Dresses and Shoes! Shoes and Dresses!

Just for fun, and because I'm nosey, I wanted to look at the construction details on the dresses of some of my favorite designers.  I found myself (somehow!) in a dressing room at Neiman Marcus with a slew of dresses.  Some of the dresses had great details, like the beautiful bodice seaming on this David Meister number:

I've been wanting to try on the Issa dress worn by Kate Middleton for her engagement announcement, and I finally found it at Neiman Marcus ($390), but in viscose instead of silk jersey.  They only had a 2 and an 8, and, as you can see, the 8 was too small.  Hello cleavage!  The neckline on this dress is awkward.  Also, the arms were too tight.

I think  McCall's 5974 is perfect for replicating this style.  About the only difference is that on the Issa dress, there is a slit on one side of the wrap belt where it meets the bodice.  The slit is to thread the opposite end of the belt, and I don't think it really adds anything.  Here's my version (about $20) of 5974 (and I do plan to make more):

Here are some of the other goodies I tried on.  The navy/stripe color-block dress (not flattering!) and the green dress with the gold belt buckle are Milly ($355 and $425), the jersey print is another (too small) Issa dress ($450), and a couple from David Meister ($415 and $325).

 No, I didn't buy any of these, nor did I ever intend to--but trying them on was a lot of fun and it was interesting to see how well (or not) they were made.

I did do my bit for the economy, though.  I purchased these lovelies at Nordstrom:

Navy suede pumps from Ivanka Trump

Coral patent slingbacks from Ivanka Trump

And now, it is off to the sewing studio, where I have a coral/bright pink/white stretch pique ready to be sewn into a summery sheath.

Happy sewing! ~ Peggy