Sunday, November 29, 2015

My Dress is Finished ...Burda 6988


Well , I finished my dress and it turned out really well but for some  reason , I decided to leave out the yoke. I thought I'd prefer the neckline plain so I could wear necklaces but now I wish I had included the yoke !  Isn't that always the way ?





I sewed the facings as I explained it in this post on Diana's Sewing Lessons.

I do think the navy panels makes the dress slimming. I actually sewed the panels over the scuba knit and the fact that there is a double layer of fabric along the sides hides a multitude of flab. I cut the panels 3.5 " wide and if you want to know the method I used to sew them over the base fabric . please look here.

I had a lovely metal teeth zipper and I love how it looks . I think it really added a fashion forward touch to an otherwise simple dress.


I sewed the zipper  from the inside so no stitching line shows and it really turned out great. I used a 1" strip of interfacing on each side. I calculated that since the closed teeth of the zipper measured 1/4 ", I could add 1/8 inch to the seam width on each side. I clipped the bottom of the seam to form two right angles to ft around the bottom of the zipper. (I hope that makes sense ). I then pinned and sewed from the wrong side using my zipper foot.







I hemmed using Steam -Seam and since I don't wear my dresses very much, I left it at that.  If you use lots of steam and hold for 15 to 20 seconds, I find that  S-a-S holds quite well.

I think that what I like best about this dress is that it fits me as perfectly as I'm ever going to get a fit.
It's my fourth time using this pattern and I want to experiment with changing the neckline next time.

FYI, I usually cut a size 12 in most patterns but usually add  1" to the sides ,just in case. I always make a full bust adjustment, a sway back adj. ,an upper round back adj., and a narrow and sloped shoulder adjustment . For this Burda pattern , I made all my adjustments except I didn't do an FBA. Instead, I tried using the French dart for Size 14 and that worked for me ! 

Do you find that happens to you that one pattern company fits you better than others. I want to try a Burda pants pattern next time to see if I'm on to something.






Next up, I want to sew something for Christmas but I don't know what yet. What are you sewing for the Holidays?

Happy sewing from


14 comments:

Amanda S. said...

Fabulous!

Vicki said...

The colour really suits you! And the fit is fabulous of course! I want to sew something for Christmas but haven't been inspired yet. Its more casual here in Australia as it is summer.

Dilliander said...

Gorgeous dress Diana, fit perfection and that exposed zipper is beautifully done.

Coco said...

I love your dress! the camo, panels, zipper - what a fun outfit!

SewCraftyChemist said...

Gosh I love this! What a fantastic print!

Ohhhmy said...

You are amazing, Diana. Great fit,looks wonderful on you. Excited to see what your dress looked like the minute I got the email that you had posted. Really enjoy your details of construction along the way. THANKS!

Sew, Jean Margaret said...

The blue looks lovely on you. Gorgeous dress!

Tany said...

You look terrific, congrats on a job well done!

Summer Flies said...

The dress looks terrific. I love Burda styles and I think I have the "European" body. I am just going to try a Burda envelope pattern for some pants right now!

Sarah Liz said...

It's nice to see the finished dress after the earlier discussions about what fabric to use. It looks magnificent.

Sharon said...

I like the clean lines of this dress and you look gorgeous in it.

Irene said...

What a lovely dress!

Kristine Abat said...

What a lovely dress, I think it looks fab on you! I had a few Burda patterns I tried to make for myself but did not look flattering for me. There are times I needed to make a few adjustments so it will “fit” or I just ended up giving it to a friend (site of my friend). But in general, I find my body likes Burda patterns.

Randy Weaver said...

Finding your own style is so difficult but it appears that you've succeeded wonderfully. The pattern matches your coloring perfectly and you will turn heads wherever you go. I imagine that many women will ask you where you shop for clothing, since affordable designer dresses are notoriously difficult to find at local stores.

Randy Weaver @ True Fashionistas Resale