Tuesday, April 15, 2008

My take on the shirt dress

Finally, my shirt dress is done! I originally intended to use this pattern, Simplicity 4171, to knock off a cute corduroy shirt dress I saw in Anthropologie during the winter. Then, spring slowly sprung and my thoughts turned instead to warm weather dresses.

Does anyone recognize the fabric? I am slightly (but not really) scared that when I wear this out in public someone will think, "I have that same fabric on my bed at home." I used sheets that I got on clearance at Target about a month ago. I loved the print and couldn't pass up the price. It's actually a little bit too stiff to be a comfortable sheet in my opinion. It's perfect for this dress though.

The pattern is well drafted and went together easily. I cut my usual smaller size at the top and graded out a few sizes near the hip area. I'm really happy with the fit. I wanted clean lines for this dress so I opted to shorten the three quarter length sleeve rather than use the puffy short sleeve option the pattern comes with. I feel very Boden like wearing this dress, especially when I pair it with my purple mary janes. (That's a good thing.)

21 comments:

kerri said...

Great job on the new shirt dress, so pretty! Love the fabric, love the little ties and those shoes make a perfect outfit.

And I don't think anyone would notice that it might look like their sheets.

Anonymous said...

Excellent dress. It fits you perfectly! The purple is a great spring color.

kathryn said...

Very Boden-like, and very cute Stephanie! I loved that you used a sheet for the fabric--good idea, especially for a summer dress!

loopylulu said...

Very cute, I've been looking for a good shirt dress pattern and this one seemed to work really well for you. I'll have to pick it up at the next sale.

Adrienne said...

Love Boden!! I also love your dress! Very cute!

Lori said...

Very cute dress, the fabric is perfect for the style.

Ruth said...

I like it!

Kelly said...

adorable! i am sure you'll spark a double take from at least one person with the sheets! -kb

Anonymous said...

what a great dress. I'm so wishing I could sew something like that. Maybe some day.

Christina said...

Hey, fabric is fabric! Your dress is perfect for welcoming the warm weather.

Anonymous said...

I love the dress with the shoes. So inspiring, and perfect for spring. You can wear that out, to work, etc. What a great dress and a great fit.

African Kelli said...

Heck yes it is a good thing. I'd go so far as to say it is a great thing! Wow. Just beautiful.

Philigry said...

very, very nice dress! love it!

katherine h said...

I love the dress and I love your purple mary janes. Great job of fitting!

Raesha D said...

Absolutely beautiful....you better lock up those shoes cause I might just come steal them from you:)

muralimanohar said...

The fit is awesome! I am scared to start a shirtdress, cause I don't want to waste the effort on a weirdly fitted wadder, lol.

It looks great on you!

Rozan said...

That dress is fab! and it looks great on you!

Erin said...

I love that you used sheets. The fabric is beautiful and looks great as a shirt dress. You did a beautiful job.

beki said...

That is so cute! I had that pattern on my want list, but it's unfortunately out of print. I wish I had picked up last summer!!

Beth said...

The dress looks great! I've been wanting to make a shirt dress for ages now.

melissa said...

That's a brilliant dress! I love the color and design.