Tribal Maxi Dress

My version of a Maxi Dress.
I bought this fabric at clearance (again) at Joann's for 3 dollars a yard and again, had no idea what I would do with it. I thought it would make some kind of dress and this was it. I was hard to get the draping right in the front. At first I gathered it but it was way too baggy, so then I thought..pleats. and it flattened it enough so I didn't feel pregnant. I made the bodice without the white gathering first, but it was just too much print, it needed to be broken up. So I added the white, but it took a lot of messing with to get everything to lay right. I still don't love the cups of the bodice, they are just too full for my girls but I will figure it out. I love the back shoulder straps, they add just enough to be different.



The shoulder strap. Love the gather.



Blue Dress



Don't mind the knee brace, I forgot to take it off before the photo.



So this is one of the things I have been working on lately instead of blogging, and I LOVE it. I bought this fabric for about 2$ a yard at Joann's on clearance along with some white knit, also on clearance and didn't quite know what I wanted to do with it, until...inspiration struck in the oddest way.

I bought a swimsuit cover up from TJ Max (love that store!) and it was just cute and white, very basic. But on wearing it I thought that changed just a bit, it would make a cute dress. Then I saw a photo of Kate Middleton, who by the way has the best style I wish I had her wardrobe! I can't find the picture online, but she was wearing this cute white dress that was kind of cinched in the middle like I have this dress.

I just had to show the swimsuit cover, I know it's a bad picture.

So I took my cover up and traced it onto a piece of wrapping paper, but made it a little longer. The cover up has arms, but I just wanted the little capped sleeves, so I left off the sleeves. Then I cut an under-dress out of the white knit I had, so easy, then cut the sheer material. I made a sheath about 3 inches thick to hold the tie at the waist, sewed it in and then made a "rope" from a thin piece of fabric. I sewed the "sheath" in about 4 inches lower than my real waist because I wanted the little poof when it was ties. Then looking at it I thought that ruffles would make it just perfect, and it did! The ruffles took a bit to get right, they were just so heavy compared to the sheer fabric and the knit that they kept pulling and hanging weird. I think I had to sew them down about 3 times to get it right.

I really love this dress. It is SO comfortable and I look stylish at the same time. My little brother just got married and I wore this dress to the wedding and my sister had on a dress that was a lot like it, but she paid almost a hundred dollars for hers (haha).