Vogue 8379, the jungle edition

Wooooooahhhhh! While my first V8379 ended up a bit plain and boring, the remake can be described as...well, the opposite. In fact my camera had trouble focusing on the leopard-roses-tropical birds-mix, and the same goes for the human eye. You just don't know where to look in this dazzling print. The pictures were taken on a rather dark afternoon, the flash went off resulting in slightly washed out colours, in real life the fabric is vibrant!

The fabric is a cotton/viscose mix, the pattern is Vogue 8379, a classic wrap dress I made two years ago in solid blue.

What I like best about this pattern are the diagonal soft pleats coming from the waist. They provide nice shaping, releasing extra fabric at the bust without messing with the neckline.

Because of this feature it is gently skimming the curves, which on me is a better look than wrap dresses with a large amount of negative ease at the bust. 

The pattern comes with two sleeve variations: a short sleeve and bracelet length with cuffs. I was short on fabric so the cuffs weren't an option. Without cuffs the sleeves looked a bit wide so I narrowed them below the armscye and shortened the sleeves till just below the elbow.

The fabric had been in my stash for over a year and I knew I would not be able to buy extra in case of emergency. It was very slippery and during an overlocker test run it didn't behave very well, making me think the sewing machine was the safer option.

The instructions mentioned double-stitched seams. Stich along the seam line, stitch again 1/4"(6mm) away in seam allowance; trim close to the second stitching. This results in seams that at first glance look like French seams, but without the bulk coming from the extra fold. I had never used it before, but it looks really good.

I left out the facings, as I knew from the first time I used this pattern that there was no way to let them stay inside.

Neckline turned under and stitched

When I read Debbie's review of the Cashmerette Appleton wrap dress over at Stitches and seams I made a note of her brilliant idea to interface the ties and copied it for this dress. Works really well!

Speaking of the ties: they ended up really short. Of course this may have something to do with the state of my waistline, but that should have been taken care of by sewing up the correct size. Right? When I checked the pattern I noticed a grading issue. Only half of the difference in waist size was added to the next size up. Which would of course be correct if the ties were knotted at the back. But when you tie it as in the envelope drawing, the right tie goes all the way around the waist and the left tie about three quarters. With a difference of 33 cm/13" between the smallest and the largest size this is rapidly adding up, so check it! Adding to an already finished tie is no fun. Ask me how I know ;)

I am very pleased with this dress that is putting a smile on my face everytime I see it. I'm already planning a next version! 

That's about it. As I mentioned a few days ago this dress was inspired by Jungle January, and although finished in time, due to jungle weather conditions it was only ready to join the big parade on the fourth day of Ferocious February.

Thanks to Anne of Pretty Grievances for hosting another fabulous Jungle January! This one is for you Anne, a salute from the exotic woodpecker that is now residing on my right upper arm. Beep beep!