Cake Tiramisu #1 in modern floral-ish print
Let's talk about this Cake Tiramisu pattern. It has been all the rage in the local Austin sewing circle I meet with monthly, and in just the past month, I've seen it on three completely different body types, and thought it was flattering on all three. So when my New Sewing Twin sewed it up and looked super-cute in it, and offered to pass the cut pattern to me, I said yes!
As the pattern was cut, I had to guess at one specific pattern modification, on the front bodice piece. My New Sewing Twin had taken out some length on this piece, and my instinct said I needed to add some back in, so I added 2" length.
My New Sewing Twin mentioned that she didn't have to gather the bottom of the bodice piece at all under the bust, but when I looked at the pattern, I noticed something funny: the width at the bottom of the front bodice was about 1.5" shorter than the width at the top of the front midriff (a.k.a. where these two pieces are sewn together, they are different widths). The night I traced the pattern, I was tired and thought maybe I needed to look at it again later. I thought maybe I had mis-marked the pattern pieces, but nope. Sure enough, when I sewed the pieces together, the front of the dress looked like this:
I just trimmed off that excess, and it fit just fine.
Now that you can see the fabric up close, maybe it looks like a modern floral print, maybe not? I think it is. I don't sew knits often, but I had a 2-yard cut of a very thin cotton interlock, from a fabric swap, that was asking to be used. Turns out I needed less than 1 1/2 yards for this dress, and maybe could have gotten away with less if I spent more time on layout. My new machine has such a beautifully stretchy stretch stitch that had me saying "wow" the whole time I sewed.
The skirt is a half circle, so it's got some swing to it. The pattern is a breeze -- I think it took maybe 3 hours to sew, but it might be closer to 2. I can't tell you what a difference it made to not have to gather and align under the bust! I'd like to make this again using this delicious black organic cotton / lycra jersey, but I'd like your feedback on a couple of things first:
There's a little fold of fabric at the bust, starting at the armhole. I realize this is probably due to the dolman sleeve style, but wonder I should be making some sort of alteration? Was this even noticeable before I mentioned it?
I didn't make a petite alteration at the midriff, though I was tempted to do so. Do you think the skirt hits at the right place? Would it improve the look to pull that skirt up 1/2" or 1"?
The skirt falls about 2" below my knee. Does this look frumpy? I kind of like how it feels to have the extra coverage with such a full and swingy skirt, but I don't need frumpy.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts! And thanks to my new sewing twin for sharing the pattern love!
