Fitted Princess Seam Dress
Introducing a sophisticated women's sewing pattern for a fitted dress, elegantly shaped with princess seams from shoulder to hem and featuring short sleeves.
When To Wear
This classic dress is a versatile addition to any wardrobe, perfect for:
- Professional Settings: Ideal for the office or business meetings, offering a polished and appropriate look.
- Semi-Formal Events: Suitable for brunches, dinner dates, or gatherings where a refined yet comfortable style is desired.
- Everyday Elegance: A sophisticated choice for daily wear, easily dressed up or down with accessories.
Key Design Features
Silhouette: A fitted, straight sheath silhouette that gracefully falls to the knee.
Neckline: Features a classic round neckline for timeless appeal.
Seams: Elegant princess seams contour the bodice from the shoulder through the waist to the hem on both the front and back, ensuring a flattering fit.
Sleeves: Short, set-in sleeves provide a clean and polished armline.
Closure: An invisible zipper thoughtfully placed at the center back ensures a seamless finish.
Lining: Fully lined for structure, comfort, and a professional drape.
Level Of Difficulty
Intermediate. Requires skills in setting sleeves, installing an invisible zipper, and working with lining.
Fabric Recommendations
Select light to medium-weight woven fabrics with good drape and body, such as:
- Silk crepe
- Lightweight silk blends
- Crepe
- Viscose
- Rayon blends
Additional Supplies
- Lining fabric
- Fusible interfacing
- 1 zipper, 55 cm long
Attention! First, print the paper patterns and lay them out on the fabric width (fabric width can be from 90cm to 150cm) to determine how much material you will need (don't forget to account for paired and symmetrical pieces).
Fabric & Materials
You will need: Silk crepe, 115 cm wide - to determine the length of material needed for cutting, lay out the paper patterns on the fabric width and determine the required length; lining fabric, 140 cm wide; fusible interfacing; 1 zipper, 55 cm long. Fabric recommendations: light silk or blended fabrics.
Cutter's Must
- From main fabric:
- 1. Back center - 2 pieces
- 2. Back side - 2 pieces
- 3. Front side - 2 pieces
- 4. Back neck facing - 2 pieces
- 5. Front center - 1 piece on fold
- 6. Sleeve - 2 pieces
- From lining fabric: pieces 2,3,5 unchanged and 1 minus the width of the back neck facing
- Interfacing: back neck facing - 2 pieces
Sewing Instructions
- Stitch the center back seam between the slit notches. Finish and press open the seam allowances, press the edges of the zipper slit.
- Stitch the princess seams on the back and front, press open the seam allowances.
- Stitch the side and shoulder seams, finish and press open the seam allowances.
- Baste the zipper so that the teeth are not visible, and stitch at a distance of 0.5 cm.
- Stitch the back neck facings to the corresponding lining pieces. Stitch the lining pieces similarly to the main fabric pieces.
- Place the lining and dress right sides together, pin and stitch to the neckline edge. Trim the seam allowances close to the stitching. Turn the lining up and topstitch to the seam allowances close to the seam. Insert the lining into the dress, wrong side to wrong side, turn under and sew to the zipper tapes. Baste the lining to the armhole edges of the dress without turning under.
- Stitch the sleeve seams. Finish and press open the seam allowances. Finish the lower edges of the sleeves, press the hem allowance of the sleeves to the wrong side and hand stitch.
- Set in the sleeves. Ease each sleeve cap between the notches. To do this, run a long machine stitch on both sides of the marked sleeve setting line, slightly gathering the fabric on the bobbin thread. Place the sleeve and dress right sides together and pin into the armhole, first only in the lower, aligning the sleeve seam with the side seam and the transverse notches on the front and sleeve. Do not ease either the armhole or the sleeve! Pin the sleeve above the shoulder seam of the dress, aligning the transverse notch on the sleeve cap with the seam. Then pin the sleeve into the upper of the armhole, easing it slightly and evenly. Baste and stitch the sleeve from the sleeve side, starting the stitching at the sleeve seam. Finish the seam allowances together. On the cap section, press the seam allowances towards the sleeve.
- Finish the lower edge of the dress, press the hem allowance of the dress to the wrong side and hand stitch. Press the edges of the lower slit. Sew the slit allowances to the dress hem. The corners can be finished as an envelope.
- At the bottom of the lining, make a hem so that it is approx. 2 cm shorter than the dress. To prevent the lining from "peeking out" beyond the edges of the lower slit, cut it above the slit as a rectangle, rounding the upper corners. Make a narrow hem along the cutout and topstitch it.
