My Attempts at The Monique Dress

I haven’t written for a while, so to keep my hand in, I am posting photos of the four Monique dresses I have made, after the pattern by Kay Whitt.  My first attempt was one for myself.  After I’d made the dress according to my measurements, I realized I’d forgotten to factor in one very important thing: my height.  I am  5’9″.  After I somewhat hurriedly made the dress, I read that this dress was designed for women of the “average” height of 5’4″, and the pattern may need to be adjusted accordingly.  (I always thought the average height was 5’6″, but I guess when you design the pattern, you call the shots).  So… the dress didn’t fit me, or more specifically, didn’t flatter.  The waist of the dress came to just under my bust and made me look like Tweedledum.  Fortunately, I found a shorter friend on Facebook with similar measurements who could pull it off, so it found a home.

Attempt #2.  I am pleased with the way this one for my friend, Sarah C., turned out.  The blue in the fabric almost exactly matches her eyes, and the fit was just about perfect.  Not bad for a second attempt!  She liked it because it reminded her of the fashions worn in the show “Mad Men”, which I have yet to see.

Attempt #3 was a dress for my youngest sister, Beth.  Beth is blessed with a classic, curvy figure and a burlap bag would look great on her, so I can’t take much credit.  However, I felt I made it a little bit too big for her.  Fortunately, the tie waist remedies that.  The fabrics for Sarah C.’s and Beth’s dresses come from Laura Gunn’s Poppy Collection, which is now out of stock almost everywhere I look.  Fortunately, Laura Gunn has come out with two new lines since then, which I am crazy about.

Dress #4 was for my friend, Sarah Jo, who certainly did not need a new dress (she has dozens), but as she’s so much fun to sew for and always likes what I make, I keep making her more.  Like Beth and Sarah C., I let her pick out the fabric.  She didn’t like anything from my stash, so we went to Walmart (yes, I shop there; I’m a bad person).  She proceeded to insist upon a brown deer print, the kind you would find slipcovering a sofa in a hunter’s lodge.  I tried to talk her into paisley or polka dots, but she won out.  I stitched it up with great reluctance, but… I think it turned out really nice!  Only Sarah Jo could pull it off, though.  

I plan to make one more variation of the dress for each of them, and hopefully soon, I’ll have lost the baby weight and will make one for myself, too.  I love this pattern!