They Aren't All Hits

Just before the end of August, my sewing ability apparently, suddenly, tanked. I had some issues with something I was working on (don't even remember what that was). I started something new. From THIS book, I was going to make the tunic dress. I searched and searched online, and patternreview.com but could not find any real life info about the dress. I like Christine Haynes' patterns on her website and the designs seemed similar, so I thought I was safe. It's an easy pattern. For beginners.

I picked out this crinkle gauze that was on the heavier side. Bright fuschia. I draped it from my bust and thought it seemed okay. I wasn't sure on the sizing, but went with a size "4" (I think) because I didn't want the neck too big and there is apparently a lot of ease (but no finished measurements; I had to do that myself). I used the same fabric for the yoke/neckline. Tried it on.

Oy.

I felt like a giant pink marshmallow. Or in some strange girls' choir. Or maybe at a graduation for a modern all girls' school.  There was also something not right about the yoke, and I thought maybe doing it in a contrast fabric would help. It's two layers and it felt really, really thick, so perhaps a thinner fabric would work.

I got a vintage tracing wheel in a bag of sewing odds and ends at Value Village. At half off day!

I cut a new yoke from the same fabric as these floral pants. It wouldn't lay flat. I unpicked and basted it in differently. Finally, just wanting to be done, I serged the yoke in. Then went to watch TV and pick out the basting stitches.

And found that the yoke had gotten bunched in the stitching on the underside.

And this:

 Yeah. Aint no recovering from that. Don't know if the serger did it, or if I did it while slicing out the basting stitches. It was the final nail in the coffin.

Sometimes a project just doesn't work. The fabric was really too thick for a drapey dress (to double as a bathing suit cover up on our cruise). The dress design is probably fine, particularly if you're not large busted. I don't know why the yoke wasn't working for me the second time. And I didn't really care for it. I should have made the sheath, which was also in my plan. The pink fabric will still be usuable for trims or bags, or something small. I don't know where it came from, so I don't feel too bad. I'm just bummed about the lost time and thread more than anything LOL! And all the printer paper to print the pattern!!