Tuesday, April 5, 2011

ModCloth In Yo' Lace Inspired Dress

More than inspired, really, but I'm not fond of the term knock-off; it sounds so tacky...

When I first saw this dress on ModCloth I was in love. Super cute, right? It's white and black and can be worn through many seasons, leggings, black tights (i.e. zoe style), etc. I loved it so much I planned on buying it, initially.



Then one day, I was cruising JoAnns with a 40% coupon to burn because I couldn't get anything since it was just one of those times that everything was on sale. I saw the bolts of lace and was immediately reminded of this dress.


ModCloth In Yo' Lace

To construct the dress I followed Simplicity 2444.

Now, looking at the cover of the dress, it looks nothing like this dress I made. The dress on the model is so baggy I can't believe it. I actually thought there was some sort of gathering or something going on...Anyhow, I measured my size and went with it.




I cut the lace as directed by the pattern. I then cut the black lining the same as the lace. It's essentially a dress under a dress. Making a standard lining would have place the pieces wrong sides together, but that would have shown through the lace. Instead, I just placed both with right sides up. For the bodice, instead of having the black go all the way to the shoulders, I folded it in half and free handed the top hoping it would work out. I sewed the top of the black bodice to the lace bodice. I also basted the lace to the black on all bodice pieces. For the skirt, I attached the waist only, leaving the sides open. I wanted to attach the sides and back of each skirt separately so that it moved more freely. I hope that makes sense; I'm sorry I don't have photos of the step-by-step.

I did modify the back of this pattern a lot. The inspiration dress had a button closure which I thought was divine. I'd never modified a zip to button closure so was very nervous about this part. I left the skirt zip up to the waist, then had the buttons on the bodice back only.




I chose to style it with a long black sash rather than a skinny belt. Like Suzannah, I prefer the larger mid drift. I think it elongates my waist, making me feel taller and slimmer. The three inch heels also help with that :)


In the end, this turned out to be my favorite dress I've made so far! I wore it twice in the first week I made it. So, I'm glad that I challenged myself and made this dress. I'm sure I love it much more because of it!

I'm sharing this post with Adventures in Dressmaking today! Be sure to stop by and read this great post on choosing fabrics for garments!

23 comments:

  1. this is AMAZING and so inspiring. fabulous, fabulous, fabulous job!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is fantastic. I got that pattern a while ago during one of those 99 cent sales and it always seemed like a clunky pattern. Yours is great though. Thanks for showing the potential of this pattern. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great job! It looks beautiful on you!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I guessed you had used that pattern!! It is a classic case of baggy dresses on the models, a poor way to sell a cute pattern. But we could tell it would be cute if it fit!

    I wish I had a place to wear something like this...

    ReplyDelete
  5. So pretty and elegant! You did a great job! I want one!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Love this, its so pretty and well made! :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Your dress is FABULOUS!!! It is 10 times better than the modcloth version.

    ReplyDelete
  8. With all due respect to Modcloth (which I do in fact love), I think you version is much better!

    The back and sash are divine! And I love this Simplicity pattern. I might need to get one for myself!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I'm so in love with this. It is ADORABLE! And I'd vote for your version over the MC version any day. Maybe it's the sash vs. skinny belt, but the overall shaping is better on yours too. I have this pattern and I've been jonesing to make that exact green dress that's on the cover. I'm so glad to know that cute gathering at the waist is just excess fabric! I will most definitely keep that in mind when I get around to cutting out this pattern. Thanks for the heads up!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Your dress is just fabulous. I can see you making some more of these as it looks so good on you and it is very flirty. I love dresses! Happy twirling...

    ReplyDelete
  11. beautiful job! i can definitely see this with black tights, it would be very cute!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Your dress looks much cuter than the one you wanted to buy

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh, that has got to be one of the cutest homemade dresses I've seen. You did a great job.

    www.aweekfromthursday.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete
  14. wow, no wonder it's your best dress it's fantastic!

    ReplyDelete
  15. This is absolutely wonderful, I love it!

    ReplyDelete
  16. I like your version better than Modcloth's! This is gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I have to try that. Thanks for some beautiful inspiration! WOW.

    ReplyDelete
  18. I just stumbled onto your blog, but I thought I'd comment. Your dress it 10 times prettier than the mod cloth one!!! It looks wonderful on you!!

    ReplyDelete

Search

Swedish Greys - a WordPress theme from Nordic Themepark. Converted by LiteThemes.com.