Burda Style For people who sew

Description

I sewed up a wearable mock up and a proper version of Tasia’s wonderful Cambie Dress pattern from Sewaholic Patterns. I love how both of them turned out!

The mock up was made using a $2 sale suiting material which is a little heavy for the pattern but still worked out well. I kept this version the length the pattern intends which is maybe a little long for a short-legged girl such as me! I learnt a few things with the mock-up: The shoulder straps had to be angled and shortened (which I did slightly in the mock up but exaggerated in the final version) to make the neckline narrower to fit my chest. Also, it is a good idea to use the same fabric as lining for the bodice as it is likely to roll a little along the neckline due to the order of the construction process (there doesn’t seem to be a good time to add understitching to the neckline).

Neither of these points are a critique of the pattern because Tasia has done such an amazing job coming up with a clever method of construction that makes every step simple and makes customizing the fit through little adjustments of the sleeves incredibly easy! I also love sewing her slant pockets because she has managed to simplify the standard steps of creating this sort of pocket quite a bit. I’ll be using her version whenever I need to create slant pockets in the future!

For my final version I made the changes I came up with during the mock up and I also interfaced the bodice front because the rayon I used was silky and had a lovely drape. I wanted to ensure, in every way possible, that the neckline would be stiff and smooth. I somehow managed to have extra fabric at CF of the skirt when sewing it to the waste band (this wasn’t an issue during my mock-up so maybe my rayon stretched?) so I made a little pleat near each pocket which adds a bit of fullness to the front of the skirt which I’m actually quite pleased with.

Both dresses have become a staple of my wardrobe – I love how they cover the shoulders and I also love the fit – the dress feels loose and comfy while wearing it but it gives the appearance of being quite fitted. The shortened hemline of the final dress looks cute with tights and I hope, when summer comes and I’m not so pasty, it will be comfortable and cool to wear on its own in the sun!

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Material Notes

Mock-Up – suiting blend
Final Dress – floral rayon

Difficulty

Intermediate

Categories

Season

Fall, Spring

For

Women

Garment Type

Dress

Style

Casual

Material

Rayon, Suiting

Credits

Tasia

Sewaholic Patterns