Some of my favorite Marfy designs. Their dresses (daywear, evening, and even bridal) and jackets are amazing.
Now I have to stop extolling Marfy because otherwise I'm going to run out of room for the actual part where I sew things.
...Ok maybe just one more mouth-watering picture.
I love this design. It's very simple--unlike what attracts me to most other Marfy patterns--but it's arresting and flattering at the same time. I love how it creates curves. And I like how the side panels start under the bust, which creates the impression of a prominent chest (something I need help with for this particular style of dress) and sort of blocks off the shoulders and the chest. Plus I knew immediately what I would make it in :D
But it's so...simple. Here's the thing. Marfy patterns are expensive. A knee-length dress like this one will cost you about $20, plus shipping from Italy. And you have to wait. About 3 weeks. I can justify the purchase if I'm looking at some distinctive, intricate design that I wouldn't even know which two ends to put together and it's for a special occasion. But I'd feel guilty splurging for essentially a (flattering, refined) princess-seam dress. So I told myself I would modify a basic pattern and try and mimic the same effect.
Then I took this beginners pattern-drafting course at Mood (SUPER FUN, by the way) and my head got all big, and next thing you know,
I'm armed with a dress block, a French curve, and Google trying to figure out how to make a princess-seamed dress. (Except not really, because this design has princess seams AND darts--double whammy.)
So here we go! I'm going to show you how I went about (clumsily and with a minimal amount of pattern-drafting experience) recreating Marfy 3149!
