Simplicity Amazing Fit – 2217 – fit for a wedding

Have you tried any of the Simplicity Amazing Fit patterns?  I made a great dress with Simplicity 2217.

Pattern envelope courtesy of Simplicity

This post is a departure from my normal writing.  I usually make up something, persuade my reluctant photographer/husband to take a few snaps in the garden and stand awkwardly in a totally out of place kind of style.  But today we get to see a dress in action.  In its natural setting and environment, in the wild. Worn and enjoyed as it should be…see, I do occasionally leave the house!

A couple of our friends were getting married this year, a lovely and handsome couple, Travis and Alaina. And being spread over 3 days, this was going to be the event of the year and probably the most swanky wedding I was ever going to go to in my life.  So the challenge was on to create a different dress for every day.  Today I am presenting the dress for the big day itself – the wedding ceremony and celebration dinner.

I already had this fabric from an overseas shopping trip last year – click the image, it's still available.  It's super lightweight and perfect for looking smart but staying cool in the Caribbean.  I originally bought it with nothing special in mind, but once I learned about this wedding, I knew the right day had come.  The fabric is shimmery and contains gold threads to emphasize the subtle stripes of color from cream through purple to a dark almost smokey grey.  It has a crinkle already built in, but doesn't crease so it was perfect for wearing in the hot weather, then for sitting and later for dancing!

But time was drawing on, and I had 3 dresses to make and nothing was started.  Fitting is usually my biggest challenge and with no more fabric available if I messed up, I needed to be right first time.  So I chose the Simplicity Amazing Fit Pattern 2217.  You can pick from different cup sizes for the bodice, and also for a slim, average or curvy fit.  I picked the sleeveless version, C and spent a LOT of time measuring all of the pieces and reading through the very comprehensive fitting instructions before I cut anything.   I eventually cut the size 14 bodice in a C cup, and the same for the skirt in ‘average'.

The dress is unlined so nice and cool, with facings to the front, neck and armholes.  There is an interfaced waist and a center back invisible zipper.  I still had to make a few adjustments here and there and then change the facings to match and I just about managed with a few inches to spare, to cut it from the fabric I had.

And here it is – at the wedding with some of my lovely girl friends, Caz and Laura.

And this handsome guy is my wonderful husband.  It's always hard to get a good picture of him, he is forever messing about or pulling faces so even here he isn't exactly smiling.  I think he shares the same fear of having his picture taken that I have, which is probably another reason he is always so reluctant to take my blog photos – it's always an ordeal for both of us.  The setting for the wedding was lovely in the beautiful gardens of this big house on the water.  We enjoyed a fabulous sunset that evening.  (Hmm, looking at this, I should perhaps have taken up his trousers – what do you think? It doesn't help that he always has his pockets stuffed with rocks and things it seems.)

And in an effort to pretend that this blog isn't all about me, here is a picture of the lovely couple, Travis and Alaina.  I want to tell you, I watched her all afternoon and evening in this dress, and she didn't hitch it up once. From a dress-making point of view, that dress had some serious engineering and fit so perfectly that she danced like a demon and it never moved even a fraction of an inch – very impressive.  It didn't feel appropriate to ask the bride what was going on inside her dress but it must have been nailed on.

Later that evening – let the dancing begin.  Don't you love weddings.  Since I hit 40 I don't think I ever dance any more – but a wedding is the perfect excuse and reason to do so.  Don't blame the big grin on the champagne – I was driving and only had one glass!  Blame it on the boogie.

And to close, another photo of the hubby and me.  This time, we are caught out – we think the photos are all taken so we've relaxed, looked away, really smiled at each other.  This is probably the best photo of the two of us together ever taken in the history of tense photography.  Oh, and the dress looks damned good too.

Want to make clothes that fit better, you could certainly give this Amazing Fit range from Simplicity a try.  It worked a treat for me and I made up a dress in super quick time without the usual fitting hassles.  Highly recommended.
Authored by: Deby at So Sew Easy