I recently acquired this quilting cotton from a local quilt shop, and I immediately knew that I had to make a 50's styled dress out of it. If you know me well, you will probably know that cotton dresses are an absolute staple in my wardrobe-- rain or shine, cotton dresses are my favourite. This is why I love using quilting cotton so much. I find cotton so easy to cut out and sew, and I could spend hours looking through the cute patterns that are available.
What I loved the most about this quilting cotton is that it has an almost exact image of my hand crank sewing machine on it. Hand crank sewing machines are not common to see-- they weren't actually made for very long, since treadle machines are so much easier to use because they allow you to use both hands for guiding. The reason why I wanted a hand crank so badly is because they are easy to move, and since I am currently living on residence at my university, ease of movement is the most important thing for my sewing supplies at the moment. The idea of matching my sewing machine was so exciting that I couldn't walk away without a few meters.
This pattern is a Vintage Vogue that I got on sale along with a few others last week. Vintage Vogue patterns can be a bit difficult and their instructions can be confusing to beginners, but if you love unique designs and vintage styles I would highly recommend them. I have found that the sizing and proportions fit me much better than many modern patterns (so many modern ones are way to big for me at the bust, so I constantly have to make major adjustments. These vintage ones often fit me without any adjustments whatsoever!), and they include really incredible details that modern clothing just doesn't have. For example, this pattern gives you the option of adding a muslin skirt stiffener that works as a sort of lining in the skirt of the dress. It also has instructions for more traditional finishing techniques that make the inside of the dress look like an original!
The only change I made to this pattern was sewing the front together to make it a faux-shirt dress and adding a zipper to the center back seam instead. This was only because of personal preference, since I am not a huge fan of button closures on dresses, and I actually really enjoy putting in zippers.
Are you also a quilting cotton lover? Or do you prefer fancier fabrics to sew with?
Thanks for reading!
~Katherine
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