Slipped

Well. Vanessa's slip has spent the last two months in a crunchy little ball at the back of a cabinet.  I'm sure many of you can relate--after hours of drafting, snipping, and pinning, the initial garment looked like an enormous, filmy sack.

Yikes.

(like this!)

Too big in the waist, floppy in the bust.  It was, as they say, a wadder.  After a moderately-sized tantrum and a break of about six weeks, however, I was ready to return to the drawing board.

I pulled my depressingly-proportioned slip over my dressmaker's dummy and got to work on my adjustments.

 [As a side note, for any of you beginning sewers who are using a dummy for the first time, be sure to not only adjust it to your own measurements, but make whatever modifications you need to so that it also has your proportions.  For example, mine wears a stuffed bra, because when I open up the dials to the proper measurements, the bust is too flat and the chest is too deep and my garments end up too large at the back.]

bust dart

trim detail

In the end, I took the slip in two whole inches at the natural waist, tapering up to the bustline and hip.  I took one teensy (about 1/4 in.) dart in either side of the bust.  Then nothing was left but the most arduous task of all, the hemming.  And a finished product that is a good step away from the rough start!

If it was going to be a less-practical (ahem) piece of lingerie, I'd likely take it in even further at the waist.  However, this will be going over tap pants for a period costume I'll be wearing in a few weeks, so less cling is desirable.  I am in love with the velvet ribbon with crochet trim that I used to finish the neckline, so I'm glad I was able to salvage the rest of the garment.

Would I make it again?  Highly likely, since it's such a versatile and basic pattern, but will obviously take into account these alterations from the start--and try to keep my temper under control!