It didn't start well.
I bought Ellie & Mac's Tres Belle wrap top drees pattern. A lot of indy designers have been extending their size range, and the pictures showed some ladies of a similar size to me. I decided to make a muslin of just the bodice, to see if it would work, before I committed to the dress.
It was a disaster.
I'm experienced enough now to not get disillusioned by this, but it did remind me of how I felt when I first tried to make an item of clothing (and then didn't try sewing clothes again for years).
I dug out my own cross over top pattern, made using my SureFit Designs body blueprint. I wanted to compare the pattern pieces to see whether I could make some adjustments to one of the other. As I contemplated the two patterns, I thought about options.
And I decided to put away the cross over front for now, and to make a princess seam blueprint instead. I've been thinking about doing this for a loooong time, I've just never been motivated enough.
I watched Glenda's videos on designing a princess seam, and decided to try one from the armscye. (I've done a princess seam from the shoulder when I made a jacket at Judith's Jacket Retreat) .
I also watched Glenda's video on sewing princess seams, and that was a real godsend. it made stitching the curved bit to the straight bit relatively simple.`
So, I made my pattern pieces, I quickly cut a muslin and stitched it together, and.... it wasn't bad at all. I kept the blueprint, and made another version with a lower neckline and a shorter shoulder seam. I made this in reasonable fabric, and it looked OK. I was pleased with it.
It's not finished. I need to do the neckband, and I need to hem it. I did put sleeves in though, so I could test the whole pattern before moving on.
And then I did another version of the pattern, with a still lower neckline. I've cut it out (apart from the sleeves) and it's sitting on the cutting table waiting for me to get on with it.
I had some other bits and pieces I needed to sort out, so it'll be a little while before I can complete it.
