I sewed this Vogue 1501 dress because the internet told me too.

Really.

There is no way in a million trillion light years that I would have picked up this pattern of my own accord, based on its envelope.

But then I saw what Heather Lou of Closet Case Patterns did with it (who else?). And Katie of What Katie Sews. And Jasika Nicole.

And then I wanted one too.

And this is why instagram is such a raging marketing success. It makes us need things….

But I’m not complaining. Because, well, look at my new dress…

Rachel Comey for Vogue

Since I’ve spent pretty much my entire sewing life being an indie pattern aficionado, I’m not really on top of the way the Big 4 work.

So I hadn’t actually realised until I started doing research for this make that the Vogue designer patterns are actually based on patterns that the designers release as garments in their RTW collections. I had just thought that the designer did something specifically for Vogue but not that it made it possible for you to sew your own version of RTW designer garments.

So, since I really didn’t know this, I pinkie swear that I had already bought my fabric and decided on my colour scheme before I even realised that there existed a RTW version with pretty much the exact colour scheme that I’ve used – here it is as the Rachel Comey Delane dress.

I guess this is one more reason to like using Vogue designer patterns. I usually conceptualise sewing as a very expensive hobby. Given how much I love rather costly fabrics, it usually costs me more to sew a garment than it would to buy a garment. At least at the kind of stores where I would usually buy garments. Playing around with designer patterns is kind of fun because their absurd RTW price tags, allow me to say things like “I saved 300 euros by making it myself!”. Of course, I would never have purchased anything at those level of RTW prices in the first place, but it’s still nice to feel, for once, that sewing is actually cheaper than shopping RTW!

Double Gauze for a Heatwave

This dress will forever be known to me as the “Heatwave dress”.

Because there is nothing I love wearing more in hot weather than double gauze cotton. I even find it lighter and more breathable than linen.

So as the summer weather actually stuck around this year and I went more than a month without needing to wear tights (seriously, that never happens in Holland), I decided that the time was ripe to make some more actual summer clothes.

Not that I need much encouragement! I loooove summer sewing! And since I’ll be visiting Australia this Christmas, I tell myself I get two summers this year! Surely that justifies some sewing!!

This well-known fabric is, of course, Atelier Brunette’s Stardust Night and Stardust Ochre double gauze.

Once I had decided to make this dress, I also wanted to make it quickly! Which kind of led me to “cheat” a little on the sewing. Because whenever I’m sewing a real summer-appropriate dress, I always have this feeling like “I need to hurry up and finish or else summer will be over by the time I’m done”.  So I made a few modifications to make the dress simpler. I skipped the gusset/shoulder pad piece. I also skipped the roleau button closure at the back of the neck.

Sewing Vogue 1501

My Vogue 1501 is a size 14, but I did have to add just a couple of centimetres around the waist to make sure it fit.

In the whole “indie pattern vs big 4” debate, I feel that this is one issue which often gets overlooked. With indie patterns you (usually) get all the sizes.  I recently noticed that Megan Nielsen’s expanded size rise means that her patterns will now be offered in two size choices but she has included an overlap of 4 sizes which appear in both the smaller and larger size variants. This is how it should be!!

With Vogue patterns, in my experience to date, there is no size overlap at all. So you simply have to chose to buy the pattern in the smaller size range (XS, S, M or similar) or the larger size range (L, XL, XXL or similar). Since my body falls at the top of the smaller size range and the bottom of the larger size range, I’m sh@t out of luck. This problem is exacerbated by the fact that the finished garment measurements are not on the outside of the pattern envelope, so you can’t even use those to guide your choice. And there’s no way I’m paying to buy both size ranges!

So, anyways, rant over.

Luckily the difference between the size 14 and what I needed was so minor that it wasn’t an issue in this case.

But, still, availability of all sizes when you buy a pattern is yet another reason to love indie sewing patterns.

I don’t have too much else to say about the pattern itself. Everything fit pretty true-to-size. And this pattern features one of my favourite things of all – an all-in-one facing. It’s so nice to have a facing which doesn’t wriggle out of place and get all folded out of shape.

The only step which I found a bit tricky was attaching the waistband facing. You attach it like you would an overall bib but it’s a bit more cumbersome to do and stitch around because you actually have an entire shirt, not just an bib, to contend with as you sew.

Vogue 1501: She’s a weird one

So, the verdict: it’s odd, but I like it.

And it’s definitely not the weirdest of the Vogue Rachel Comey designs out there! And speaking of Rachel Comey designs and half tucks, I have developed a bit of an obsession with the idea of recreating my own version of her RTW Mure Dress. Except you know, not $700 and not made out of bloody polyester!!!!!

Even though Vogue 1501 is not a shape I would usually wear, I feel sleek and a little edgy in it. So, I’m definitely calling this one a sewing win!

Really the only down side is one which has already been mentioned a few times: this dress is totally impossible to fold or hang. And ironing is a bit of a challenge too…

Oh and, finally, a little P.S! If you like to get your blog hits through Bloglovin’, feel free to follow me over there: you can find me here. And you can find me on Instagram here.