Dressy Dress Dress, I Made My First Dress!

Guys look, I made a dress!

Not just one dress though but one of those infinity or convertible dresses!  I found a fantastic tutorial here and thought I'd show you a couple of the variations I've found that work well followed by a couple tips I learned along the way.  

I apologize for the terrible lighting, I must have tried taking pictures in three different parts of our apartment before finding something that kind of worked.  I've only had the dress for about a week and a half but have already worn it a handful of times in a handful of ways, it's definitely a dress that takes practice though!  So what did I learn?

Tips & Tricks:

• I altered the original pattern just slightly as I wanted an empire waist so took measurements just below my bust instead of my waist and adjusted the length of the skirt from there.
• The original pattern here has a bandeau top attached which I did use but failed to take into account that I placed the seam directly in the center and so it looked awkward with most variations of the dress.  I ended up converting an old tank top into a makeshift bandeau top which I'll post a tutorial for next week.
• The fabric I used was 50% cotton 50% polyester as I was concerned that the full polyester ones would be see-through.  The cotton does make the dress a bit heavier but I've not yet found a way in which that poses a problem when tying it.
• I was able to sew all of the pieces together while retaining the stretch by using a zig-zag stitch which I practiced on a scrap piece of fabric adjusting the stretch/tension until it didn't pull awkwardly while still allowing for some stretch.
• When tying the dress work to keep each strap from bunching as this helps the dress stay in place much better, don't be afraid to try one style a couple of times until it feel secure!
• I've had a really hard time finding directions online that have a diagram of how to tie the dress rather than a video that shows you the whole process in 7 seconds.  It seems to help if you add the terms "step by step" to your search but if any of you know of places to find diagrams I'd love some suggestions!
• Oh, and the best part about this dress?  The whole thing can be made in an afternoon and without the need for a dress form!

Thanks for reading!