Audrey Hepburn 50’s sheath dress

Audrey Hepburn sheath dress by thisblogisnotforyou.com

Here it is (finally). – Dress #4 of my 27 Dresses Challenge. (My legs are a bit short compared to Audrey’s 😉 But hey, we’re comparing dresses, right?)

It’s an Audrey-style Burda pattern. Sounds familiar? Yep, somehow the vintage designs of Burda always turn out to be 50’s Audrey Hepburn dresses (which honestly doesn’t really bother me). 😉 It’s got the typical 50’s high wasp waist and three-quarter length sleeves.

Audrey Hepburn sheath dress by thisblogisnotforyou.com, Burda pattern 11/2012 #138

I used an elastic dark blue cotton fabric and the dress fits really snugly. Although I normally don’t have to make alterations with Burdastyle patterns, the back of the dress required some fitting, so the boyfriend had his debut as a fitting buddy.

fitting Burda 11/2012 #138   by thisblogisnotforyou.com

Audrey Hepburn sheath dress by thisblogisnotforyou.com, Burda pattern 11/2012 #138

The pleats in the bodice part had to be handstitched and pressed before sewing everything together. Removing the basting thread after the dress was done was the best part, it’s like opening a surprise bag. I love the final look, although the pleats are a bit messy. I had some problems with the elastic fabric, so they’re not as evenly spaced as the should have been.

Audrey Hepburn sheath dress by thisblogisnotforyou.com, Burda pattern 11/2012 #138

I love the cut, the colour and the fabric. The only thing left is an occasion to wear it.

Overall, the pattern is great, the fit is better than expected. The instructions were surprisingly clear (that’s not always a given using Burdastyle patterns). And it looks very much like the original (1956), don’t you think?

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come dance with me

I did it.

After a weekend of listening to Sinatra and being covered over and over in tulle I managed to make my own Petticoat. Here it is:

 I wanted to do that for years and had the fabric and tulle lying around since last year. It took quite a lot of time (all that fabric gathering is very tiring and costs a lot of time and nerves…) but good ol’ Frank (and some glasses of red wine) helped me not to lose it.

This one turned out like I wanted – not too puffy (I made it for my christmas dress I’m working on at the moment). But I’m planning on doing a second one that’s fuller and has more layers (for my upcoming 50’s dresses – yay!). I’ll probably do a tutorial on Petticoat sewing as well, but don’t be disappointed if that doesn’t happen in the next few weeks. I’ll probably have to buy a few more Sinatra records before…