Well, I’ve got a new sewing project to share. Seems like I always gravitate toward those 1970s Butterick Young Designers, and this time was no exception. I was looking for a fairly straightforward shirtdress, and this pattern from Daniel Hechter fit the bill.
As with so many designs from the 70s, the collar looked huge in the drawing, so when I cut the piece, I made it considerably smaller. Still, after stitching up the thing, I still thought it was just too large. If you are a sewer, you know that at that point, the thing to do is to take the collar off and recut it. But after removing the collar, with the band still attached, I decided that I liked the look of the dress with just a collarband.
Too big…
so a whole new look.
And here is the finished product. I didn’t make the self-belt. They always come off as looking too matchy-matchy for my taste. And I have about a dozen belts and scarves that will work nicely at the waist. When I think of chambray, I automatically think of red accessories, but what other color would make this look a little fresher?
Yellow is always good with blue. And the band collar looks very clean and sharp.
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Before I even finished the arIticle and simply looked at the dress. I immediately thought “red shoes”. I love scarfs, so I would pair this with something with reds and yellows. As a matter of fact, almost any color can accent this dress. Great job!
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Lovely! You did a great job on the details!
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Mint green! With some green wedges or flats and maybe a silk scarf with some green and blue in it.
I like it better without the collar too. So simple and chic.
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You’ve done a great job there Lizzie! I also prefer the dress without the collar. And agree that almost any colour would work with this dress. A silk scarf, wedge sandals and large shades would look oh so chic! 😉
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My vote is for yellow, too. Of course, I always vote for yellow for most anything!
It’s a shame I didn’t find you sooner. I gave away dozens of 1960’s-70”s patterns a couple of months ago to a friend who was going to take them to rural Mexico.I know they’ll put them to good use, but you might have appreciated the styles more.
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I think I just heard a collective intake of breath when you wrote that you “gave away dozens” of great vintage patterns (and fabric, I dare say?). Next time, come on over and offer ’em up, we will fight over them and leave only torn scraps for the dogs!
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I vote yellow! Or maybe even a bright orange. Chambray seems neutral, like denim. I love this dress–and love it collarless.
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yellow or emerald green would be good with this to give it some spring zing
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Yellow or orange always looks great with blue. Or you could team it with a tan brown belt?
Love the dress!
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Love this! I’d pair it with brown leather or a floral scarf 🙂
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Very crisp. I’m going through a pale yellow phase at the moment, so I’d be matching it up with a yellow belt and 3/4 cardie!
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I appreciate all the suggestions. I guess the best thing about a dress like this is that there are so many different ways to accessorize!
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Just had to leave my two cents: the dress looks smashing with the band collar! I concur that red accessories, like a vintage or vintage style canvas D-ring belt would set off the look perfectly.
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