darn cheap fabrics seasonal challenge - autumn 17 megan nielsen brumby skirt (and bonus stylearc candice skirt)

its dcf seasonal challenge time again - autumn 2017.  we are posting this just into winter due to my slack photo taking, but we both had our challenge items made well in autumn.  excitingly we sewed them up together when we were at sewjourn in april - see below for some pics.

the fabric we chose is a fabulously fun fishy light weight linen.  i was initially thinking a pinny, but once i got the fabric i decided to make the megan nielsen brumby skirt due to the lighter weight. 

i have made the brumby skirt once before, you can check out my previous post here.  i made the medium again which is a nice fit, but this time i added 3" to the length as my first version is a bit short for work.  looking at the photos here though i'm not sure if its just a tad long now! i think i might take it up an inch or so.

i put a lapped zip in this version (i used an invisible zip on my previous version). i hadn't used a lapped zip for quite some time so i basted it in a took my time and am happy with how it turned out.

there's not a lot more to say about the construction of this skirt, than i said in my previous post, but this version is fun and i'm sure i'll get a lot of wear out of it. the best bit about this skirt though is that i made it on the same sewing weekend lara sewed up her challenge item, it was great to get the chance to sew IRL together and have a few drinks too:)

we had a great fun weekend with anna (who snapped this fab photo of lara and i at drinks o'clock) and leith and i'm already looking forward to the next sewjourn and the next dcf challenge! btw the skirt i am wearing in the pic above is stylearc candice skirt in size 12, i love the box pleats and its a great fit.  the fabric is a stretch sateen mr f bought back for me from britex on one of his work trips.

usually after i press publish on my post i rush to check out lara's post to see what she made.  this time i can tell you its fab and you should definitely hop over for a look.

emma

*Lara and I started the DCF Seasonal Challenge a year or two ago – we buy  a couple of metres of the same fabric from Darn Cheap Fabrics each season, and each make a garment.  We then reveal it on our blogs on the same day.  It’s just a fun thing that we started when we realised how often we buy and sew the same fabrics (often from Darn Cheap).

darn cheap fabrics seasonal challenge - autumn 16 the submarine dress

its dcf challenge time and its another late season post.  its been unseasonably warm, actually awesomely lovely in sydney lately and i have found it hard to think about sewing for cooler weather, hence the delay with making up my challenge.

lara and i choose the fabric quite a while ago now.  i checked out the darn cheap fabrics website and selected a few fabrics in autumnal colours and sent them to lara. she chose a light weight poly (kind of crepe like) in a geometric print as her favourite, it was my favourite too so we were set for the autumn 16 challenge.

i was going to make the style arc olivia dress, but i got lazy and changed to the burda submarine dress 07/2015 #115, a pattern that i had previously printed out the pdf and taped together, but not made.

 

as kristy from lower your presser foot mentions in her review of this dress - its a pretty simple make.  essentially its a rectangle skirt that is gathered and attached to a loose fitting bodice, with an elastic waist and a wide neckline so there is no need for any closures.

i made a size 38 which most closely matched my bust measurement.  my waist and hip measurements are in excess of the size 38 but given the dress has an elastic waist and gathered skirt this is not a problem. i cut out the cap sleeves but i decided not to attach them in the end as i want to wear a skivvy under the dress and i decided i liked the sleeveless look when trying on the half finished dress. i also cut the back bodice on the fold instead of it having a back seam and stitched down the neck facing around an inch or so from the neck edge.

 

as finished, the dress is still quite blousey in the bodice at the waist (even though essentially i sized down at the waist) and very gathered in the skirt.  if i was to make this again i wouldn't make the skirt rectangle as wide as the instructions require.  

 

i, like kristy mentions in her review didn't care for the way the instructions direct you to attach the elastic to the waist seam.  instead i made the seam allowance wider and made a casing to insert the elastic through. i made a 1 and a 1/4 seam allowance but given the amount of gathering this creates quite a bit of bulk which you can see below.  a wide belt covers any bulk but to me wearing it it feels a bit bulky.  i didn't trim the bodice seam allowance when making the casing, i would do this if i made the dress again to assist with reducing the bulk, in combination with reducing the width of the skirt.

 

one thing i am a bit bummed about is the fabric had quite a few faults that i did not notice until cutting the last piece - one of the skirt rectangles.  i managed to cut the rectangle with just one of the faults included as i didn't have enough fabric left to cut a fault free rectangle.  you can see the fault in the photo below, it looks worse in real life, so i made it the back skirt piece so at least i don't need to look at at.  i suppose its a good lesson about checking over your fabric if you buy it on line.

overall i am pretty happy with this make, i think it will get lots of wear to work over winter paired with a skivvy and a jacket.  however i think its unlikely i will make another.  i think i would just prefer to make a few more darts in the bodice and go for a proper fit and flair dress as this one was little fiddly with the elastic waist and i prefer the more fitted bodice look.  i might be swayed though as i wore the dress to work today and i received some lovely comments about it.

as always i am really looking forward to seeing what lara has made - i have no idea or any clues as to what it is this time.

finally, does anyone have any idea as to why burda would call this submarine dress?? let me know in the comments section!

til next time,
emma