Walk This Way.

You were warned, I've got some serious love going for this pattern. I have sewn four. This, however, is my favorite of the bunch.  

The pattern in question is McCall's M6886.  It's a very basic, beginner friendly, knit dress that comes with three neckline, two skirt length and three sleeve options. I've sewn ViewB for all my renditions of this pattern. After completing my first dress, I decided to make the following modifications: 1/2inch narrow shoulder, 3/4 inch sway back adjustment, shortened sleeves by 1 inch, and shortened hem length by 1 1/2 inches. These are all typical adjustments for me. 

The changes I made are small, but they make a difference in the overall fit of the dress. I could use more than 3/4 inches on the sway back (aka booty adjustment), but I didn't want to have to do any crazy redrafting on a simple knit dress pattern. And, I'm happy enough with the way this fits to leave it as it is. 

My fabric this time around is a sweater knit remnant that I bought from Vogue Fabrics. I had to cut this flat in order to squeeze it out of the yardage I had available (Thanks, Tania for the tip!) It's very lightweight for a sweater knit, and it clings a little bit more than the other versions I made, but it's every bit as comfortable. 

The fabric really shines in a pattern like this. There aren't a lot of seams obstructing or interrupting the print. I particularly love the bold splashes of red in this fabric. I think it's a little unexpected and surprising.  It will really pop in a month or two when the city becomes a sea of grey and black. 

We took these photos during a stroll along the newly opened Chicago River Walk. I'm really excited about the renovations taking place along the river. The path is lined with numerous restaurants, several of which are secondary locations for some of Chicago's neighborhood spots like, The Hideout and City Winery, which I think is a really cool way to bring a taste of the city to tourists not likely to venture far from the Mag Mile.