Butterick 5321 Pleat Front Shift and Malaysia Stashoholism Confessional

For me it wouldn't be travel unless I stayed up super-late the night before finishing a project. My most recent trip to Asia was no exception, although I actually finished this little number in plenty of time the weekend before leaving (it was a bathing suit giving me a sleepless night). I love a shift dress with a jacket for professional speaking engagements--much more flattering, less stuffy, and more approachable than a suit.



As I observed previously, Vogue 1025, an Anne Klein designer pattern, is almost identical to this one. It seems odd because Butterick and Vogue are the same company so it's competing with itself, but perhaps they are run separately and the right hand doesn't know what the left is doing. Or perhaps the Butterick was already drafted and in the catalog when Anne Klein handed in her pattern, and they couldn't exactly tell a top American designer her pattern was too unoriginal to accept. Or something. Anyway, I hesitated between the two, but ended up choosing Butterick 5321 because of the unusual diagonal darts in the back and the set-in rather than cut-on sleeves.

This was intended to be a muslin for the silk linen I bought a while back from Fabric Mart. I don't have a good solid black dress for either professional events or, not to be morbid, a funeral should one come up. When my dad had a health scare several months ago it occurred to me that I really ought to be prepared, because in a sad situation the last thing I want to think about is whether I have anything appropriate to wear and then have to go shopping or something. What a nightmare. Since the silk linen was expensive by my standards ($8.99/yd), I decided to practice on this $2.97/yard G Street polyester suiting first as a wearable muslin--a highly wearable one as it turns out!

My first pattern adjustment was, of course, a small bust adjustment. On the bodice front I reduced the pleat width and shortened the neck to shoulder edge by taking a tuck a couple inches below the shoulder. When I made it up it turned out I should have taken out just a little more of that distance; the photo here shows the new amount of tuck.

While sewing the dress, I found that the reduced pleat width was good, but the pleat needed to be closed up *much* higher than indicated. I sewed it up to just underneath the bust, so it is more of a released dart than a pleat, I suppose. It's much more flattering there--shapely, not baggy.

I knew I would need a swayback adjustment as well, though I was a little concerned how it would affect the diagonal dart in the back. But, that's the point of a muslin, right? I just took a regular swayback tuck. Luckily, this didn't seem to create any problem with the pleat. I also shortened the skirt a touch.

I do like the diagonal darts. They're so unusual and they add a little interest to what is otherwise a plain back to this dress (though I do like that V back much more than a rounded back neckline). My only gripe is that the fabric ends up so thick there you either have to insert a regular zip (ugh) or fudge your invisible a bit by sewing further toward the edge of the tape (away from the teeth) and compensating by pressing the fabric over the zip. This imperfect solution frustrates me because I take pride in my invisible zip application. In retrospect, I think perhaps if I had trimmed the fabric from the darts I might have improved the situation, but again--that's the point of a muslin.


This is a nice, simple pattern with four pattern pieces (front and back bodice and skirt), each of which is also cut out of lining. I hate facings and would have lined it anyway, so I'm glad Butterick was in my corner on this one. To ensure that the lining would not roll outward and show, I trimmed 1/4" off the neckline and armscye edges of the lining. This makes the lining slightly smaller than the fashion fabric, so it turns under and creates a nice finish.

It seems the Big Four have *finally* caught onto the all-machine method for sewing a lining to a sleeveless garment so the directions don't have you do any nonsense involving hand sewing the lining shoulder seams after everything is put together. Instead, you sew the shoulder seams of the fashion and lining fabrics (leaving the sides seams and back seam open), sew together at neckline and armscye, turn right side out through the strap tunnels, and then sew the side seams of the lining and fashion fabric at one go. I can't believe I did it the other way for so many years.

Since I love a surprise lining *and* I love shopping my stash for linings I pulled out this rayon challis from The Carol Collection. The rayon adds a layer of breathability to the polyester fashion fabric, but is still lightweight and drapey so it doesn't interfere with the lines.


I added pockets, based on the pattern for them from 07-2008-107. This has become my go-to pocket--the shape is good, the opening is large enough to fit your hand easily, but it's not ridiculously large. I don't expect to put anything more bulky into the pockets than business cards (or kleenex in a funeral dress), but there is something nifty about having them. Based on Butterick's method from the Maggy London pleated collar wrap dress Butterick 5320, I sewed the pockets on with a 3/8" seam. This magically causes them to turn under when the rest of the side seam is sewn with a 5/8" seam. It's a nifty little trick. I cut the front pocket out of the lining fabric, because I think the contrast is cute.

I love this dress. It's adorable but professional but comfortable.

HOWEVER, I am not totally sold on the style. The tummy-disguising front skirt pleats are what drew me to it. And they are tummy-disguising. However, they do their job a little too well and the skirt front is puffy and unattractive with a hint of Pregnant Chic when viewed from the side. But then again, seeing the pictures I'm wondering if everything else about it is cute enough to ignore that problem. How many people are going to view me only from the side? And do I care about their opinions?

But my goal for the silk linen is a classic dress I can keep at the back of the closet for many years (or at least as many years as it still fits!), and--while it has shown great staying power--I'm not sure that Pregnant Chic is here to stay. So I'm not yet committed to this pattern as my Reliable Black Dress (a different category than the Little Black Dress, to be sure), but it is still a contender.

All photos are here and the pattern review is here. Please excuse the indulgence of way too many photos of this one. The colleague I was traveling with also sews, so she understands the need for fashion shots, and we did photos all over the area. When you have a willing photographer *and* an exotic location it's hard to know when enough is enough!

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This review is an attempt to make up for the lack of any interesting travel information or stories about Malaysia. I was on the resort island of Langkawi, which is a lovely spot but resorts are not highly cultural. I was working all day anyway.

One evening we had a tour of the island, but unfortunately it was more in the nature of shopping tourism. I was excited that one of the stops was to be a market of local handicrafts, but this was then substituted with a trip to the mall. Yep, a mall. In the department store, I was happy to find these fabrics. They came in pre-packaged lengths of 2 and 3 meters. On some of the fabrics the edges were finished and perhaps the fabric could be used as a tablecloth, but some of them had raw edges, which makes me think they really were sold as fabric.

They were marked as "batik" from Indonesia, but based on my knowledge of batik these are actually prints in batik motifs. It was better than nothing!

I was really drawn to the blue and orange flowers on the dark green fabric. I actually hate the muddy, dark background color and knew at the time I was taking a risk. Either someday a project will leap out for this fabric or I will someday purge it from the stash. It would make a good tier for a tiered skirt, but the hippie/boho thing is not really my style, so I don't plan to make any tiered skirts. However, as the fabric was around $2/meter, I was ok with buying a "maybe someday" piece.

The blue is a little bit like a cuter, girlier bandanna print and I love it! It will be a perfect summer dress.

The light green has so much going on with different prints and motifs, and the colors are sensational. I have a vision for it and I can't believe I don't have a pattern!!! I want a dress with kimono sleeves, a crossover V neck in front, a low V back, a relaxed fit at the waist but with some shaping maybe with an elastic casing or a drawstring, and fullish, short skirt. This style is very popular and I assumed I would definitely have the exact thing in my stash.

I went through all my back issues of BWOF and my envelope patterns and nothing! I have several in that style, but they all have a separate midriff. I feel like, given the elements of the fabric, a midriff would need to have some kind of special print on it. My plan is to cut the bodice with the border along the neck edge, and to use the sawtooth pattern in the center of the skirt (another problem because to use that motif on the front and back skirts the waistline will have to be closer to natural than empire because the fabric is quite narrow). That doesn't leave anything special for a midriff.

BWOF has a couple of options with kimono sleeves, a slightly below empire drawstring/elastic, and relaxed skirt but none of them have crossover tops, they are all very low Vs that require a tank top underneath, and they require fabric flowier than cotton. All the options have high round back necks.

I could draft something but really, who has time? Of patterns I don't own, Simplicity 2642 is OK, but again has the high round back, and the fit is a little *too* relaxed. Butterick and McCall have nothing.

Well, enough rambling. My Tokyo report is still coming!

Questions and Answers, Swaybacks, and Stashoholism Confessional

I've had a few questions in comments lately so I'll try to provide some answers. I don't know everything by a long shot!

Holly had several questions on my post about BWOF 03-2009-102, the empire waist knit dress:

I'm new to reading sewing blogs and I'm scared. Here's why:

1. I don't know how to order BWOF;

2. My sewing machine only sews straight and zigzag stiches;

3. I keep seeing some sort of grid thing you guys use when working with patterns and I don't have one of those.

Any advice you could give me would be great, especially if you could please tell me how to get the pattern for the dress you just made.

1. BWOF is distributed in the United States by GLP News. It's $80 for an annual subscription, with 6 month and 3 month subscriptions available for a modest $3 premium over that rate ($43/6 mos, $23/3 mos); if you are a new sewist I might recommend one of the shorter subscriptions to see if you will enjoy sewing where you have to trace the patterns and the instructions are not always very good. I heart BWOF, but I would probably have found it discouraging in the very early stages of sewing.

This seems expensive at first blush, but it is actually an incredible bargain if you sew enough to make it worth it. It is under $7 per issue, each issue has around 40 patterns (the description says 60 but I'm not sure where they got that number), so we are talking like 17 cents per pattern. Now, in reality, I generally end up making 2-3 patterns per issue but that is still less than $3 per pattern. A very reasonable price for fashion-forward sewing delivered to your door every month! BWOF is the only magazine I subscribe to and I look forward to it every month. (This reminds me that I need to renew my subscription.)

2. A straight stitch and zig zag is all you need! I didn't get a serger until about 8 months ago and I've been sewing for over 20 years. Use your straight stitch on wovens and a slight zig zag on knits and you're good to go.

3. The grid thing is just a cardboard cutting mat, available for around $20 at Joann, Hancock, or any other fabric store as well as online. I put it over my table to protect the table and make it easier to cut. Plus, the scissors are so loud straight on the table! I do find the grid useful for measurements and use the bias markings for cutting bias strips, and recommend it as basic sewing equipment, but it's not necessary. I should do a sewing glossary post on basic sewing equipment...

4. Unfortunately, the pattern is available only in the March 2009 issue of Burda [World of Fashion]. It is an excellent issue--you can check it out here--that would be worth acquiring. You might be able to find it on eBay or Etsy. Burda also says on its archive page that past issues can be purchased in German if they are still in stock. (This means the instructions would all be in German.) You can also check (and post a want ad) on the PR Classifieds. There are several back issues on this website (I am not affiliated with it, have never used it, and cannot vouch), but unfortunately neither issue that Holly or Amy is looking for. Finally, you might contact GLP News. Occasionally people with subscriptions have had issues lost the mail (not me, touch wood) and GLP has been able to get them replacements, so I assume they have a very small stock of back issues. I hear tell of retail bookstores carrying BWOF; I've never chanced across it in any bookstores I've been to.

Amy also wanted to know about getting a back issue of BWOF:

I am sort of new to the Burda patterns. I saw one on a web site I really liked and have finally figured out it came from the BWOF magazine. Do you know where I can get a copy of the magazine or a copy of the pattern in it? It is from BWOF 07-2008 and is pattern number 108. Thanks for any help you can offer.

All my ideas are listed above. Hopefully you can find what you want!

Laura requests:

Hey, have you ever done a tutorial on sway back adjustments? If not, would you mind doing one? I've looked around and they're all different!!! But since yours works I'd love to know how you do it.



Basically, that's it. My swayback is directly below my natural waist (my bum is pretty high) so I go about an inch below the natural waist and fold out a wedge of about one inch at CB, tapering to nothing at the side seam. This naturally creates a curve in the center back, but you can make it more dramatic if needed (I have not found I always need extra curvature and I have a serious swayback). Where there is a dart, as pictured above, the lower apex (the nadir?) needs to be redrawn so that it is on grain with the rest of the dart.

The bummer about this alteration is that it adds a center back seam. There's no getting around it. I'd rather have the distraction of a CB seam than the distraction of fabric pooling above my sizeable rear, so I deal with it.

Lisette M asks

I love it! I love how it looks on you and your accessories are perfect with it. Is the necklace one of yours?, it is gorgeous.

Yes! I pretty much wear only jewelry that I've made. I've been so caught up in sewing the past several years, though, that I rarely make jewelry anymore except as gifts. I always bring my supplies with me when I travel because pliers are allowed on planes and I get so antsy just sitting there for hours in a cramped seat. I'm flying to Texas this weekend and will work on some new pieces. Maybe someday I'll even put something in my now empty Etsy shop. I do commission work, so if you have a particular piece in mind (or want to be surprised!) just get in touch.

And a question from Katharine in Brussels, just for kicks:

Question--are you growing your hair out? It looks a little longer.

I am just lazy!!!! When I moved to DC I went through three or four years of trying different stylists at all different price points ($30 Hair Cuttery which left me looking like a hammerhead shark with my hair right at my wide jawline and $90 fancy salons) and never finding anyone I liked. Finally I did.

There are two kinds of hairstylists. There are the ones who are perfectly made up and impeccably groomed who you want to look like, and there are the ones who have crazy insane jolie-laide (although frankly in my opinion just laide) hair who you know have vision. She was the latter. She had a buzz cut with big sideburns. I'm not kidding. And she gave me fabulous haircuts. I am a grownup professional and don't want to be too out there, but I always say, "Do NOT give me anchorwoman hair." She found the perfect balance between personality and anchorwoman. Then I went to see her a couple years ago and she said she was leaving the hair business to join the ministry. With all due respect, I needed her more than God.

So I was back to square one. I went to the Aveda Institute a few times for super cheap student cuts, but I got a mushroom head anchorwoman 'do one time and a girl who didn't know how to layer thin hair the second time and accidentally just cut it all off so I decided to get back on the salon circuit.

I got a recommendation to a co-worker and found Claire at Ilo. She is amazing. She gives fantastic haircuts and has a sexy voice and British accent to boot. She gave me the fabulous short haircut that I wore curly until it got too long in July of last year. She told me I'd have to come back every four weeks. Her cuts cost $90, so $110 with tip. No way was I going back every four weeks. I countered with 8. She agreed to 6. I, um, haven't been back. Yep, I haven't had a haircut since last July. I (irrationally, I hope) fear she will be mad at me when I go back so I'm procrastinating.

When I went to Claire the first time I hadn't had my hair cut in well over a year and it was long like this. I am sure she has had her share of bad experiences of people with long hair coming in *thinking* they want a really short cut and then crying and threatening to sue so she was a bit trepidatious in cutting it off. I told her it was that long due only to inertia. My hair is too thin and prone to breakage to grow long and it looks hideous that length. I always see old pictures with long hair and get all nostalgic but I have to remind myself that while it might, by some miracle of photography, look glowing and lustrous in the picture, in real life it was stringy and split practically up to the roots and frankly embarrassing to wear around all the time.

Bottom line, I am not intentionally growing my hair long and will get a haircut as soon as I find the courage to face Claire!

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Here's a random link for you, the blog of 1000 Awesome Things. It's a list of everyday little things that make you happy. It has nothing to do with sewing, but it's sweet and I'm enjoying it a great deal.

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On Saturday afternoon I went to a party on the Red line. Since I was so close to G Street Fabrics' Rockville location and I needed a zipper I headed up to the White Flint station. Since this is not my usual G Street I felt I was totally justified in browsing the $2.97/yd table. Whether I was or was not, I found some fabrics I couldn't pass up. Since I can never pass up knit prints I got the red with huge circles and orange with swirls (I had a hard time getting them to look two different colors in the photos).

I love the huge print on the red, but the circles are in rows rather than randomly placed. For the first time ever, I am going to have to focus on circle placement in cutting. Normally I don't worry about highlighting the girls because there's nothing there to highlight, but red circles the size of dinner plates over my boobs would be too obvious even for me. I am not sure what pattern to use. I already have Vogue 8379, the DVF-ish wrap dress, in a similar fabric (though with a smaller scale print). So I don't want to do anything too similar to that. Suggestions welcome!


I am thinking Butterick 5079 (technical drawing at right) for the orange swirls. There are only a few pattern reviews of this one and nobody seems to absolutely love it, but it appeals to me that it is a semi twist dress that is not really a twist dress. And of course, there is that ruching at the midriff! My new favorite thing. I think the versions that have been made are cute. And plus, I own the pattern so I should make use of it!

The black fabric is a casual tiered-look lace with a bit of stretch. It looks like it has some cotton content; I haven't done a burn test, that's more by way of describing its level of casual. I have already made some of it into a short sundress with spaghetti straps--one of the holes in my wardrobe I recently discovered--and I'll make the rest into a casual black summer skirt. I'm not going to pretend I don't already own 5 or 6 black skirts, but none of them are casual summer skirts. So, ya know, I neeeeeeed one.