The Static Wriggle Dress

The senior detective lent back on his chair, and fixed Jorth with a baleful glare. "So, young lady" he said. "You've come in here declaring yourself to be the perfect candidate for the undercover surveillance position at the Vogue Patterns Archival Museum*. There's a cabal entrenched in there that are making sure valuable vintage patterns are never allowed to see the light of day, and we're determined to smash the ring preventing the sewing public from accessing and using them."

The detective paused the fill his pipe up with tobacco. Jorth sat impassively, watching him go through his particular brand of pipe-lighting ceremony, and used the time to ponder the job being discussed. It was horrid to think of all those gorgeous vintage patterns that were not being allowed to see the light of day. In a world that was overrun with slovenly dressers who thought that a g-string hanging out of saggy stained tracky daks paired with a too-tight t-shirt that was embellished with glittery lettered statements such as "Wannabe P0rn Star", classy design-driven vintage patterns were more important than ever! Jorth was determined to play a part in their rescue.

Finally, encased in a haze of blue smoke the detective started up again. With a hard look at Jorth he said "Listen up: not only will you need sewing experience and vintage pattern knowledge, but you'll also have to look the part and never let them suspect that you are working for the Vintage Pattern Wiki Freedom Squad**. How do we know that you can keep your cool?"

Jorth threw him a confident smile and said "Why, sir - I'm so darn cool that my dress has it's own built in air-conditioning. When do I start?"

After admiring the back of her dress, the detective grinned then pressed the intercom button on his desk. "Mandy? Organise the employment papers for Miss Jorth here. I think we've found our gal!"

Project Details
Pattern: McCalls 5845 (ugh! Out of Print, it appears)
Fabric: 1.15m Japanese cotton "Kobe Static Grey" from Tessuti Fabrics (sold out now, alas!), plus 1.15m silk/cotton voile for lining.
Notions: 30cm zip, hook and eye

I quite like how this dress is rather demure at the front, but a bit "hey, momma!" at the back. And, yes, it is nice and breezy on the back on a hot day! Not bad for a remnant piece.

The one change I did make was to sew my darts on the inside, instead of out the outside like the instructions requested. Forgive me, McCalls pattern designers, but I just thought that was a completely daft design concept. I felt it would make it look like you didn't KNOW that darts were meant to be on the inside. Plus, how would they sit nicely? Huh? Sorry, but no outside darts for me.

*Totally made it up. But wouldn't it be cool to be let in amongst all those vintage Vogue patterns for a day that I'm sure they have stored away somewhere. Or a week.
**Fighting the good fight on behalf of cloistered vintage patterns everywhere.