Chambray Lace Front Dress

I have a new goal for the summer to try patterns again that I have made before.  I hope to become a little more adventurous when it comes to making minor tweaks to sewing patterns.  I really would like learn more about getting a better fit plus I like to experiment with different fabrics.  This cute chambray dress was made with New Look 6448, View B.  I made the maxi dress version here a couple of months ago, and loved how it turned out.  For this dress I thought I would do a chambray version in the shorter dress because I love how it looked on the pattern packaging.  Plus I have been seeing chambray dresses for the upcoming summer season and I have been wanting to sew with chambray.

The chambray fabric that I used is from Fabric.com.  The leather lace tie and brass grommets are from Joann's.  I also used denim thread for this project.

When I was sewing the maxi dress I was on the fence about cutting the bodice one size bigger (I cut a size 10 for both dresses).  I originally liked how the maxi was fitted on the top and then flared out. The first dress was little snug getting on but once my arms were through and the lace was tied up I liked the fit.  Since the chambray fabric is a little more stiff than the rayon its a even more snug getting on, and I realized that this fabric doesn't have any give like the rayon.

So I should have gone with my instinct and sized up to 12 in the bodice.  But hey!  This is why I love sewing and continue to do it.  I learn from each project and especially learn a lot about fabric and sizing.  I have dabbled in mixing one size for the top and another for the bottom for dresses.  I am still not completely comfortable doing this, but I am realizing that it's usually necessary.  I will be back with some more repeats and share some clothes that I made last summer.