A tale of two fabrics

Happy 2nd birthday TMS!  This also marks about two years (give or take a few months) of me sewing my own clothes, which is doubly exciting!

Anyways, for this challenge I decided to try out a pattern using two different fabrics.  Fabric the first – this was an interesting find in the back room of my favorite fabric store. As you can see, it has a sort of Venice, Italy print:

The other fabric is very similar to material you would use to make dressy black pants, which worked pretty well for the skirt of this dress.  I used a vintage Simplicity pattern that featured an empire waist which luckily didn’t need too much adjusting.

When I cut out the bodice, I had to manipulate the pattern pieces a bit in order to feature a nice scene for the front.  What I really wanted was to make sure the gondolas showed up on the bodice. This fabric had a bit of a stretch to it, which hugs nicely with a perfect fit.  Since the skirt fabric was on the heavy side, I decided to use a serger on the side seams.  I also serged the bottom hem, so I only had to turn the hem up once, again due to the bulkiness of the fabric.

 

 

 

 

I was pleased with how simple this vintage pattern was and how clear the directions were.  This is one that could be attempted by beginners – and maybe that will inspire some to take part in next months vintage challenge!  I added just a simple black satin ribbon around the waist, attached at the side seams and the back (raw edges are finished to prevent fraying).  I have to say this is probably one of my best makes to date – read more about it on my blog!  Thanks Monthly Stitch for challenging me to combine two great looks that look great together!