Moving forward, let me introduce you to my summer version of Butterick 5951. I choose a cotton black and white polka dot lawn and fully lined it with a lightweight white cotton lawn. Here are the changes I made for the summer version. I shortened the sleeve length. Took a little of the poof out of the gathered sleeve cap. Shortened the length by 3 1/2" inches; however, instead of cutting the fabric shorter I made a 3 1/2" hem.............that way I can always lower later on. Also, I created a 3 1/2" hem for the lining too.
 |
| Summer Polka Dot dress |
There is a lot of hand stitching involved in this dress, including sewing down the bodice lining to the zipper. (I did cheat and machine sewed the lining to the waist seam.) However, I did use a catch stitch and hand-stitched the lining hem and dress hem. The hem is really beautiful. Please note: I used silk thread for all the hand stitching.
 |
| underlining and handstitching |
This dress took about a couple of weeks to sew up. I had all the pieces cut and marked a few months ago and was finally able to give it the attention it deserved. This dress will be a life saver for home in New Orleans........where the weather is subtropical. I look forward to wearing it and knowing that it will be cool and comfortable.
Fabric: my stash. I did purchase the black and white flocked polka dots from JoAnns about a year ago. The white cotton lawn/ lining I purchased from Online fabric store This is where I buy my solid cotton lawn because it is so lightweight and easy to work with.
 |
Definitely I will be continuing to sew up lightweight clothing for our new home.
