Rantin' and Raven I: Dress

Obligatory whine about how
we aren't the same shape -
the halter does not close

So.  This dress has been albatross around my neck since August.  I had cut out the pieces, but had to suspend work on it for my Halloween costume.  The motivation was severely lacking, so once I had finished that, it just sat in the sewing room for months.  I would sometimes get enough energy to work on it for an hour or two, but everything takes ten times as long when I'm in those moods, so even pinning a simple seam can take an hour.

But regardless, it is done now.

The pattern is Simplicity It's So Easy 2884.  Even with my cranky, crabby mood making everything difficult, I wouldn't say this is an easy pattern.  It has pleats and gathering, as well as boning.  Or maybe  I'm just losing my touch.  The fabric is Nevermore by Michael Miller.  I am sure everyone is shocked that I would purchase a fabric called Nevermore.

I have a love-hate relationship with halters.  They're so cute, but I don't like going out in public without a bra, and convertible bras rarely me fit correctly (hell, regular bras rarely fit me correctly), and the backs are frequently too low to wear a bra with anyway.  I could always wear an adhesive bra, but my feeling is that if it's hot enough to show enough skin for a halter, it's too hot for an adhesive bra.  So I made the executive decision to sew in bra cups.  More on this later.

Other alterations: the usual one to lengthen any skirt by several inches (it's been so long that I honestly can't remember how much I added; somewhere between three and six) and skipping the slip (basically, lining the skirt).  I also had to move the buttons for wear the halter attaches, or my cupcakes would have been hanging out, bra cups or not.

Somewhere between cutting out the pieces and getting back to work on this, I lost the lining pieces for the upper bodice.  I knew I had plain black somewhere in my stash, but a cursory search (I glanced over at it for five seconds) yielded nothing.  I had muslin nearby, so I used that instead.  You can see the edges, but I don't give a hot damn.

Despite my whining, this dress isn't as difficult as I make it out to be.  It could definitely be tackled by an advanced beginner.

Back to the bra cups: I was pretty surprised at the selection of bra cups.  I ended up buying these, in a B/C (by accident).  I was planning on taking them back, but tried them just to see, and they fit pretty well.  I am actually a AA, but I am taller than average and have a large band size, so I guess that translates to a B/C for someone of average proportions?  Well, it works, however it is.  When I was constructing the dress, I inserted the cups into the upper bodice, but didn't sew them until everything else was complete so I could get them aligned on my cupcakes properly.  I just hand-stitched them through the lining.

What motivated me to finally finish the dress?  Well, I am about to head out for trip to Puerto Rico!  I have been down in the dumps for a while, and thought the sunshine (looking at it, but not sitting in it), fresh air, and culture shock would do me some good.  The dress would be perfect to wear there and it felt like a good way to push past my motivational block.

I have the white version of this fabric sitting in the stash too, and I plan to make a matching bolero with it.