Dogwood Linen Dress: New Look 6643

I love it when the dogwoods bloom here in the Finger Lakes! I saw a tree in bloom, and it reminded me that I had a gorgeous piece of dogwood printed linen in my stash. I only had 1.5 yards, so I decided to make New Look 6643.

A whole tree covered in 4 petaled flowers-- so strange and wonderful. If you find a 5 leafed one is it good luck?

Isn't this fabric gorgeous? I wish you could reach out and touch it, it is silky smooth, the best linen I have ever worked with. It was just a dream to sew.

New Look 6643 is a simple sheath pattern with darts, which makes it great for highlighting interesting fabrics and textures. I've made it before in silk charmeuse using shredded bias chiffon as a textural embellishment to the bodice.

This time I made view D, with the hope that it would do a slightly better job of hiding my bra straps than the wide shoulder variation. I just hate having to worry about sneaky bra straps making their way out from under my dress. Hmmmm... maybe I should make some bra strap guides...!

Anyway, instead of the keyhole, I made a little "V" dip in the front neckline. Just because I thought it would be fun, and a touch sexier.

This time I didn't even bother with trying to put a zip in the center back, I just put it in the side seam. It went in easily, even though I forgot to interface it. Ooops!

I knew I didn't want to line the dress-- it is plenty opaque, and I wanted the cool linen against my skin. So I made a one-piece-facing instead of the neck and armhole facings. I could have used any fabric, but I couldn't find just the right piece of something that would be the right color and maintain the breath-ability of the linen, so piecing together my scraps ended up being easier.

Linen is such a great fabric for hot days! It was over 80 degrees and humid today when I hiked down to the lake to take these pictures, and I hardly felt it in this dress.

 

I just love my new dress! Can't wait to go dancing!