Vogue 8379 in a Striped Silk Jersey

Hello everyone and happy Spring!

This is the first time that I've taken photos outdoors since October.  It feels so nice to be outside again!  To celebrate the long awaited arrival of Spring, I just had to make a new dress.  One of the most versatile dresses that I think you can own is a wrap dress.  They work for all seasons- just throw on a jacket or cardigan in the winter, and you can make a wrap dress work all year long.  So for this time of year where the temperature is up one day and down the next, a wrap dress is perfect.

The wrap dress was made popular by Diane Von Furstenberg in the 70's.  Have you ever seen a real DVF Wrap dress?  If you go to the Wrap Shop you can see that the average price is $400, and all of the gorgeous variations that they offer.  The one thing that I noticed that they all have in common, is that they are made from silk jersey.

I actually tried on an authentic DVF wrap dress once, and found out what silk jersey really feels like.  It's a lot like an ITY jersey in feel, but it has a lot less stretch. The colors in silk always seem to be richer, and that makes the DVF dresses look so much more vibrant than others.  I really had my heart set on making a wrap dress from a real silk jersey, and as usual, FabricMart had the perfect fabric- a striped silk jersey in my favorite colors (see below for a close-up).  Looks a lot like my blog background, don't you agree?

My favorite pattern for this style is Vogue 8379.  I've taught a class using it before, and amazingly, every size and shape looked great in it!  I did have to make adjustments to the pattern.  I did a full bust adjustment, a full biceps adjustment, and added length to the skirt.  But after my adjustments, I got a much better fit than I could ever have gotten buying an authentic DVF wrap dress. The McCall Pattern company blog is currently running a Wrap Dress Sewalong with some great information about fitting this particular style.

Since my fabric was striped, I had visions of trying to match the stripes in a chevron effect at all of the seams.  But when I got it, I saw that the stripes were quite curved.  So instead of trying to match the stripes at the seams, I decided to just try to play around with the direction of the stripes.  Here's what my fabric looked like on the cutting table:

Since the bodice and sleeves are fitted closely, I decided to lay the back bodice and sleeves in the direction of the maximum stretch- which was horizontally.  I oriented the front bodice so that the stripes would line up with the direction of the wrap- almost a 45 degree angle.  The skirt was a challenge.  I omitted the seam in the back, and cut it all in a single layer with the stripes at a slight angle.   Then I tried to match the sides in whatever direction the stripes were going in.  It didn't turn out perfect, but I'm pretty happy with it.  It has a kind of ice cream swirl effect.

Lastly, I cut the tie and facings with the stripes going horizontally. My front facing does turn out (even though it's not supposed to!), but it looks intentional with the horizontal facing.

Of course, you do need to pay attention to the skirt when you are sitting, but there is plenty of overlap so that you can stay covered up.  And if it is a windy day, well, you might just want to wear another dress!

 Have you made a wrap dress?   What is your favorite wrap dress pattern and fabric?

Here is the picture of the Bodice front after I did a Full Bust adjustment:

Happy Sewing!

Ann