Sewing others stylish is just as much fun as sewing myself stylish! That’s why I’m so excited to feature my beautiful friend, Sandra, as a guest model in this post. For Fresh Make #7, I have made a versatile shift dress.
The pattern I used is Burda 7031. I purchased on sale at JoAnn’s for $2.49. A few months ago, I posted it to my Facebook page as a pattern that I thought would be flattering on all figure types. “Who would like to make it?”, I posed. And Sandra said, “I would!” Sandra’s machine and sewing skills were a bit rusty, so I offered to make the dress for her and feature it in my blog.
Now here’s the super fun part about sewing for friends – the shopping trip to buy the fabric! We went to Mood on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles and had a blast imagining ourselves as designers on Project Runway.
Sandra is captivated by all the luscious fabrics.
We spent at least 90 minutes wondering up and down the aisles, drooling and touching fabrics. Sandra finally choose this luxurious knit wool jersey. The pattern requires 2 5/8 yards. I think the fabric was $18 per yard. And did Sandra care? No, it was gorgeous!
Fabric bought, time for lunch! We walked up four blocks on La Brea to Sycamore Kitchen and both had salads were to die for. The Sycamore Kitchen is also directly across the street from recent Austrialian transplant, The Fabric Store. What a great day!
Here’s the results of our efforts:
LET’S BE HONEST:
1. I when sew for others, the size I make is confidential, even to my client! I want having a garment custom made to be a wonderful, feel-good experience.
2. Sandra wanted the sleeve to become narrower towards the hem instead of the slight bell shaped of the pattern. I took about 4″ total off the bottom of the sleeve width.
3. I thought an interesting element to this otherwise very basic pattern was the bust dart. Sandra loved the shape that it created, too.
This dart may look unusual, but it creates a great shape.
4. I found a big surprise as I began cutting and sorting through the pattern pieces. There was a dart at the top of the sleeve.
I don’t think I’ve ever encountered a sleeve with a dart at the top before.
5. I added 2″ to the hem when cutting the fabric to be sure I had enough length to create a hem that hit slightly past the midpoint of the knee. This is a flattering spot for a hem as it accentuates the narrower part of your upper calf without showing your whole knee.
Sandra and I were giddy with excitement when I brought her the finished dress. We were thrilled with the perfect, flattering fit. For Sandra, wearing it is as comfortable as a nightgown, and no shape wear required!
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. As always, I welcome your comments.
Sewing Myself Stylish 
Dress looks amazing! I love pattern !
Thank you! I can confidentially recommend this pattern.
Love, love it! God, that fabric print is gorgeous and so fresh looking. I absolutely love when fabric stands out on its own, the there is no need for overly complicated pattern!
I could agree more that all a gorgeous fabric needs is a simple design!
The dress is beautiful! She is lucky to have a friend who can sew so well. 🙂
Thank you! I consider myself lucky, too, have wonderful people to sew for!
I love the fabric. Dress fits her perfectly! Love the photo where she’s peeking over her shoulder.
I have looked at this pattern and often wondered whether it would be a reasonable make. It is definitely going in the shopping basket tomorrow! Your version looks great and certainly suits your friend!
That turned out great! Wool jersey is pretty magical stuff. I think I’d be in trouble if I lived within driving distance of Mood and The Fabric Store!
Fortunately I don’t live too close to those awesome fabric stores. But I’m glad I can go occasionally and make a fantastic day of it.
This looks like a high-end designer dress. Lovely work and lovely on your friend. I really like the simplicity of the shape and how it showcases the beautiful fabric. Very elegant and timeless. Thanks for sharing.
Beautiful model, beautiful fabric, beautiful dress! Also, I am intrigued by the sleeve dart. I have a top bought in Japan that has this with raglan sleeve. I like the fit very much.
Such a beautiful dress and pattern. I’ve just purchased this pattern and going to try it out on a thick jersey blend. It’s my first time trying a burda pattern. Hope it goes well.
Sometimes Burda patterns can have some strange twists either in design or instructions, but this pattern is so simple, it sews up with no surprises.