Imitating a Ready-Made Dress by Sewing

Antique Roses

by E. Kruger

This dress from the Australian Myers Store online store, is so pretty and fresh looking with the white background and the light pink and dark pink rose print. I especially like the band at the waist made of the same fabric, only with more of the white, so that it looks like a belt.  The cost is well over a hundred dollars, and I was able to make the dress for abotu $15.00 which included zipper and thread and pattern. You can find similar patterns online at Butterick, McCalls, Simplicity.  These patterns are on sale every month at Joanne fabric stores across the U.S. I have friends overseas that I can send them to, and even with postage, it ends up being cheaper than purchasing the patterns there at whole price.  I must admit that in spite of the pleasure of making this dress, and the wonderful comfort of the cotton fabric, I would have liked to at least try the above dress on !

This fabric is from Shabby Fabrics and has similar colors as the ready-made dress. I may attempt to duplicate the dress in the above fabric, as I do not feel I quite did it this time.  Even if you pay $10.00 a yard, a dress like this can be made for far less than the retail price.  you need less than four yards of 45 inch fabric for this dress, so it can cost $30.00. However I think that is still too high, so I get my fabric at a discount using coupons at Joannes, or find the $2.50 a yard sales at Walmart.   If I had nowhere to buy fabric and needed it urgently, I would buy a new, low thread count sheet at a store near me.

I made my dress with less than four yards. I use the leftover pieces for headbands and hair bows or scrunchies. I've got word online from viewers that scrunchies are "out" but I am not going to pay any attention to it.

Using pieces from several patterns in my pattern collection, I tried to imitate this dress, altering it for my own needs by adding length and elbow length  sleeves. The fabric I used  is a soft cotton and  was from a fabric sale at Walmart.

I was not able to make that middle waist band that is attached to the original dress, shown above. To do that, you have to cut the band from the lower part of the bodices, and leave enough on the original bodice and the cut piece, for the seam. If you wish to make this, you would do well to cut a strip off the pattern piece and lay it on the fabric, leaving enough on each edge for the five eighth inch seam. Lay the band pattern piece on a section of the fabric that is more plain, to get the same effect as the original dress.

The neckline is square with rounded corners.

Click for larger views and then use your magnifier to look at the pleats.

The dress is easy to wear at home, since the skirt is close to the body and does not flair out much. It will not catch on anything, and as for bending and moving about, it covers well. 

More fabrics from Shabby Fabrics:

This fabric would make a pretty dress for wearing at home, in the same style which I have sewn.