Short Sleeve Lace Bodice Dress with Eight-Panel Flared Skirt
A women's floor-length dress with a high waist seam, a double-layer guipure bodice with short sleeves and rouleau-loop button fastening at the back, and an eight-panel crepe-satin skirt that is close-fitting over the hips and flares at the hem.
When To Wear
- At a wedding, as a guest or as a simple bridal dress.
- For a formal dinner or an evening party in summer.
Key Design Features
Silhouette: Fitted bodice with a raised waist seam; long, close-fitting skirt that flares from the knee down.
Length: Floor length.
Neckline: Round, the outer and inner lace layers stitched together and edgestitched.
Sleeves: Short set-in sleeves of two lace layers, stitched together at the lower edge and edgestitched, cap eased in.
Front: Lace bodice with darts and princess seams.
Back: Lace bodice opens at the centre back with buttons and narrow rouleau loops; below the waist seam, a concealed zip in the centre back seam of the skirt.
Skirt: Eight panels (centre and side front, centre and side back), joined by princess, side, centre front and centre back seams; the flare is cut into the panels.
Finishing: Lace seam allowances trimmed to 0.75 cm, serged together and pressed to one side; waist seam pressed down; hem turned under and topstitched.
Lining: The bodice is lined with a second layer of the same lace.
Level Of Difficulty
Intermediate. Sewing guipure in two layers, a row of rouleau loops, a concealed zip, a long paneled skirt.
Fabric Recommendations
For the skirt, silk draping fabrics such as crepe-satin; for the bodice, lace fabric such as guipure.
Additional Supplies
- Guipure for the bodice and sleeves
- Crepe-satin for the skirt and the button loops
- 1 concealed zip
- 12 buttons
Cutter's Must
- From guipure lace (outer and inner layer):
- Middle Front – 2 pieces on fold
- Side Front – 4 pieces
- Detachable Side Piece Front – 4 pieces
- Middle Back – 4 pieces
- Sleeve – 4 pieces
- From crepe satin:
- Middle Lower Back – 2 pieces
- Lower Side Back – 2 pieces
- Middle Lower Front – 2 pieces
- Lower Side Front – 2 pieces
- Bias strip for the loops, total length 65 cm, width 3 cm (no pattern piece)
Sewing Instructions
- On the lace pieces (outer and inner bodice separately), stitch the darts, the front princess seams, the side and shoulder seams, and the sleeve seams.
- Trim the seam allowances of each seam to 0.75 cm, serge them together and press to one side. Press the darts towards the center.
- From the bias strip, stitch the narrowest possible rouleau, cut it into pieces about 5 cm long and shape each piece into a loop.
- Pin the loops to the center back edge of the left outer Middle Back at equal intervals, with the tops of the loops lying on the back and the ends on the seam allowance. The size of the loop depends on the button diameter.
- Place the outer and inner lace bodices right sides together and stitch the center back edges and the neckline. Trim the seam allowances to 0.5 cm, turn the bodice right side out and edgestitch along the center back edges and the neckline.
- Baste the lower edges and armhole edges of the two layers together without turning them under.
- Place the Sleeve pieces together in pairs, stitch along the lower edges, turn and edgestitch. Baste the open upper edges together.
- Set in the sleeves, easing in the sleeve caps. Trim the seam allowances close to the stitching and serge.
- On the skirt, stitch the princess seams, the side seams and the center back seam, leaving an opening for the zipper at the top of the center back seam.
- Stitch the skirt to the bodice and press the seam allowances downwards.
- Insert the zipper so that the teeth are not visible, turning under the upper ends of the zipper tape.
- Turn the hem allowance to the wrong side, turn under the raw edge and topstitch.
- Sew the buttons to the right back bodice opposite the loops.
