New Year....New Look...!

I have been contemplating this for a long time; posting something I made online. It's quite daunting, as I just don't know what to expect. I suppose I'll only find out once I do it! I'm supposed to be keeping up on the whole blog-maintenance thing, so maybe some pictures will brighten it up...!
I made this dress using New Look pattern 6699, which I got on sale in Dublin.

When I got it, I thought I'd like to make the "M" skirt (the wider, flowy one), but I ended up hanging onto the pattern for a while and coming back to it. There is an option for a lace overlay dress, and since I'd never made anything with lace before, I decided I'd like to try it. Unfortunately, they warn you that the lace only works in the narrow skirt, so that's why I made the slimmer skirt. I used a very plain white cotton, and a lilac lace for the overlay. Both of these were on sale in the Woollen Mills in Dublin, I spent €5 on material overall, and still have lots left. I chose the G+J+N combination with, obviously, the lace overlay.

I was quite pleased with how it turned out. This is the second dress I've ever made from a pattern, and was good fun to put together. The instructions in the pattern were very simple to follow, once I could keep track of the combinations.

There are alot of things I like about the dress, and the only things I don't like about it are small things. One being that I don't wear dresses in this style normally, I'd usually have a much looser skirt, but that's my own personal preference and I knew what i was making, so I wasn't too disappointed with it. Also, I had trouble with the zip when I was putting it in, but again, this is down to my lack of experience and knowledge rather than a flaw in the pattern. My zip went kind of bumpy and I had to take it out and re-insert it about three times. It was only in the bottom half of the zip though, the top fit perfectly, I just kept taking the dress in a little more each time i re-inserted the zip. eventually, I got to the stage where I was happy enough with it, so I stopped messing around.

I managed to even get the lining in, which was a pleasant surprise! :) I was really pleased with that, since my last attempt at a dress also had a lining, that didn't go so well! Being a novice, everything I make is a learning curve; one I'm thoroughly enjoying. I find myself Googling certain techniques to learn how to apply them. I don't think I would make this pattern again, only because I have learned all I can from it, and I like to move on and do other things, trying to better my skill. That said, I would certainly recommend it. It's a very simple pattern which yields great results, even for complete beginners.

Onto the next pattern....! :)