I’ve had this pattern (Burda 7949) on my mind for a long time and it was just a matter of finding the right materials. Initially, I thought the pattern was a bit dull, but the more I looked at it online and at the store the more I began to see this wonderful retro vibe. Something about it seemed to tickle a certain Victorian novelty mixed with something else. It could be the paneled waste line that made me think of corsets or the high Empress level bust line. Eying it from another angle also makes me think of 50’s house wives for some reason too. So many charms.

I was also torn as to whether or not to add sleeves or whether to make a little bolero jacket to go with the dress in the event that I didn’t add sleeves and such. Since finding a nice bolero jacket pattern seemed damned near impossible (I’ve decided I’ll soon just draft my own) I added sleeves to the dress from Burda Pattern 7831. Giant rick rack was utilized ‘round the hemline too as well as an improvised band of bias tape as a spring green underline of sorts.

My bound consort took these photos and managed to convince me to model too. He’s a great photographer, that Vin Breau, and every once in a while he actually gets me to let him photograph one of my creations, pulling me and the creation out into the sweet sunshine of a beautiful day for a rare photo op out of doors.

find this dress at pixxxiepieandposie.etsy.com and more pictures can be seen on my Flickr profile page too!