Head To Head with Mahlica Designs

Who Made It Best is a friendly challenge hosted by mahlicadesigns where she pairs up with a fellow blogger and they sew the same pattern to see Who Made It Best. The challenge rules are simple: 1. We agree on a pattern to use 2. sew it up to suit our personal styles 3. share it with you and ask you to vote. This week I'm joining Melissa from mahlicadesigns in making up the Shoreline Boatneck from Blank Slate Patterns for the challenge and you can check out her version here. Please visit mahlicadesigns for more pictures and details on her version, then place your vote for Who Made It Best. The poll will be on both sites, so you can see both versions before you choose your favorite. Voting open for one week.

VOTE HERE

When Mahlica Designs reached out to me to do a head to head I was super excited.

Because it means that she considers me worthy of a competition OR, maybe she thought she could beat me. Either way, I was excited.

She even let me pick the pattern. Which was SERIOUSLY nerve wracking. You see, if she wins, then I failed to pick the right pattern. And if I win, she could say it was the pattern not the seamstress. HAH. I think I'm taking this competition a little too seriously, since neither of us win anything! Except bragging rights. And Mahlica is so awesome, I don't think I'd have the heart to brag.

So, I reviewed the patterns she had offered for consideration. Hmm. There were some good ones. But I wanted something that was going to give me enough options that no matter what either of us created, we'd both be winners. I picked the Blank Slate Shoreline Boatneck. This pattern is perfection for a "hacker". It starts out as a woven top pattern with 4 sleeve lengths and 3 hem lengths, shirt, tunic dress. Easy peasy, right? But then it gets better. Because the FREE hack pack includes a gathered skirt dress, a fitted bodice with gathered skirt dress, button placket, zipper placket, sleeveless and a bell sleeve. So basically, we have 18 options from the main pattern (3 hem lengths, 6 sleeves). THEN 36 options for the bodice, sleeves and skirts (2 bodices, 6 sleeves, 3 skirt lengths). THEN, the option for a button placket or zipper placket (which can be added to any combination of all of these) so 108 possible combinations.

This designer drafts for a smaller frame. I found that I still needed to remove length at the upper bust but I actually needed to extend the bodice length to have it hit me at my natural waist. No biggie. But next time, I need to measure the bodice side seam before chopping things up!

As I was considering my options this dress sort of just appeared out of my muslin process. I started with the fitted bodice. I rotated out the dart to be a full princess seam. Tightened up the bodice to zero ease to create a very "50's" style dress. I don't do gathered skirts at my waist, so I opted to pleat the skirt instead. I took 1 pleat at each of the back darts, 1 pair of pleats at the princess seams on the front and pleats at the side seam. This fabric makes it hard to see the pleats, but I promise, they're there.

Photo from Ikea Website linked to the right.

Initially I had bought fabric online from Joann's. I had plans that it would be great. But then I got the fabric in hand, and it didn't feel "right." What did feel right was these curtains from IKEA! I did buy them to put curtains up in my basement. And I DID put up curtains in my basement. But IKEA sends the most ridiculously long curtains, 98" long. My basement is just 9ft, and the window was just over 40" long.  I used 1 leftover section to make a single curtain for our basement door and then that left me about 53" of 60" wide fabric. For this style of this pattern, you need the skirt pieces plus bodice. The bodice takes at least 1 yard of 45" wide fabric, more if you're doing long sleeves (which won't work with my super modified bodice). Then you need the skirt. For my body, I needed a 20" skirt that was about 60" wide. That left me just over 33" of fabric to squeeze out a bodice, facing and bias tape. I ended up with about 3" of fabric left. Talk about cutting it close!

With a 20" skirt, I left  a 1 1/2" hem allowance. When making a "traditional" type dress like this, I really like a bigger hem allowance. That gives the skirt nicer drape. This is a much shorter skirt than the pattern calls for, but it is

I have to admit, boatnecks are NOT recommended for my inverted triangle body type. I'm learning more and more that I don't care what other people recommend. While the neckline does make my shoulders look wider, it isn't a bad thing. My shoulders are strong and healthy and not something I need to hide.

So you tell me, who did it best? My beautiful upcycled curtains super fitted dress OR Melissa's Simply By Ti knit cotton lycra? Don't forget to vote!