A no-wind dress

A few weeks ago I made up McCall's 6745, in the halter dress view. I don't usually make halter styles, not because of the open back (although those can be hard to fit), but because usually they are too cleavagey in front. This one didn't look too low on the envelope, though, so I gave it a try.

I am very happy with the results!

 I got this print at a really yucky ARC thrift store on Colfax (those of you live in Denver, the phrase "East Colfax" says it all).  It was half off day and I got this fabric for $2. There was about 8 yards of it!! AND, it's vintage SILK!! At least it has silk in it. By the way, you can tell a fabric is vintage when it comes in a 35" width. Modern fabrics come in 45" or 55" or 60". This pattern requires a crazy amount of fabric (5 yards if you self-line the bodice) so I pulled this fabric for it because it's the only chunk I had enough of. Most of that yardage is in this super full pleated skirt! No wearing this on windy days!! ;)

 The fit is perfect for me right out of the package, which is good, because I wasn't in the mood to make a muslin. I'm lucky it worked out because I would have been bummed to waste this fabric.

Here is a close up of the piping and the print:

I went to two stores for matching piping. JoAnn's actually had this color--could it BE more perfect (extra points if you read that in Chandler's voice :) but it was clearanced out and they only had one package. I needed two! So I grabbed the matching bias tape and a couple yards of cording and made my own to supplement. I do have some tricks for applying piping. Probably nothing that's not out there on the Internet already, but I would be happy to put together a post on that if anyone expresses interest in the comments. I think piping adds so much, I'd like to experiment more with it.

I think this will make a great July 4th dress!! And maybe I'll wear it on our anniversary date too. Hopefully, I'll have a few more occasions to wear this before Summer is over :)

Speaking of being in no mood for muslins, I began this pattern last night without one. I lucked out again, because I think the fit is working out. Whew! It's the same Fashion Star line that I just made the black lace shorts out of, so I was pretty confident it would be a similar fit. Maybe I'm naive, haha.