I can’t say enough good about this sundress. It is Simplicity S9141. Here is a link to the pattern. Simplicity S9141 It is the perfect summer dress and my style completely. I love bohemian style dresses, skirts, tops, and the more tiers the better. When I bought this pattern, I thought, okay, this is going to be really easy. There were only a few pattern pieces, and I was like “Yes!” But when I got into creating the dress, although it was simple, honestly, it was a lot of work. Very time consuming for me, but worth it.
This pattern works with several different kinds of fabric, especially cotton. I used a cotton fabric I purchased form Hobby Lobby this year that I intended to use for pillowcases, but changed my mind. If you look very closely you can see the peacocks in the fabric, lots of them, and that is why I chose this fabric, for the colors and the peacocks. It’s a fun print. But this is such a cute dress, you could get a little fancier with the fabric and use lace, [that would be a little difficult but super cute], a jersey knit, any type of woven, especially rayon for the flow, and you could get really creative with the prints. An African print would be super cute. (Hmmmmm, that’s an idea).
Changes I made to the pattern and observations. Although the pattern does not show a top, you could easily just cut the top pieces, add the straps and elastic and make a really super cute top as well to be worn with jeans or even leggings, depending on the length. You could even cut the length of the top or balloon it at the bottom. Too many options. Adding pockets is also another great option. And I can also see this in a velvet for fall/winter. On that same note, you could leave off the last tier and make the dress a little shorter.
There were only two things about the pattern that I did not like. Not really a complaint, but an observation. I did not care for using binding tape for the elastic casings on the bodice which was the procedure in the directions.. Instead, I just cut a piece of fabric the same size as the bodice piece, a different fabric than the dress, and used that to create the casings for the dress. This looked really good, but the downside is it really added some weight to the dress.
The other issue was the straps. I like the length of them, but honestly, I could not keep them from falling off of my shoulders. I will probably not make tie up straps for the next dress I make, but will instead make straps you just pull on your shoulders. I hope that will work better.
In summary, though this dress was a lot of work (i.e. all the elastic weaving in and out). I would, and have made it again. I made it again immediately after finishing this one. I like it that much! (I will post it too.) I will also make it again as a top. I’ve got some serious sewing to do.
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