Monday, July 18, 2011

Two Peas in a Pod

Matching Dresses Cidell invited me to be her (platonic friend) date to a party for Artscape, a wonderful Baltimore street festival for art, food, and music. I wasn't sure what to wear so I sent her a list of about a dozen dresses to choose from and she felt that my Burda 06-2010-123 silk jersey sack dress best fit the vibe of the summer cocktail party.

Side

In fact, she liked it so much for the party that she made her own! We discussed whether it would be weird to wear the same dress, but concluded that your average non-sewist would never know it was the same dress because the fabric is different. It is my guess that people would actually be more likely to think we were wearing matching dresses if we wore completely different dresses out of the same fabric than dresses from the same pattern in different fabric. Alas, I had already given my dress of the yellow and gray fan fabric (purchased together at Jomar) to the Goodwill; it never stopped feeling like a nightgown to me. So doing the real twinsie thing was not possible. This is probably a mercy.





Swayback Adjustment When I finished this dress last year, I realized that it really needed a swayback adjustment. Not only do I have a fairly extreme swayback to begin with, but the weight of the elastic casing along the back shoulder pulls the dress down in back so that the front neckline comes up as high as possible. According to the line drawing, the dress is supposed to be a more balanced and hang from the shoulder rather than the front neck, but I don't know how to make that happen.

So the combination of my swayback and backward pull of the dress were resulting in major puddling over the booty. I opened out the shoulder/yoke seam and shortened the back by 2 inches at center back, as you can see on the left. It really could have used another inch and a half but that just seemed crazy so I stayed at two. it still has a little draping over the booty, but is much improved.

Matching Dresses


As predicted, nobody seemed to notice that we matched, just that we looked fabulous (heh). We spent the evening chilling on a rooftop, mingling, and watching fireworks before I headed back home on the Amtrak. I actually had not worn my silk jersey sack dress but once, because of the swayback problem. I'm glad Cidell prompted me to fix it so I can wear it for the rest of summer. I am loving the way it looks with my 06-2009-151 obi.

All the photos of this dress are here.

27 comments:

Clio said...

You both look great and not at all matchy. Is your hair pulled back or is that a cute new summer do? Very sassy!

Karin said...

I agree, no one will ever notice that the shape of the dresses is the same. People mostly notice the colour aynd print of the fabric. I love the print on you dress. It feels a little bit 60s London Biba, no? Perfect for a groovy street party.

Debbie Cook said...

OK, I want to be 30-something and go to Artscape next year with you two. You DO look fabulous and it looks like a fun event.

Little Hunting Creek said...

You both look wonderful and not matchy at all.
I love those dresses

Trudy said...

How fun! You both look great in your dresses.

Jane M said...

Isn't Artscape wonderful. The two of you definitely brightened the scene with those smiles. And I think it's wonderfully funny about the same pattern different fabrics, yup, non-sewers did not have a clue.

chiquita said...

Are you both like partners? but you also have a boyfriend so that is confusing...

Unknown said...

Cute! You two look very fashionable and summer-y.

Uta said...

Great fix! You look very cute together.

McVal said...

They both look fabulous! And seriously, they do not look like you used the same patterns...

MushyWear said...

You both look fabulous and what a fun event it must have been. So nice you were able to work out the fit issues with the dress. It has such a cool summer vibe!

Victoria said...

Both of you Ladies looked great! Lovely dresses!

Sewing Projects said...

Artscape sounds like so much fun. I found your site through Amanda's Adventures. I am also an avid sewer. It seems that I have a lot to learn from you though.

Thanks so much for writing and sharing your work. I am excited to follow!

~Sewing Projects Living Dailies: Joanna

Thanks again!

Sew-4-Fun said...

What great photos of yourself and Cidell! Love your dresses too.

AllisonC said...

Ha I'm reading this wearing mine too! Good to hear you will be getting more use out of your dress this year.

Claire S. said...

Wow - you both look great ! I agree non-sewers would notice matchy fabric more than matchy patterns.

loopylulu said...

Sounds like it was a fun date. I completely agree that the non-sewer probably pattern matches dresses based on color and not on cut.

Mrs. Micawber said...

I love sack dresses. Used to wear them back in the 80's and in fact have been working on one this weekend. Both of yours are gorgeous and the obi really works.

Love the hair!

Anna Christina said...

What a fun post to read!

Joy said...

What a great photo! And how nice is it to have real-life sewing buddy?!

Linda L said...

Perfect dresses for a summery evening.

Connie said...

Loving on both versions! You two look impossibly cool!

Meg said...

You two look great.

Eugenia said...

You both look fabulous - and look like you're having a lot of fun. I love both the dresses - they're colourful and very beautiful!

Kitty Couture said...

Gorgeous pictures of the two of you! You both look radiant and fabulous. I love your obi belt on the dress.

Andrea said...

You both looked fantastic and it looks like a lot of fun was had by all.

senaSews said...

You both look beautiful! Love both fabrics - so colorful and fun!