African Wax Print Dress

My African wax print dress project.

The Dress

For quite a while now I’ve wanted to try a project using an African wax print. There are so many beautiful examples all over the internet and in real life where I live (in the Maryland/DC area). The best thing about this fabric option for me is that there are so many different places here to buy authentic prints locally. So after reading Threads Magazine (issue #202), I decided now was as good a time as any. I purchased my material from a local fabric store. Then I had to decide on what dress pattern I was going to use.

I decided to use Simplicity 8384. This was a great pattern choice for this because I wanted to make something without a lot of details. The fabric should stand alone as the focal point in this case. Because I have made this before, I didn’t need to make any adjustments. Like with the previous dress I made, I used snaps on the inside of the placket rather than buttons on the outside. I didn’t want buttons competing with the fabric design.

woman wearing Simplicity 8384 dress back view

The Fabric

For those of you who don’t know, African wax print fabric is sold in 45″ widths only. The color saturation is such that either side can be used as the “right” side of the fabric (at least for this piece). The width is definitely something to keep in mind if you are looking to buy a piece of fabric but you’re not sure what pattern you might use or what you might actually make with it.

close up photo of the African wax print fabric

All in all, I’m glad I finally bought and used this fabric. I have seen so many beautiful dresses, suits and skirts made from this type of fabric both on the internet and in real life, that it was something that I really wanted to use. While I’m not giving up my love of floral fabrics, I always want to give something different a try! Besides, having more fabric options is a great thing in my opinion.

The Pattern

Simplicity 8384 pattern envelope front — This is the pattern I used for this dress

New Video on YouTube

In this short, 3 minute video I give some tips on how I trace BurdaStyle Magazine patterns. You can watch here or check it out on YouTube.

Linda Tunic – One Pattern, Three Ways

A while ago I bought the “Linda” tunic pattern from Angela Wolf patterns. I knew it would be versatile and relatively easy to make. Well, so far, I’ve made it three times using different materials and with different alterations. It is a pattern I definitely love and will be using more and more.

Above is the first version of the tunic I made. The only variation on this is the short sleeve. I used a polyester blend for this that’s lightweight so it has a nice drape to the fabric.

This went together very quickly and easily.

The second one was a dress I made using the same pattern but extending the length about 15 inches and evening out the hem (so it wouldn’t be a high-low hem).

I used cotton eyelet and lined it with solid cotton fabric since I didn’t want the dress to be see-through. The neck and arm openings are finished with binding and the collar was eliminated for this one.

Last was this yellow top made the same as the blue, but the next size up.

This is made from cotton gauze. Gauze is a nice material to use for summer because it’s a breezy fabric for hot days.

So, if you’re looking for an easy top that can be made from different materials in different ways, I would definitely recommend this top. There are so many variations that it is almost unlimited.

Until next time…