This is the first of my christmas holidays makes, and was inspired by a dress worn by Clara in Doctor Who in an episode called "The Name Of The Doctor". Here's my version which I'm wearing with a Tilly And The Buttons Agnes top:
and here is Clara's original.
It's a bit difficult to see in that photo because she has her arms folded, but I really like how the front sides stop just above the bust, then go at a right angle into the armhole. I considered doing this, but didn't fancy the idea of having to negotiate that corner, and it would have been really obvious if I made a mess of it. Clara's dress also seems to have welt pockets, but welt pockets and I will never be friends, so I ditched them too. Also, I made my dress a bit longer!
My fabric is some polyviscose tartan from Oh Sew Crafty, and I used my same self-drafted pattern that I used for my cord pinafore dress. This time, I didn't add a separate top to the pocket, and instead made the lower front side in one piece. As this piece is cut on the bias, I stablised the inside with a strip of interfacing.
I'm very pleased with how I matched the tartan above the top of the pocket. |
All the seams are top-stitched down on either side. On the cord dress, I've found it tricky to get the seams to lay flat on the skirt. This has helped a bit, and I might go back and do it on the cord dress.
This dress isn't lined, because I didn't think it was necessary, and the neckline and armholes are faced with bias tape. Also, because the front and back side pieces are cut on the bias, I stay stitched around all the edges to stop them stretching.
My favourite bit is the exposed zip, which came from ebay. I'm delighted with how it turned out, and used this great tutorial from Papercut Patterns. This was a million times easier that the zip I did on the needle cord dress; the difference is that the stitches are visible on this one. The centre back edges are interfaced where the zip goes, and I basted the zip in before sewing. It worked first time, and no unpicking - result!
I found this New Look pattern, 6299, which I think is very similar. The neckline is a bit higher, but it would be easy to lower it a bit, and I love the collar in Views A and B.
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New Look 6299 |
I love how this dress turned out, and my unashamed current obsession with Doctor Who continues. Didn't really love the Christmas special though, except for the end when the new Doctor showed up!
Have a great week,
Have a great week,
Lynne
Tartan is a fave fabric of mine and I really love your dress. The effect of those bias panels is fab. Brilliant matching too. I'm also a huge fan of exposed zips. Great job there too!
ReplyDeleteThanks Diane! I'm a firm believer in "tartan is a neutral"! I love how the bias panels and zip turned out.
DeleteLove your version, I have a think for purple plaid ha ha - zipper is an excellent addition too. View B of that new look pattern with sleeves and a black collar is a lot like the red Clara dress from Journey to the centre of the tardis which I have been wanting to recreate for some time. I stopped watching when we got doctor 12, but thinking of jumping back on board to check out the new doctor ;o
ReplyDeleteThanks Colette! What's not to love about purple tartan?! Great minds clearly think alike, because view B made me think of the dress from Journey To The Centre Of The Tartan too. You should definitely make it! I have to say that Pater Capaldi isn't my favourite Doctor, and he was kind of getting on my nerves in the Christmas episode.
DeleteGreat dress. You wear plaids really well, and your plaid matching skills are super! I always struggle with it, and you give me incentive to try it again! Enjoy wearing your dress. 😊
ReplyDeleteThank you! My top tip for matching checks is to cut everything out on a single layer. It's very time consuming, and hard on the knees, but it means that you can use one pattern piece to cut out it's reverse. So, when I cut out one side front, I cut it right side up, then turned the cut out piece right side down (so I was cutting a mirror image), then lined the checks up. Hope that helps!
DeleteThis is such a fabulous dress, Lynne! I love how you made a copy of the dress you liked - and your colour choices are perfect. We re-watched "The Waters of Mars" the other week, but there aren't really many outfits to covet in that one ;-)
ReplyDeleteThanks Helen! I don't remember that one! I still have a few episodes left to watch from the last series because my DVD player broke.
DeleteAnother great dress Lynne! You're really good at taking inspiration and actually using it, I have a tendency to save images and then forget about them. I really like the look of the New Look pattern too, I might have to check that out!
ReplyDeleteThanks Ruth! I'm really trying to use the inspiration photos at the minute, as I feel I've been a bit scatergun in my approach to what I sew lately!
DeleteThis is lovely - and you drafted it yourself. So cool!
ReplyDeleteThanks Hannah!
DeleteI love how the fabric contrasts between the front and side panels. Another fabulous make.
ReplyDeleteThanks Helen! I love how the bias panels turned out.
DeleteReally cute, excellently executed and you get mega points that it is a "Clara" dress!
ReplyDeleteThanks Kim! My favourite thing about Clara was her outfits - did not love how she kept fibbing to Danny!!
DeleteAnother winner Lynne! You really do have a skill for sewing what you see and an eye for matching patterns and checks.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ruth!
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