Formal -- A Bridesmaid Dress

I was asked to help sew this dress for my Sisters wedding. Although someone else did the actual sewing I created the pattern and fitted it to the bridesmaids measurements (as she was unavailable at the time.) I made the belt and sleeve pattern, and changed the neckline and waistline on an existing pattern. I also changed the shape of the skirt and than fitted the dress after it was sewn to a good fitting point.

I made a drawing according to the Bridesmaids specifications before beginning to sew, so that I could be sure I understood what she wanted.

The sleeve pattern was made from the arm hole measurement and the desired depth of the sleeve. The sleeve pattern is 1/2 an inch (plus seam allowance,) wide at the armhole. I made the bottom of the sleeve slightly curved, and curved the top of the sleeve up to make up the added difference in width between the top (middle) and underside (ends) of the sleeve.


The sash was made from the measurement of the bridesmaids hips, at the place she desired to have the sash sit, and the length she desired the sash ends to be. One end of the sash was made longer than the other, to achieve a staggered effect. Both ends of the belt were wider than its middle, and I divided the belt into three sections: two end and a middle. the middle section was straight, and the sash ends were tapered from the middle-sash width to the desired end width of the sash. To make the belt sit smoothly on the hips the belt-end sections of the pattern were tilted up from the middle (hip) section of the sash. This created an upside-down V gap in the pattern. The V gap was simply incorporated into the pattern, thus making one side of the sash longer then the other. Because of this it lay smoothly on the hips, which were narrower at the top side of the sash than at the bottom.