A few things I've learned this last week:

• I love working with Jersey
• Jersey & the catch stitch = best friends for hemlines
• I've fallen head-over-heels in love with Swedish Tracing Paper*
• I'm totally sold on making cheap mock-ups when working on a pattern
• I need to store my scissors WAAAAY higher than I have them currently

The plan was to make a knee-length knit jersey dress with dolman sleeves, the bodice on the bias, an elastic waistline (using method from P's most recent refashion) with mid-length sleeves. My plan was hugely thwarted when Penelope found access (who knows how) to my scissors & massacred a good portion of my fabric. I knew the bias was completely out, but hopeful that I had enough room for a regular top. BARELY! I had to adjust the neckline & couldn't get as long a sleeve all due to some poorly placed gashes. Now I know I need to store my scissors on a stand-alone shelf at least 7 feet off the ground. Currently they're only 5 feet off the ground. Also, I need to order more than one yard of fabric if I'm planning on making a dress. I'm sure I would have had I had the above vision when I bought the fabric. With the restrictions I already had, I decided that I needed to be meticulous in my planning. Using my refashioned dolman top as a starting point, I traced the outline onto the Swedish Tracing Paper that Pamela gave me* at Sewing Summit. She told me that this stuff was awesome. It really is. I've used Glassine in the past, but this stuff is WAY better. Once I got a pattern that I was pretty happy with, I was tempted to just get going on my dress, but I was smart & held back. I got out a similar jersey from my stash - I found this at JoAnn's in their scraps pile for like $2 - and whipped up a top. Thank goodness I did! I found the sleeves were too tight for the look I wanted & the body was much too loose, too. I made the adjustments on the top (besides the arms) and then translated it onto a new pattern piece. Click here to see more of the above outfit. From there I cut out my skirt & bodice pieces & sewed them together. I used the same technique for gathering & attaching the gathered skirt as I did with Penelope's granny polo dress. It was perfect. Again! The waist is a bit loose for wearing without a belt, but I'm really happy with how it turned out. If you look closely you can tell that I hadn't hemmed the sleeves or the bottom of the dress when I took this picture. Daylight was running out yesterday, so I thought I'd grab a quick pic. I spent last night vegging & hemming. I'm wearing this outfit today, so check out the fashion blog for the rest of the outfit details. My new dress turned out fantastic! It's definitely bright & cheery enough for Spring & Summer, but I think it's also easily styled into a fall ensemble. Just add more browns & neutrals to the dress. It's light & airy so I know this will become a staple in my wardrobe during those hot summer months! *Swedish Tracing Paper was given to me as a gift from NearSea Naturals at Sewing Summit. I just so happened to love it!