Do you believe in second chances? I mean come on, who doesn’t love a comeback? Robert Downey Jr., Martha Stewart…I mean even Brittany managed to make a comeback, well sort of. Anyway, this turquoise gingham dress is my sewing version of a comeback. I managed to resurrect an ill fitting skirt and turned into a cute summer frock.
Gingham fabric is summer staple if there ever was one. This easily recognizable fabric is comfortable, easy to wear and comes in a million different colors perfect for summer. I’m currently working on a pink gingham mini skirt, and a purple gingham wrap dress so stay tuned for those.
This turquoise gingham dress started out as a skirt. I made the skirt a few summers ago when I was learning to sew, and it just didn’t fit right. So instead of fixing it I shoved it in my fabric stash and forgot about it.
While working on my second attempt to learn how to make a bodice I came across this gingham fabric. Along with the fabric was the skirt I had made. That is where my comeback idea began to take place.
Bodice Pattern – Turquoise Gingham Dress
The bodice pattern I used turned out very cute. I bought here on Etsy. I also bought this one from the same shop.
Similar to my blue and white palm print dress, this bodice too me a long time to make, but it was worth the work. It also didn’t help that I purchased the pattern from a shop in the UK and needed to print the pattern on size A4 paper. Of course I didn’t realize it until after I made a muslin and could’t understand why it didn’t fit. #readthedirections
The pattern didn’t include straps, but I added my own which was easy enough. I didn’t make them adjustable on this dress just ties.
Most “seasoned” sewing enthusiasts will tell you that you have to use boning when making a bodice. This isn’t always true. I attempted to use boning in a bodice I make last summer and it was really frustrating. I’ll save the gory details, but it was a total pain in the A.
The fabric was so thin not only did I have to line it, but it definitely needed some extra support. Otherwise I would be spending all my time pulling the top of the dress up. So instead of going the boning route, I ended up using shape flex to reinforce the gingham fabric and light weight interfacing for the lining. It worked great! It gives the bodice structure without making it too stiff. And because there is no boning in it you feel like your getting poked in the boob all the time. Win Win!
Skirt Pattern – Turquoise Gingham Dress
As I mentioned above I made this skirt a few summers ago. It’s my favorite circle skirt pattern Simplicity 1200. When I found it I thought “perfect I’ll just make a bodice and attach it to the skirt.” Boom! cute new dress in no time! Boy was I wrong, my “comeback project was a little more involved than that. The skirt needed to be lined, which was a total pain, and that meant removing the zipper and sewing it back in after I lined it. So my initial thought of “oh this is going to be easy” was wrong.
However, after all the changes to the skirt I attached the bodice and it looks great! I also added some white piping around the waist to make it stand out.
I’m really getting into the whole design your own dress thing. I love the idea of mixing and matching a bodice and a skirt. I just purchased this skirt pattern from etsy and can’t wait to figure out what style bodice I’m going to use.
Styling
I kept the styling simple with a pair of white block heeled sandals and a wicker clutch both from J.Crew, and of course my cruiser. I bought it a few years ago at Target. Similar options here and here.
Thanks for reading! Hope you’re having a good week.
Photos by – Chloejane Photo + Film