Metallic Cocktail Dress

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Shopping  for an upcoming high school dance and wanting something different, my daughter found it in a high end designer dress.  The unusual metallic/lycra fabric is what caught her eye.  I was surprised to find the very same fabric offered from the Fabric Club.   This is my rendition of the design.

I used elements of two different patterns created with My Pattern Designer software.  The dress is a wrap empire with an extended shoulder.    I ran a gathering thread for the shirring but wasn't happy with the results.  While the metallic fabric is thin, it is a bit on the wirey side and wasn't gathering well.  While experimenting, I discovered that water made it shrivel up so I sprayed it with water and hand scrunched it up.  After air drying I pulled the gathering thread and got the look I was after.  I stabilized the shirring line underneath with twill tape and then topstitched a strip of flat fabric over the line  for aesthetics.

The characteristics of this metallic fabric is what makes this dress "pop!"  The scrunching gave it depth, showing off the sheen and the lycra made it comfortable.  The fabric wasn't difficult to work with but does require a lining (I used tricot) as the raw edges are irritating to the skin.  The matching clutch helped to accessorize.

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Comments (3)

roxiecoxie writes: Very professional. You look good.
Posted: 6:46 pm on August 2nd

Clarasita writes: Absolutely gorgeous and a creative use of the fabric. Did you know that many metallic fabrics are actually electrically conductive? I saw a bit on the TV show "Make" (there is a magazine by the same name) and have investigated (but not found a good source) for thermochromic dye/paint. These change colors at different temperatures and can be lit up on metallic fabrics by using circuits etc. from old cell phones and other electronics. I may never do this, but it's seems fascinating how the technology can be applied to fabric. This is the same technology they use on those Coors beer cans that change color when they achieve a specifically cool temperature.
Posted: 9:14 pm on January 4th

ButtonsandSweetpees writes: This is beautiful, daughter and dress! I hope she knows how lucky she is to have a Mom that can sew as well as you do. Your dress is extremely flattering and sophisticated.
Posted: 6:53 pm on December 27th

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