The Breezy Dress + Cape Cod Mash Up

By Manda Hoogstra-RademakerAug 5, 2019

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I recently showed you all my summer-inspired (or should I say pinspired?) 24/7 top, but during my searches through web shops I naturally came across more inspiring items of clothing ...

Among other things, this dress immediately reminded me of the Cape Cod pattern by Ellie & Mac, because of the finish on the neckline.
But ... the Cape Cod pattern is a pattern for children up to the age of 14, I don't belong there anymore, and moreover that is the pattern for a swimsuit ...

Still it stuck in my head ... Would it be feasible to make a size S from the largest available size?
Well, you guessed it, I made an effort :)

This is what I did...

TRY-OUT 1

I chose the pattern of the Breezy dress from Ellie & Mac as the basis, and printed the largest size of the Cape Cod pattern. I put that over the pattern part for the top of the Breezy. With some patternpaper I drew the contours of the Breezy dress, but fitted the Cape Cod neckline on the neckline.

Afterwards I did about the same with the back of the torso. I took the top of the Breezy dress as a base, and laid the Cape Cod back over it. Again I followed the contours of the Breezy, and adjusted the neckline, to get an open back.

And then I got to work ... I followed the instructions from the Cape Cod pattern manual for the top, and simply proceeded with the Breezy dress for the skirt part.
This is how my test version came about, and I was already quite satisfied with that.

TRY-OUT 2

The dress I was trying to recreate is short-sleeved. So I decided to attempt a short-sleeved version too. I'll show you with pictures and info how I went about it.

To start with, I used the pattern part for the front panel that I drew on patterned paper for my first version, to make cut-outs in the neckline on the printed front panel of the Breezy Dress, based on that of the Cape Cod pattern.

I copied the modified front and the original back of the Breezy Dress on the fabric, as well as the sleeves. For the cut-outs, I also drew matching lining, so that I could finish this neatly. Then I cut out all the parts.

Now for the sewing of my garment! I started with the lining on my cut-outs. I pinned the liner fabric right sides together with the fabric of my front bodice, making sure the raw edges of the liner and the cut-outs were aligned. I stitched as close as possible to the edge of the fabric. Then I turned the lining inside, trimmed the edges and topstitched it so that the cut-outs were neatly finished.

Afterwards I sewed the shoulder seam, put on the sleeves and finally sewed the side seams of the bodice closed. Then only the neckband remained. I first divided it into four parts, as always, and did the same with the neckline. At the front, of course, I couldn't go looking for the middle. There I pinned the front pieces so that all the pieces came symmetrical to the center of the neckband. And then I locked the neckband to the bodice.

To get rid of the visible locked seam at the height of the cut-outs, I decided not to topstitch the seam allowance to the bodice, as you usually do, but to flip it up and secure it to the neckband itself. That way the seam allowance was no longer visible and the whole bodice was nicely finished.

Finally, I also put the skirt part together and attached it to the bodice, just as the manual of the Breezy Dress suggests. Ready!

FINALS

Now the time had come to really imitate the dress. Once the fabrics had been chosen, I shortened the bodice a little. I also took it in a little at the waist. To prevent the skirt from pulling the top down, I sewed Framilon tape in the waist seam. This way everything stays in its place. And again I have a successful 'pinspired' dress :)

If you love Ellie & Mac Patterns as much as I do, they give me the feeling I can recreate any look, be sure to take a look on my blog, as I am a regular tester of Ellie&Mac Patterns: https://mijn11jesenik.wordpress.com/

You can also find me on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ingelrelst
Twitter: SeamsLikeD
Pinterest: SeamsLikeD

(written by Deborah Ingelrest)