I guess you could say I took a Covid Sabbatical which was unplanned, but I discovered it was much needed. Many thanks to all of you who checked in on me, and I’m truly touched by your concern. 
I’m delighted to be back, vaccinated and all just in time for summer sewing – my favorite!
Had I known the design scale of this gorgeous pique from Farmhouse Fabrics, I might have passed it by. I bought the fabric last summer for the colors and envisioned a simple summer dress, but it remained folded and packaged until a few days ago.
BAM!
Hoping for some inspiration on how to manage the giant design, I took a look at a few old Lilly Pulitzer dresses which belonged to my daughters. Not a single dress featured a matching pattern in the seam ……… even when it would have been easy to match!
Still I began to reconsider my decision. The drape was too stiff for a maxi, I wanted the dress to have a flattering shape, and I wanted to make a dress I would wear… I bit the bullet and took the Lilly approach.
My pattern is Vogue 1536, a pattern that has been in the stash for a while but still available. The V-neck princess seam sheath is a favorite silhouette and would suit the weight of the fabric, but I knew pattern matching was out.
I treated the fabric as an abstract and concentrated on the fit.
The dress fits without much room to spare, but thankfully, I love the result. 
Design wise, I began experimenting with placing a center trim after I had constructed the dress but before I added the lining.(Polyester)
I settled on the medallion type trim which I used in this dress four years ago. I machine stitched the trim using an open presser foot (Pfaff 1A known as The Star Foot), and a straight stitch. The stitching disappeared into the trim.
Maybe you have some helpful advice regarding attaching the lining to the armholes in a sleeveless dress. I’ve used many techniques over the years but I continue to believe there’s one I haven’t discovered. Although I like Emily Hallman’s tutorial which I used here, I hand-stitched the lining to the dress.
Turning the seam allowance of both the lining and the fashion fabric before stitching the shoulders together is very helpful when it comes time to attach the two together, but I know hand stitching is not the RTW method!
During my sabbatical I bought white jeans and that’s it. I’ve tried to shop, but sewing has turned me into such a picky shopper, I continue to be turned off by the quality or the price or both.
What’s a sewist to do? Suffer or sew – take your pick!
HAPPY FATHER’S DAY to all who are celebrating, and a special shout out to my sweet hubby, one of the best fathers on earth!
Until soon 
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favorite summer accessories……….
