New Look 6000 Dress

After finishing the Tippi Hedren suit, I wanted to make another dress to wear with the jacket which I absolutely love.  I wanted to use the rayon/silk blend check on the left below:

I used some of it for the back of my Victorian vest, and wanted to make a simple sheath dress.  I decided to use New Look 6000, which I have made before.  

This time, I made view E (the yellow polka dot version) without the sleeves.  It was an easy make and I made no alterations, just a size 12, straight up.  It was fun because the dress went together quickly which was nice, given all the trouble I had with my Victorian vest. 

The rayon/silk blend was supple, a joy to work with.  I used facings for the armholes which isn't my favorite finishing for armholes, but I felt this drapey fabric needed the added structure.  But upon wearing, I found this stuff wrinkles horribly:

 But I loved the look; the checked fabric was a wonderful match for my wool jacket:

 But well, there is the wrinkling:

And by the end of the day, I discovered that my back center seam was beginning to shred.

Apparently, my rump is just too much for this fabric; I underestimated it's delicate nature.  I'm not certain I will be able to wear this dress much in the future, especially to work as that seam could go at any time!

So not an epic fail, but not a success either.  I have not given up on this fabric; I still believe I can make a non-fitted skirt to wear with this jacket.  But to recover from this project, I'm working on my first shirtdress of 2014!!!  Yes, it's been a while since a shirtdress was made, and I'm in withdrawal.  Onward and upward!

On more exciting news, I discovered that I got into Gertie's Sewing Retreat for the first week of April!  I'm in a complete dither as to what project I should take that needs Gertie's help.  Possibly the Vogue Couture dress which had fitting problems (plus the dress is already made so essentially, it is muslin), or, and this is a wild thought, maybe I should try a pair of pants. Other than some boxers or pj bottoms, I have never made a pair of pants, and Gertie has a pattern out now with a pair.  How cool would it be to learn how to make pants from the person who drafted the pattern???

Still deciding . . .  Any suggestions welcome!