Perfect Pattern Parcel: Lady Skater / Ava Mashup into Wonder Woman Dress

You've probably seen people blogging about the inaugural Perfect Pattern Parcel everywhere over the last ten days!  The brainchild of Rachael from Imagine Gnats, Jill from Made with Moxie (as well as her techie husband Danny), Pattern Parcel collects together patterns from Independent Designers and makes them available as a bundle for two weeks only.

Pattern Parcel #1 includes:
The Skater Dress by Kitschycoo
Dandelion Dress & Top by Seamster Patterns
(formerly known as Disparate Disciplines)
Summer Concert Tee by Dixie DIY
Ava Dress & Blouse by Victory Patterns
Accordion Bag by Sew Sweetness

Not only does PPP aim to support indie designers, but a portion of the proceeds also goes to the charity Donors Choose, an amazing organization that matches up the needs of teachers and their students for specific projects with willing donors. The funds raised from each Pattern Parcel sale will go to help K-12 students in minimizing educational inequality and encourage a community where children have the tools and experiences necessary for an excellent education.   Not only does the buyer get to choose their own price for the bundle, but they also get to choose how that price is proportioned between designers / organisers / charity.  Neato, right?

I had such a hard time choosing which pattern to make!  Obviously I wanted to use knits (because I am nothing if not predictable) and although the Ava Dress / Top from Victory Patterns is supposed to be for wovens after I saw Adriana Crafterhours's knit Ava I knew I must do it.

And I must do it ridiculously.  Achievement unlocked.

So, a laundry list of the changes I made to the Ava to start.  Based on my measurements and finished garment measurements I started with a straight size 8.  I reduced the seam allowances from 5/8" to 3/8" because you couldn't pay me to use 5/8"s with knits.  After a first fitting, I removed an additional 1/2" to the shoulder height because of my petite upper body, increased the under bust darts by half an inch each, and removed 2" from each side seam in width at the bust tapering to nothing at the bottom edge.

I added a 3" waist band as I wanted it to hit less at empire height, and more at my natural waist.  To compensate for the extra travelling distance over the bust, I had to make a sway back adjustment to the back bodice of about an inch before attaching the waistband.  It still hangs a little bit lower to the back.

The original plan was to leave it sleeveless (as one of the pattern options) but all of my bras come up so very high under the arm that sleeveless garments are generally problematic and more hassle than they're worth to perfect.  So I also drafted sleeves, and banded them with yellow.  The neckline I dropped by 1.5" at centre front, and banded as well.

The Ava skirt is a similar shape to the Lady Skater skirt but it is panelled and I literally had a half a metre left of the blue stars.  So I used the Lady Skater skirt instead and narrowed the sweep until I could fit it in my tiny fabric piece.  I'm happy with the less full skirt as it makes it more casual and less costume-y.

The real stars of this photoshoot (if really there is such a thing*) are of course my shoes!  If I wore my Wonder Woman bathing suit and this dress and my shoes, that'd be three full layers of dorkery.

For all the people who've been making fun of my interchangeable facial expressions, this is why.  I'm not angry, this is just my face.

So if you haven't already, head over to Perfect Pattern Parcel to get your bundle!  It's only available til Friday night (21 March).

*This is my first time using my tripod and remote outside.  The only thing more embarrassing than taking pictures of yourself in a Wonder Woman dress in your shared garden is taking pictures of yourself in your overcoat in a field overlooked by the entire estate before taking your tripod and camera home in a huff because you couldn't get it to focus.