So, I am by no means an expert sewer. I didn’t go to “design school”. I did take lessons, but I definitely still have a lot to learn. Anytime I am trying to do something new or learn a “new to me technique”, I’m usually interested in the fastest and easiest way to get it done. Like my dad always says, “work smarter not harder”, and if that means accomplishing something the “wrong” way I’m all for it as long as it gives me the results I’m looking for.
However, that was not how it went with this dress. First of all, I love this dress. It turned out great, but I spent more time on this than I do with most of my projects all because I had to figure out how to alter a bodice.
Now let’s back up. I am horrible with math & numbers, and fractions – FORGET it! I suck truly and completely at them. When you like to sew as much as I do this can be a problem. Adding and subtracting fractions is my nightmare.
I knew I was most likely going to have to alter the bodice. This is a vintage pattern so the proportions and sizing are different than modern sewing patterns. So, I started by making a muslin of the dress.
This is something I almost always do. It takes time but I really hate cutting my fabric only to realize it doesn’t fit right and I don’t have enough fabric to fix it. So, I made the muslin and the bodice was too short, the armpits were to tight, and the darts made me look like I was VERY cold. Think Anne Hathaway at the Oscars.
I knew I could lengthen the bodice with too much trouble but I needed to do some research for the arm holes and bust darts. I’ll break this down into each separate part.
How to Alter a Bodice – Lowering the Arm Holes
The more I started to read about how to do this the more discouraged I became. It seemed like it was going to be a real pain in the ass if we’re being honest. Most of the videos I watched and articles I read involved resizing the entire pattern piece which seemed extreme. All I wanted to do was adjust the size of the arm hole. See what I mean here? I want to do the least amount of work to accomplish my task and measuring and adjusting the entire top was not part of my game plan. I’m sure other “professional” seamstresses will tell me I’m doing it wrong, but, to each their own.
French Curve
It wasn’t until I found this video that gave me the answer I was looking for. It’s called a French curve, or in the video a hip curve. It’s a ruler that is designed to help draw smooth curves. All I had to do was decide how much lower I wanted to make the arm hole. After a few tries I ended up lowering it 7/8″. All you need to do is measure down from the top edge of the lower side of the arm hole and make a mark. Then you use the French curve to re-draw the new arm hole. Watch the video to see the exact process.
How to Alter a Bodice – Pointy Bust Darts
Another thing I learned while making this dress pertains to bust darts. Most of the time bust darts tend to be long and narrow. However, because this dress has an empire waist, which means the bodice is very short, the darts then become short and wide. Because of this, once the darts are sewn the look is very pointy, again think Anne Hathaway in her pink Oscar dress. So now I had to figure out how to make them not pointy.
Enter the curved dart. It really is amazing what you can find on the internet. A simple search showed me how to sew the dart with a curve at the top to make it look more round and natural, not like Madge in her good pointy cone bra.
Okay two issues down one to go…are you still with me?
How to Alter a Bodice – Adding Additional Length
The last thing I had to do was add some length to bodice. I didn’t need that much just enough for the seam allowance so I added 5/8″. Because of the darts I couldn’t just draw a straight line along the bottom of the bodice. I had to account for the curve of the darts. So, I pulled out my French curve and adjusted accordingly. This ruler is seriously my new favorite tool. I don’t know how I managed this long without one.
A Vintage Glam Dress
I really do love how this dress turned out. I used this vintage Butterick pattern for the bodice and the skirt and this pattern for the ruffle. I know, I know I put ruffles on everything. It’s just how I roll.
I love the vintage vibe of this dress. It feels very Slim Aarons. I made this dress last summer and I get the same vintage vibes whenever I wear it.
The gold bag makes the outfit. I bought it in Palm Spring at a great vintage store called The Fine Art of Design. I stop by every year on my annual Palm Springs girls trip. It’s a great little bag that you could use almost anywhere. Clearly, it’s a vintage bag because it’s very small and I can’t fit my phone in it. #moderndayfashionproblems.
My anniversary is in a few weeks and the Hubs and I are going out to dinner. I’m definitely going to wear this dress and carry the bag. I guess he’ll have to put my phone in his pocket.
Thanks for reading! Hope you are off to a great week.
Photos by Chloejane Photo + Film