As you’ve probably gathered a lot of my recent makes and crafts have all been based around either being in hospital or post surgery. Before I went to hospital it was fairly stressful so I made a list of what would be needed. Pajamas, robes, outfits for post hospital and crafts to do while recovering. This planning and sewing kept me busy and was a great help in keeping me calm.
Now that I have time to blog about it, it’s feeling a little ALL about the hospital/surgery. I didn’t have time or inclination beforehand to make anything new that wasn’t going to be useful and now post surgery I can’t yet cut out or sew. Blogging these pieces and explaining the reasoning behind them is just like the rest of my wardrobe, garments made with a purpose. Hopefully it’s interesting to read and may help anyone else needing to go to hospital and wanting to make their own wardrobe to take with them?
When I bought this rayon at Spotlight I had entirely different plans for it. Ideas of floaty scrappy summer dresses were flitting through my mind. Fast forward through a few months of endless doctor visits for me and for The Englishman with his broken shoulder, the fabric was still sitting there and summer was rapidly on its way out.
I wanted a light loose dress for post surgery. The reasoning being that the weight of the garment couldn’t be felt on my skin and that plenty of room would make it comfortable.
This was all going through my mind when I spotted this Lisette B6169 pattern in a bundle going cheap at Pitt Trading. They don’t usually carry patterns and this was part of a sale lot so it seemed good fortune that it came my way.
Cutting out the pattern the pattern shapes looked incredibly straight, there was no difference from bust to waist or waist to hip. This seemed out of the ordinary so I googled the pattern looking for reviews. While the pattern is incredibly popular it seems everyone has made the jacket. I couldn’t find a single review on the dress.
I did some measuring, shortened the dress to be more appropriate for my height and added in some extra ease. I basically drew out approx 3 cm from the edge of each hem then angled the new line up to approximately the waist. It was incredibly slap dash which is not my normal approach, I didn’t even toile but cut straight into my good fabric.
The pattern itself is a bit of a fabric eater and I had to add in some extra seams in the back yoke to make it work. The fact that my fabric was a directional print certainly didn’t help.’
Once cut it was a really easy pattern to put together, the only thing I made a mistake in cutting the neck band and it’s too long and doesn’t sit flat. Every time I put it on, I think ‘ I must fix that” but it’s yet to happen.
It’s not the kind of style I generally wear, it’s almost cocoon like in its shape with a high low hem. All things I tend to avoid. However it looks not too bad and it’s doing it’s intended job of a loose comfortable dress post surgery perfectly.
I wore it to the hospital and then again on my way home. Here I am at the elevators on my way out.
I’ve got a drainage pump attached at this point and the dress was loose enough to pull on over the whole thing which was wonderful.
Here it is back at Spotlight, was grabbing selfies for Me Made May.
Pattern: Lisette B6169
Fabric: Rayon from Spotlight, it’s still available just be sure to pre wash and realize it is a directional print.
Alterations: shortened for my height, extra width added hem to waistline (approximately). I cut the largest sizes in the body and the size 12 yokes.