So I had this big plan to sew up a Sew Straight and Gather Uptown Downtown dress. The dress is a great look for inverted triangles. But my first muslin resulted in fit problems. :( And well, then I was all annoyed and didn't want to keep going. I posted about it and one of the members said, "Why don't you just mash your favorite bodice onto the skirt part?"

And then light bulb moment! Why don't I? So I took out my favorite Patterns For Pirates Layer Me Up bodice, did some chopping here and some taping there and voila, minimal fitting necessary. I really need to find a more permanent way to save the LMU, because it is my go to for everything. I'd hate to ruin my already modified pattern pieces!

Please note, these are my muslin pictures. Yes, my muslin came out "this good". I used some of my Girl Charlee Knit Fix Fabric for this muslin, knowing that it would be pretty good since I know the fit of the LMU is spot on.

For styling with this dress, I used the SUAT Fauna Shrug. I don't think it looks quite right. I'm still trying to figure out what to pair my SUAT Fauna Shrug with. I'd love to hear suggestions for better styling. Black cotton lycra is from Purple Seamstress on facebook. I swear I need to start buying the black cotton lycra by the bolt. I am always running out!

Also, my black belt has disappeared so I couldn't style the dress with a belt. I think a good belt would break up the pattern and really help the look. And can you talk about luck?! I managed to not get any weird circles right over my bust points. And it wasn't even on purpose!