hello! welcome to those of you who are following along on the Good Hair Day blog hop! Good Hair Day, for those who don’t yet know, is the latest fabric collection from my textile designer friend Kim Andersson. i’m happy to be a co-host of the Hop today, and show you the dress i made for it. plus i’ll tell you how you can make one yourself!
as soon as i saw this Bobby Pins print, i knew it was the one for me (though i’m also enamored with the Braids…), since bobby pins are key components to my own good hair days, and i pictured it in a sweet summery sleeveless number. the fact that i was shoveling snow and breaking up ice in the chickens’ water dish at 8am this morning only make this jaunty warm-weather frock look even more appealing!
this dress is made using the essential shift dress pattern from my Master Pattern Drafting workshop*. once you have the basic pattern, three easy modifications are all you need to whip up your own version and start daydreaming of Spring…
the first modification is to add flare to the pattern, which i thoroughly explain in Part 3, Chapter 8, the one titled “Flared dress modification with elastic waist” (only you won’t be adding the elastic waist, although you could, and that’d be cute too!).
next you’ll be creating a contrasting-fabric contoured yoke pattern piece. i used the same seam line front + back, but you could make them different, or only add the yoke in front. details on this simple drafting are found in Part 3 Chapter 9, titled “Gathered Yoke Modification” (and again, more design options! i didn’t gather the body into the yoke here, but that’s another way you could go…). the only slight change is that you’ll make a gently curved line instead of straight. easy peasy!
and the final mod is to add cutaway pockets (aka the Cal Patch signature pockets) to your side seams, with a contrast facing peeking through. i show you how to make these pockets on a skirt in Part 3 Chapter 3, “Modifying the Skirt Pattern”, and the process is the same for a dress. you’ll just be drawing the pocket opening and pocket bag so that top and bottom connect with the side seam, rather than the waist line. i also do a version of this pocket style in my book, on the Kathy Dress.
oh, and before i forget: leave a comment below to be entered to win a Charm Pack of all the Good Hair Day prints! and hop around all the other stops on the tour for more chances to win, plus two chances to win Fat Quarter bundles on Kim’s and Windham’s blogs (links to both + the whole Hop schedule at the start of this post). i’ll randomly choose a winner on January 20th.
hope YOU’RE having a good hair day!
*note: if you’ve just blog-hopped over here for the first time, i teach pattern drafting, sewing and crochet online workshops via Creativebug. it’s very inexpensive to subscribe, which gains you access to ALL the amazing classes, with expert teachers you’re probably already a fan of! you can get a free 2-week trial to check it out, and just so you know, all Creativebug links on my site are affiliate links. thanks!
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