TL; DR – ARGH, freaking trying to get an elastic through is always harder than you think it should be.

Man, I’m sewing up a storm! This is more Marimekko shower curtain, and I was tired of making Mary Quant Mini-Dresses. So I decided to make this lovely and simple Donna dress, free from The Fabrics Store. Look at the finished garment measurements in the pattern because there is A LOT of ease. I think I made a size 14 because my usual size 20 would have been HUGE.

Now, the challenge with sewing with a shower curtain is that it isn’t set up like a regular piece of fabric, in terms of how the pattern should be laid out. And of course, I was almost done cutting when I realized I didn’t have enough for the back. BUT, I was able to shorten the sleeves, get rid of the cuff, and saved the day. It also meant that I didn’t have enough to create any bias tape, so relied on my trusty roll of black pre-made bias tape to finish the collar and the sleeves.

I also decided to add patch pockets, using leftover black circle fabric, but since they were self-drafted, they are WAYYYYYYY too low, which I only noticed once the dress was done, and I didn’t feel like unstitching the entire side seam. But hey, POCKETS!

I was super-simple to cut and to sew. I had it all done in less than an afternoon. Except for the elastic for the waist. I didn’t have any 1-inch elastic, so I had to order some and wait (while I sewed two other dresses). I was so excited that all I have left was the elastic, and as soon as it showed up, I settled down to (quickly) thread it through the waist band and be done.

Three hours later…

Part of that was my fault because certain parts of the band were too narrow for the elastic to easily slide through (you’d think I’d be better at sewing in a straight line now, but you’d be wrong). So that was two hours. And then when I finally did get it through, I had to spend another hour trying to balance out the gathers around the waist.

But ultimately, I’m really happy with the results, even if the waist band took longer than the rest of the dress put together. The directions were really clear and the pattern is well-drafted.

Is it summer yet?