autumn sewing: Butterick 6621

Hi! I have had a hell of a week. We were without hot water for ten days (TEN) thanks to a series of increasingly farcical engineering misadventures that left me waiting at home every day for a phone call or unexpected visit that never came. It was rubbish. But on the plus side, I got a LOT of sewing done. Not only did I get both the dress and the trousers done, I also made an entire other shirt for Patrick. It's a lot better than the first one. But for now, dress time!

I've been considering B6621 for ages. I saw several awesome versions on other people and was waiting for the pattern to come out here, which is how I discovered that Americans get Big 4 patterns in smaller collections on a regular basis while we just get a giant pattern dump a few times a year. By the time it was available here it was getting too warm for this kind of dress, so I decided to put it off til the autumn. I was really excited about it though - three different variations on waist details without actually having a waist seam, and sometimes no waist seam is exactly what I want.

For my first attempt I decided to go with View B in the black and pink sweater knit from my Walthamstow post. The sweater knit is so soft and snuggly that I wanted to maximise my chances of at least being able to wear it around the house if I wasn't keen on the finished dress. Fortunately it turns out I am keen on it, and it's going to be a real workhorse dress as the days get colder.

I cut a 16 on the top (with a 2.5cm cut-on FBA) and a 20 in the skirt, and this is perfect for me. It doesn't cling but it's still nicely close-fitting. Obviously I also hacked five inches off the skirt because it's me and I do that. I didn't hate it full-length but I definitely wouldn't have worn it very often. I also cut the back as one piece because I didn't want to chop up the print. I'm really into how the back looks in this fabric and I'm glad I chose to do it this way.

The waist ties are single-layer and just hemmed, so the wrong side of the fabric can be visible. I considered doubling up but decided it would be too heavy. In future I absolutely would double them up as it's basically impossible to arrange the ties so that the entire wrong side is hidden. However, going for the single layer did mean I could copy the extremely wang-like diagrams.

Pictured: wang diagram. It amused me more than it should.

Next time I make this dress I'll probably substitute a different neckline. I don't hate the way it looks but I really don't like things touching my neck. If I have enough scraps left over I might even cut this neckband out and scoop the whole thing a little bit. Not much, just enough that I won't be able to feel it on my throat when I'm slouching around on the sofa.

I will be making more of these, and unusually I will probably try all of the views in the envelope. I definitely want to have a go at the twist version, as it's a detail I've seen in a few patterns but never had the confidence to go for (it's about a fifty-fifty shot of whether it would conceal or highlight my stomach). Now that I own it I'd like to try it out!

Next up: I'll be in France next week with some friends, so the Pietra post will come in two weeks' time. I really want to write about the shirt but I think I need to space out the Patrick posts a little. 

Butterick 6621 dress

Fabric: Sweater knit from Fabric Store in Walthamstow (possibly RIP? It was looking very depleted and sad last time I went there)
Cost: £4
Pattern details: Pullover jersey dresses with twist front, faux wrap or waist ties
Size: 16 top with FBA, 20 hips
Alterations: Back panel cut on the fold, 1 inch FBA, five inches taken off the skirt
Would make again/would recommend: Yes/Yes