Chambray Summer Ruffle Dress

Despite posting this on a very rainy day at the end of September there was a time this year that I was actually able to wear this dress! Dresses seem to be one of the most popular items of clothing to make but they have never been something that I have made regularly. This is mainly due to the fact that dresses aren't a part of my everyday wardrobe and so I haven't ever had much need to make one, exept for a specific occasion such as my prom dress. However, this year I was determined to make myself a summer dress. My only aim was for it to be light and not too fitted to be perfect for hot weather.

I drafted a very simple cami-style bodice with thin straps and then attatched two layers of gathers to create the skirt. I don't think I could have created an easier design! It's exactly what I had in mind though, perfect for heatwaves. I really love the ruffles that the skirt creates but I was careful not to over-gather the fabric and I'm pleased with the volume of the final skirt. The bodice is probably a bit too big despite wanting a loose fit but seeing as it's a dress to be worn on holiday it doesn't really bother me enough to go back and change it.

I actually made this dress about three days before leaving to go on holiday, when I finally came to the conclusion that going on a summer holiday without a summer dress was on the route to ruining my carefully curated handmade holiday wardrobe! The lack of time meant that I wouldn't be able to buy any more fabric or purchase a pattern. I know I could have bought a PDF, but I much prefer printed patterns and I prefer drafting my own patterns even more. So the lack of pattern didn't really pose a problem but the lack of fabric initially did.

I don't really have any suitable fabrics for a dress stashed away as I tend to buy fabrics with stretch and try not to keep farbics in my stash for too long. The idea of having enough fabric leftover from another project seemed far-fetched, but I had a look through some of my fabric leftovers and managed to find the perfect thing! I rarely buy or ask for more fabric than I need for a project but sewing plans have a tendency of changing, meaning that sometimes fabric is leftover or more needs to be purchased at the last minute. In the case of my chambray top the situation was the former and I ended up using less fabric than I had initially intended as my plans changed. This meant that I just (and I mean just!) about had enough of this lovely chambray farbic leftover from my top to squeeze out this dress.

Luckily, I didn't want the ruffles to be overly volumous as I didn't have enough fabric to gather them any more even if I had wanted more gathers. I really used every last scrap of fabric (which is a really satisfying I always find!). The lack of fabric did mean that there is a seam in the centre back of one of the ruffles where I had to sew two pieces of fabric together but it really doesn't bother me that much - especially as I can't actually see that when I'm wearing the dress!