Yes/No lace party dress--yep, pretty much how it sounds.

Yes/No lace party dress--yep, pretty much how it sounds.

• 2.21.2014

Let's get creative and brave!
I love dresses (duh), but I get a little bored of the same types of fabric and same combinations. So I tried to get extra creative with this one, aided in part by this funky lettering lace and by an epiphany I had while cutting it out (my thought exactly: "Aha! Pink piping!" I literally wrote it on a sticky note and put it with the just-cut-out dress).

For this dress, I used an old standby pattern, McCall's M5849, which I use for most of my strapless and strappy dresses and even used for my wedding dress (scroll down to see my post about bodice construction and fit). In fact, for this dress I used the same grey fabric that I used as the base of my wedding dress and for all of my bridesmaids' dresses. Recognize it?

Of course, the really funky part about this dress is the lace. WholePort often sends me supplies to try out, and I picked out this lace from their many beautiful and interesting lace yardage choices. I love the florals, too, but I wanted something different this time!, so I got this lettering lace! YES NO YES NO YES NO, it says... and it didn't need a hem because of the edge print! Convenient.

And like I said, the pink piping just popped into my head right after I finished cutting it out, and I think it was a good choice. I already had a belt that goes, too!

Because the grey fabric is so substantial and because neither it nor the lace frays, I was able to use only the lace layer and the grey as a base/lining. (See popular Sewing Circle questions for more on lace and linings.) So only two layers here, despite the sheer lace layer on top. I used the pink bias tape for piping and as a bias binding around the top edge, although you can't really see it. I thought it might peek out and I hand stitched it very carefully, but it hides. Oh, well.

Super fun, right?! How soon can I wear it, considering it's still winter and I don't have any spring weddings coming up?!