fabric. This was all a gigantic waste of time because I had to take it in at the centre and at the sides as well. It took a lot of alterations to get a decent fit in any area. I'm also not a massive fan of how the keyhole style front looks in real life either.


The neckband is also an interesting part of the process. It isn't a band as such as much as a very narrow curved piece that is threaded through channels on the bodice pieces. I am not a fan of how it sits, and it's hard to arrange it so you can wear a bra with straps (even multiway ones). I spend a lot of time fiddling with it when I'm wearing it as it makes me self-conscious. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to alter this area in any other way to make it more wearable because I had run out of fabric.

Thoughts

I do like the high low hem, but that's about it. I wouldn't make this pattern again, or recommend it to anyone. As I say, it's the fabric that saves this from being a disaster.


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Welcome to Sewing and Other Stories; my journeys with sewing and knitting; pattern reviews, tips and guides for beginners. I'm also the designer behind West Beach Knits knitting patterns and I host a Knitting and Sewing channel on YouTube where you can see all of this in person. Come have a look!

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