Polka Dot Rayon Anna Dress

Well, hello Anna! I'm late to join the party on this pattern, and like the Elisalex I sewed last year, this one took me by surprise. Both of these By Hand London patterns are very different silhouettes than I usually sew, and both turned out to be quite handsome dresses. This one is made out of a polka dot rayon that gives it a great swish in the multi-panel skirt.

The construction was very straightforward, and I had to make minimal fit changes. Although, like my Elisalex, I found I was a different size in the front than in the back! The side seam should sit directly below the center of your armpit, effectively cutting you in half. I needed to shift it backward a little bit to sit in the right place, so I ended up with a slightly smaller back bodice piece than the front. I went through a similar exercise when I had the 2014 great fitting trials of the Cambie. Thanks to that episode, I can easily spot the problem now.

I did french seams as the finish, which worked really well with this rayon. The only trouble I had is that it's a little bulky at the waist seam and at the shoulder seam where I hemmed the sleeve. I did do a serged seam just at the edges of the zip, and then went back to a french seam under that. 

I hand-tacked down the facings to make sure they wouldn't budge on me. I also did a hook-and-eye, as the instructions called for, on the zipper. I don't particularly care for a  hook-and-eye at the top of a dress zip, though. I find I don't really need it to get the dress zipped up, and taking it clean to the top makes for such a nice finish. 

But, oh, look at those french seams! They're just beautiful! Worth stitching every seam twice, at least on this little number.

My favorite part about the Anna is those pleats instead of darts at the bust. It softens the bodice and still does a nice job of accentuating the bust. I like it so much that I've already started on a second one! I had such an itch after Me-Made May to do another embroidery project, that I decided to do an Anna Dress with a leaf embroidery detail. It may take me until the leaves fall in autumn to get it all done by hand, but I'm hoping it will be spectacular when I finish!