velosews

Minerva make – Cocktails

It’s always party/cocktail time in the lead up to Christmas so a new party frock using a great John Kaldor print from Minerva Crafts and Vogue 8949 fits the bill.

‘Ta dah’ hands
 The party dress kit from Minerva Crafts includes the pattern, fabric, lining and zipper.
The John Kaldor fabric is soft with a slight sheen. It’s easy to sew and lovely to wear.
Vogue 8949 is lined and you can also interline the pattern pieces for a more couture finish.
I didn’t test this pattern. I did my pattern changes on the pattern tissue and then made this dress using 10 at the top and 12 on the waist and hips. The tech notes are here.

Construction challenge
While I was working on the skirt I have a kerfuffle moment with the centre front panel.
This was my sewing dilemma.
I made sure the centre front panel lined up with the bodice and waistband.
Sam made the dots line up beautifully on her posh frock earlier this year. She’s really clever.
Then I kept wondering what I could do about it.

And then the back dots lined up in a way but the pieces lined up perfectly.

The pieces lined up beautifully and I stressed about the dots.
And I stressed about the print. From the view of everyone non-sewer that has seen this dress, they loved this.
The sewn in peplum feature is really pretty.
My hems are always lower at the centre back.

So I wore this dress to dinner on the weekend and loved it. On a warm night, catching up with friends, this dress is a winner with our warm weather. I can’t hold a grudge when this dress feels lovely and fits so well.

As they say, “if it fits, wear it!” Enjoy the festive season everyone.

34 comments

  1. Great dress, and I love the fabric! Only the most picky sewists would notice or mention the dots 😉 The flattering style draws all the attention it deserves. BTW you are looking amazing, all that training is really working for you!

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  2. This looks fantastic Maria. This colourway is gorgeous and suits you so well. Those big dots are really hard to line up aren't they? I still think it was more luck than judgement that mine lined up.

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  8. Wow, it looks so fun and perfectly fitted. I sort of think people go overboard with the matching stuff. I actually like the seam lines and this way they are shown off nicely.

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  9. Super cute…this dress fits you like a glove and looks really great. I wouldn't worry about the spot matching…life is WAY to short, and after a few holiday champers they may even line up for you.

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  20. I always find it tricky to decide whether to match on prints with this sort of scale and pattern, like you say I don't think anyone else even notices. Great print and colours, I can see this working with a jacket and boots as well, a multiseasonal cocktail dress!

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