Side-cinch Maxi

I found the inspiration for this maxi with a difference in this Lululemon dress. I was however slightly bummed that someone clever and witty named it the 'It's A Cinch Dress', stealing the perfect would-be blog post title. Oh well, I forgive them and give thanks for the inspiration behind my new spring / summer / autumn / winter maxi. It's winter here, albeit mild and mostly ignorable, so I've been wearing it with a blazer and some boots but come summer I'll be donning strappy sandals and hopefully longer, slightly less temperamental hair. Multi-seasonal? Very wearable? Check and check.

So maybe you recognize this pattern from here, it's the Mission Maxi transformed with a really simple mod. After studying the Lululemon number, squinty eyed, I decided surely it couldn't be that hard to add a cinched side? The seam allowance for the Mission Maxi is a scant 3/8", so I kept that around the bust but then widened to 5/8 " from the waist down to allow room for the allowances to become a casing for the drawstrings. After sewing the front and back side seams of the dress, I pressed the seam allowances open, then sewed them flat against the dress 4/8" either side of the side seams, starting from thigh height down to the hem, to make the casing. As for sense, just holler if I'm not making any. We can try diagrams.

For the actual drawstrings I was going to use some plain navy cotton cording but it all looked a bit home-eccy. But then I had the idea to make the drawstrings out of the actual dress fabric so I used the bias pattern piece included to make the drawstrings. I knotted the ends several times and added some little brass stoppers found at my new place of work (more on this soon). It seems sometimes the smallest details can really lift a hand-made garment.

Sometimes a girl just needs a little tribal in her life. There's no telling when and where the urge will strike. Just know it will. Since interesting knit prints are a rare breed, when I came across this beautiful cream and navy jersey here, I snapped up two yards. This pattern used about 1.5 so there's still enough for say, some tribal leggings. I decided to use the wrong side of the fabric because the cream tones on the right side, were more yellow and looked a little sickly next to my 'winter complexion'. In creating a very-wearable wardrobe I am always thinking about color. Some make me feel joyous and others completely flat.

From the back + un-tamable mane...

....and the side. I can forsee another side cinched maxi in the not too distant future. And some hairspray.

Next stop: Peplum top.