As time went on after making my Calvin Wrap Top in the green tencel, I continued to realize just how much I loved the pattern. So when I finally decided to buy this blue floral rayon from La Finch Fabrics that I had been eyeballing for a while, I knew exactly what I would make out of it. So my Calvin Wrap Dress was born.
The scary part of this make for me was that I had to make my own bias binding for the first time. Trust me, I tried to convince myself that I would be okay with a closely matched solid color binding that was pre-made, but I just couldn’t do it. Because I had never made it before, I turned to my sewing guru, Erin . She gave me helpful tips such as buying a bias tape maker (which I didn’t do) and buying this starch. I did try a little bit of the binding with and without the starch, and the starch makes everything so much easier. I would definitely recommend that for anyone making it. I decided not to buy the bias tape maker because I was impatient and because the steam isn’t working on my iron, so I wouldn’t have the same problem of burnt fingers as Erin was having.
I was so excited to make this dress that I actually worked on it on weeknights after work, so that I would be able to wear it for the weekend! I was only successful with this because the pattern actually comes together so quickly. One of my favorite parts is that they have you make the bias binding first, just to get it out of the way. The starch that I used when making the binding made it so that the binding was very easy to attach to the fronts and back because it made it just a little more solid and helped it to keep a crease.
Another thing that I did differently on this version, was attach a snap to the front for more coverage. All I did was put the dress on and mark where I wanted the snap to be. There were no instructions on how to sew the snap on, but watching a few YouTube videos did just the trick. The nice part about the snap is that you hand sew it to the back of the binding, so it cannot be seen on the outside of the dress. I loved the extra coverage from the snap, and will be going back to my green shirt and adding one.
Ultimately, this dress is so dreamy and was quite a breeze to make. The ties and adjustable straps make it very easy to fit without having to alter it.
Pros:
Quick and easy
Easy to fit
Great instructions
Cons:
Lack of hand sewing instructions for snap
Not much else
