UFrOcktober take 4

Do you know when you have a project in your mind, and you know exactly how it is going to look and it is going to be the most fabulous thing ever and then you finish it and it is not at all what you pictured and it is all wrong and you just hate it?

Well, this particular UFO turned out to be just about the opposite of that.Not that it is my favourite thing ever, but you may remember me mentioning  a couple of posts back that I thought I might never get around to finishing Simplicity 2219, having started it a couple of years back.

The thing is, it was in those days when I was planning on sewing, but had not really got started and I was given the pattern for my birthday. Having read that it was suitable only for knit fabric, I went online and looked for something suitable and not too pricey. Of course when it arrived I realised not too pricey equated to a bit thin and stretchy and difficult to keep on grain. When I cut it out I also realised that such a busy print for a pattern which has 2 front pieces, 2 front side pieces, 2 back side (haha I said backside) pieces and a back piece in addition to big fluttery sleeves was maybe not the ideal choice. Having not sewn with knit fabric before I decided that I was not ready for the challenge and it all got shoved into a bag where it became monstrous in my mind.

But UFrOcktober came around. It was a frock. It was a UFO. I thought “sod it – it’ll be a horror, but at least it will no longer be a niggle at the back of my mind.” And it turns out I am not horrified!

So – I am actually pretty impressed with my rookie cutting skills. It is all symmetrical and that centre front is pretty darned neat! I did have to trim a bit off one of the sides of the skirt front to even it up, though, so mine is a bit less gathered there than it should be.

And it all goes together really easily. Colour me surprised, but I thought with 7 bodice pieces plus 7 facing / lining bodice pieces and all of that ruching at the sides (yes, that is ruching, not drag marks) that it would be a complete arse to make, but it has only taken a few hours.

I rather like the style of the dress. I’m a fan of the empire line and in a less clingy fabric it would skim the stomach area nicely, which is never a bad thing in my book. I’m not usually too hot on a fluttery sleeve, as I think they can sometimes bring unwanted attention to an upper arm, but with the length of these ones I find them quite flattering.

Being a knit there are no fastenings to deal with. It has a bit of elastic in a casing around the waist; I chose to just add this to the back.

Unfortunately when I tried it on before hemming I decided it needed “about that much” taking off the bottom, but instead of marking or measuring I eyeballed where on the pattern of the fabric I needed to cut and then snipped off “about that much plus a couple of inches”, so it is completely unnecessarily shorter than I would have liked.

Never mind, eh. I’ve got another wearable dress, when I really thought it was going to be a baller!

And that’s me done for UFrOcktober. In many ways I am looking forward to starting something from scratch again,  but I have to say it has been a joy not to have to trace and cut for a whole month!