Thursday 21 October 2010

Butterick 5520 - the shiny black dress - finished!

When I received a party invitation that said ‘dress glamorous’ I immediately thought of the black crepe back satin fabric that has been sitting in my stash waiting to be transformed into a special occasion dress. The pattern I decided on was Butterick 5520. I combined the black satin with some black lace and came up with this dress.

I used the black satin (purchased at Paron Fabrics in New York) for the main body of the dress, the sleeves are made from the lace (from Gorgeous Fabrics) that I underlined with a nude coloured silk satin (from a store in the Goldhawk Road in London). Here is a close up of the bodice


I lined the bodice and skirt with black bemberg rayon and the sleeves are lined in a nude colour – here’s a picture of the inside of the bodice.


As you may have noticed, I actually took the trouble to change the colour of the thread when I was understitching around the neckline so that there wasn’t a line of black stitching around the part of the neckline where the sleeves are (a small detail but it does make it look nicer inside). Once all the different fabrics were cut and the sleeves were underlined, this dress wasn’t very complicated or difficult to make up. Basically it’s a sheath dress with raglan sleeves but you can mix and match various fabrics to give it different looks. Here’s a reminder of the pattern envelope.
I decided against the peplum (although I do like that style) because I felt that, for a short person like me, there was enough going on with the shiny black satin and lace without breaking me up in the middle. I wanted to look sleek and shiny (you see I paired it with shiny patent shoes).

When my husband and I walked into the party (which was lavishly located at Claridges Hotel) there were a lot of very glamorous dresses being worn – I whispered to my husband that I bet I was the only one there wearing a home made dress! But I think it did just fine – I passed for ‘glamorous’ and the nice thing about making your own is that it fits right and no-one else is going to be wearing the same dress, (oh, yes, and it didn’t cost hundreds of pounds!).

As I mentioned in my last post, I am currently working on making some t-shirts so that I can put my new coverstitch machine through its paces but I took a little break from sewing to spend a weekend visiting friends in Leeds, (which is in Yorkshire, in the north of England). I bought some fabric, visited a wonderful button shop and fell in love with Yorkshire but more about that soon ….

54 comments:

  1. It's totally beautiful and it fits like a dream.

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  2. Beautiful! I absolutely love it. I bought that pattern awhile ago and really want to make it. I love the sleeve detail with the lace. It makes it very glamorous!

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  3. This dress is absolutely fabulous. Using a nude lining underneath the black lace was an inspired idea. Do you think you'll be able to get more wear out of it during the Christmas season?

    For some reason I'm not a fan of sleeves that aren't set in, but this dress is changing my mind.

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  4. Hello Eugenia, her dress was amazing, the incredible mosm you sew your clothes are able to transmit its own style clothes, wear something unique and made to measure, the price is of course also helps rsss.

    Eilan - Brazil
    www.eilanevidacostura.blogspot.com

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  5. Hi Eugenia - Your dress is fantastic - I love the sleeves - I am going to purchase this pattern next time I'm at the fabric store! You have done a fantastic job. I also love the lining and the change of the thread - very couturish! I bet your dress was at least twice as comfortable as those RTW garments!

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  6. Oooh Eugenia! This is a special dress. You look fantastic in it too. What a great fit! I like Claridges. The art deco interior of the tearoom room is amazing.

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  7. Oh Eugenia you look fabulous. I love the combination of the lace, the underlining , the satin backed crepe , everything.

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  8. You look glamorous and gorgeous in this dress! I love the mix and match of fabrics and the attention to detail you paid the inside lining. It's truly a beautiful garment that you'll be able to wear for years and years.

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  9. So utterly fabulous!! I'm pretty picky when it comes to lace on clothing because I think it can easily look cheap, but those sleeves are so elegant and are the perfect detail to the dress. I just love this on you!! Well done. :)

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  10. This dress is so elegant and classic. I love it. You are just fantastically talented.

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  11. That looks great - and you did such a nice job with satin which can be tricky to work with.

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  12. OMG! That dress is incredible and looks amazing on you!

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  13. Your dress is very gorgeous.

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  14. You are very inspiring, change color sleeves nude was a great idea, the dress looks beautiful on you. Sure you was the smartest person in the event!

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  15. This dress is beautiful, absolutely fabulous and very elegant!

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  16. Great lbd. My grandmother always told me that the inside should look as good as the outside, and yours certainly does. Impeccable.

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  17. Fabulous!!! It looks wonderful on you, and I'll bet no one would guess that it was home made. Lovely use of that pattern.

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  18. Oooh la la! Very pretty and chic! I especially love the way you paid attention to the inside of the dress.

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  19. Sleek and sophisticated, and the touch of lace gives it a splash of romance. Beautifully done inside and out. You look gorgeous in it.

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  20. You truly look glamorous! Love it.

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  21. It looks fabulous Eugenia! The satin looks a gorgeous quality, and I love the way you have used a natural colour under the lace - it looks much more sophisticated!

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  22. That is such a classy dress. You look gorgeous in it!

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  23. Beuatiful, it sure looks very expensive. You look very well dressed for the event.
    The lace detail is very special, love it.

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  24. Wow! Really beautiful and classy.

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  25. It's a gorgeous dress and you should say that you were wearing a 'custom made' dress!

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  26. Good grief, Eugenia, must everything you make be stylish, sexy, and sophisticated? Fabulous -- I mean (fabulous)!

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  27. Very elegant dress, its gorgeous and I imagine perfect for a do at Claridges!

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  28. The dress is fantastic. You look gorgeous wearing it. I love how you used the black lace and nude lining for the sleeves.

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  29. This is lovely like everything else you've shared on your blog. Love it! Those sleeves really make the dress. Isn't it such a glorious secret knowing that you look fabulous and didn't spent loads of money on your outfit?

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  30. I'll just bet it was the prettiest dress at the party! Very lovely and so flattering. Nicely done, Eugenia.

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  31. Beautiful and classy dress - great idea with the sleeves.

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  32. You would definitely pass muster in this dress. Beautifully made as ever. But I think you should do a version of this dress with the peplum - I'm the same height and have a few items with peplums. They actually elongate the body. Cheers for now.

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  33. Stunning! The lace sleeves really "make" it. Beautiful job.

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  34. well you've done a marvellous job on this dress, it looks amazing! I absolutely adore the nude fabric under the lace sleeves, very elegant. You should get plenty of wear out of this classic dress!

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  35. That's an absolutely beautiful dress. And isn't Claridges gorgeous? I bet you fitted right in with all that Art Deco in such a sophisticated outfit. I had one of the most exciting experiences of my life when I went to Claridges for lunch and saw David and Victoria Beckham there with their family!

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  36. This is beautiful!!! Great job!

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  37. Ooh la la! How wonderful to be all set for holiday parties by October. Well done! This dress is perfection.

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  38. This is stunning! I AM sure that you were just as gorgeous as the rest of the women in the room!

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  39. I especially like the sleeve contrast. And I am sure that you were as glamourous as anyone at the party. I like to think of the clothes I make as custom made rather than home made.

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  40. What a stunig dress! Bewitching! It isn't easy to sew or wear satin, so you are testament to good sewing and fitting.

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  41. Eugenia this dress is just fab! You look divine in it. I am inspired to buy this pattern right now. BTW, we sewists don't wear home-made clothes, they are HAND MADE and very nice they are too.

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  42. Wow, I love this! You look fantastic in it, and those sleeves are WONDERFUL, they take a LBD to the next level.

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  43. This is absolutely amazing!! What workmanship went into this! From the lining on out.

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  44. At the risk of sounding cliche, you'll be "The Belle of the Ball" is this beautiful dress! Great Job!

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  45. How fabulous is that dress!! You look absolutely stunning!

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  46. Hi Eugenia, was hoping to email you but you keep that a secret! My daughter is coming to London in mid November and I want to buy her theatre tickets. What is on for a serious theatre goer? Kind regards. My email address is on my blog.

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  47. Beautiful made classy dress!

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  48. Way to GO! The dress is fabulous and you wear it well.

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  49. I have to join the chorus. It's just gorgeous on you.

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  50. LOVE your dress! Great choice of fabrics, and the inside looks great. I just sewed up a version of Butterick 5520, and I love this one! (So I googled other versions of this dress and found your blog-- glad I did! I'll be following now.)

    If you're interested, here's my version: http://madebytrisha.blogspot.com/2011/01/plum-sheath-dress-with-lace-shoulders.html

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  51. As I mentioned in my last post, I am currently working on making some t-shirts so that I can put my new coverstitch machine through its paces but I took a little break from sewing to spend a weekend visiting friends in Leeds, (which is in Yorkshire, in the north of England). I bought some fabric, visited a wonderful button shop and fell in love with Yorkshire but more about that soon …. gold chain wholesale france , gold chain wholesale uk

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