DIY Free People Inspired Cold Shoulder Dress

After a looong hiatus for college apps I decided that, with my newfound free time, I would actually make my dress for senior prom. Despite the fact it is both terrifying and very tempting to buy a dress...I want bragging rights maybe? Basically.

I did a prom round up in the past, but these are going to be more project specific... and hopefully they'll be more helpful too.

So while I prepare myself for the *agony* of dress making, I've been doing some research to get started and decide which one to go through with. First thought was an off the shoulder dress like these that cost $380- 608 from free people. 

Or the red dress from the Summertime Sadness music video... for y'all Lana del Rey fans.

I think that it wouldn't be too hard to kind of simplify these by using this tutorial for the top part (ignoring the shorts part), but extending the length of the top to a maxi dress length.

That would presumably make the basic structure of the dress. Then you could use elastic or a belt to cinch the waist and sleeves (if you'd like). For fabric chiffon, lace, and/or jersey were my first thoughts, but I think anything with a good drape would work. Play with adding a slit, different neckline/sleeves, and maybe even fabric paint...

OR you could leave it relatively simple and add a chunky necklace and cool earrings to make it more interesting. Or maybe like a hair fascinator or something. Be creative!

Best party dress how to videos

So I think it's pretty much a fact that making your dress is the cheapest thing to do-- unless you buy it from a thrift store or get it free as a gift or something which is awesome

But these are some of the videos I think are the best (and easiest for those w/out real training) on the youtubes... hopefully it will be helpful to y'all:

7iggy is a channel that has a bunch of videos, but here's a few

Threadbanger, because seriously they started all of this sweet, sweet madness

*Note: video has three parts, this is the first, but you can find them on her channel or on related videos

** giannyl has a TON of really simple tutorials (I've referenced them on previous blog posts) so check it out! I just put a few of them, but trust me the rest of her videos are worth checking out (dont forget to click read more because, surprise, there's more videos!)

How to make a long formal skirt

Inspiration:

Necessary measurements

• Hips -- It is important to take this measurement on the WIDEST part of your hips and add 1-2 inches to that. This does not include seam allowances.
• Waist: -- this is about where you want your dress to sit. 
• Waist to widest part of hip length

Materials

• 1-2Yards of (stretch) satin
• Measuring Tape
• Invisible Zipper
• Marking tool (I just used a color pencil)
• Basic sewing necessaries (sewing machine, matching thread, iron, scissors, etc)
• Your body, to test out the fit

Helpful tip: To be safe, it's always a good idea to go a few inches bigger than you think you need when cutting.

1) To start, I cut a trapezoid- like shape with my measurements on the bias. I made it about six inches longer and added about 3-4 inches extra on one side just in case. I also draped it on myself to check the measurements. Bias defined here

B/2= Half the waist

A/2= half the hip measurement

C= waist to hip measurement

2) To make sure it was symmetrical, I also cut on the fold of the center front (as seen in the crude paint drawing).

3) Then I draped it inside out as if I was going to wear it and pinned and marked a seam in the fit that I wanted. After marking on both sides of the seam, I took it off.

4) With about a half an inch seam allowance, I cut along the seam line I just drew.

5) As done, in the picture above I finished the edges with a zig zag stich and then did a blind hem at the bottom. This is a good video on how to do a blind hem:

** I hemmed before sewing the skirt together, but generally you want to do this last.

6) Add a waistband (if you want to) and then attach an invisible zipper, and sew the back seam closed. Press all seams. I learnt how to from the same series as the blind hem above.

Final product!!

Done, and happy sewing! (Just so you know, I was not wearing shoes in the picture, which is why there was so much of a train on the ground)

You could also make/buy a top and attach it to the skirt (in that case the zipper would have to incorporate the top) to make it a dress

If there is anything that was unclear in the instructions please leave me a comment! Also, I'm self taught, so any tips are welcome too

How to make a Franco Resort/Taylor Swift inspired evening dress

This is a project reminiscent of the Great Drapo video I had posted a while ago...

Seriously, this is so easy to do yourself, I had to point it out.

 You will need more fabric than the video shows, and you want it a bit longer than you think you need it to be so that you can adjust as needed. For my height ( I'm 5' 6'') I would get about 2 1/2 yards of fabric.

The video shows you the basic steps you would take-- taking the top corners of the fabric and draping it across your body, the corners pulled up to form the sleeves and the excess fabric on the open side pinned and sewed to create the side seam in the fit that you want. However,  you wouldn't just tie the corners, you would gather and sew them together so you don't have the bow of fabric (to get the look of the strap in the dress above). There also seems to be a strap underneath the arm to keep the dress in place and covering the bust area. This may or may not be necessary depending on how you drape it. 

It's a good idea to choose fabric that drapes well and to consider-- especially when buying prints-- what that pattern will look like on a large scale... and whether you want to deal with trying to them line up. Naturally stretch fabric would be easier to work with, but non stretch fabrics like satin, chiffon, etc would work well for a grander look. Bias cut fabrics, though a bit trickier to work with, would make the fabric drape better as well.

Remember to test it out before you begin sewing or chopping up the fabric

Another example (from the fabulous 1930's) is this red number in silk chiffon.

 To make this, you just wold leave a slit in the front of the fabric (maybe using multiple layers of chiffon and a lining fabric)

 

I did my own version using a synthetic stretchy fabric with awful amounts of loose glitter... 

I apologize for the equally awful photo