Sorry for the hiatus from blogging, I have been busy sewing up a birthday dress for my friend’s flapper theme champagne birthday party. I must admit this project was a challenge for me because I had to decide on the style of the dress and I had to minimize body parts that she was self-conscious of – her upper arms, her stomach and her thighs. Right away,the flapper dress was off my list as a dress choice because the silhouette doesn’t flatter a curvy figure. My friend suggested a Chinese cheongsam which I advised against, since it’s a body conscious dress that would show the parts that she wanted to minimize. After hours of perusing through my stash of Burda, Patrones and Manequim magazines, I decided on this dress from the December 2011 issue of Burda magazine.
This dress is not an accurate historical portrayal of a dress from the 20s, but it has elements of the 20s that can be loosely interpreted for this period. I made it in a size 44 and these were the changes that I made:
- I lengthen the bodice by 1″ to accommodate her bust. In hindsight, I wish I didn’t make the adjustment because my friend wasn’t wearing a proper bra during the fitting, making the final garment a bit loose in the bodice.
- The waist area had too much ease, so I took in 1/2 inch from each side seam removing 2 inches in total.
- For modesty sake, I sewed the center front of the dress 2 inches up, so her cleavage won’t spill out.
- Being 5’2, wearing a mid-calf dress shortens the figure, so I shorten the dress above her knees .
The fabric used for the dress is a nondescript black poly-cotton fabric, which I later discovered to be extremely wrinkly almost like linen. The fabric was also a bit sheer so I flat-lined the garment with the self-fabric.
Overall, my friend was happy with the finish product and styled it wonderfully with a cute bob and a beret. I, on the other hand wished the fit were more perfect.
There I am with my friend, wearing my DIY flapper headdress.
The Sewing Fashionista 