This weekend I made a Washi Dress by Made by Rae. I used some double gauze from Mood Fabrics in quartz pink. I love this dress so much. I plan on making several of them. I feel like it’s flattering, comfortable, and it has pockets. What’s not to love? I already have another cut in some yellow-orange linen that I will likely sew this week.
I’d never used double gauze before, and I love the feel of it. I think if the color was even a teeny bit lighter this might be too sheer, but it seems ok. It’s lightweight and seems perfect for summer. I totally ignored the washing instructions and went ahead and dried it. It changed the texture a bit to do so, but I’d rather err on the size of drying it before sewing, rather than sewing it and accidentally drying it and shrinking it later. It feels super squishy after washing and drying and I really enjoy the texture.
I thought this dress would be a lot harder than it was in actuality. I was nervous about the fabric since it was my first time sewing with it. I anticipated some shifting while cutting, but that was all fine. The pattern includes some shirring with elastic thread on the back to gather the dress. For this the pattern has you use elastic thread on the bobbin side and regular thread on the top side. I tested things out with some scrap fabric. I did struggle with this part a bit. I struggled with the first two rows of the shirring on the dress even after testing on fabric. I think the problem was that I was trying to stretch out the fabric as I was putting in the elastic and that made too much of the elastic on the inside, making it not effectively stretchy. I had to remove the first two rows of shirring and then redid them with a more relaxed approached and it worked. My mistake on this part was to use a little blue chalk to make the lines. It did not brush off as easily afterward as I expected, but I think it will wash out when I wash this in the washer.
My other mistake in this was putting on the sleeves on the wrong side of dress! I got through sleeves and bias tape for both armholes before I realized my mistake. I was sooooo pissed at myself for a minute. This fabric was not easy to take apart and ripped a bit at the edges. It’s definitely more delicate than some of the other fabrics I’ve used, but otherwise was not difficult to sew. I want to use double gauze for some pants, and more dresses, and everything else!
That is soooo flattering on you! I would make one in every color and pattern. Beautifully done.
Thanks so much!
What a gorgeous pattern! I want to go make one right now! Thanks for helping me discover it 🙂
Beautiful! 👏🏻👏🏻
A very flattering dress. Great job!! I love seeing all the summer things you’ve sewn.
That is so pretty! I love the color and the fabric – it is definitely a perfect summer dress. You did a really nice job on this. I would never attempt that gathering but it does make the dress fit so nicely. And POCKETS! Perfect! Well done!
It’s all about the gathering! I think that would forgive many fit issues.
Stunning work! Love the color and the fit on you. 😊
As a sewing newcomer, making that dress is one of my goals. But now I’m not so sure. That elastic in the back sounds really hard! but you did a great job, and you look great in it!
It’s not so bad! Just do some test fabric. I think the elastic combined with the double gauze was the tricky element for a first go round. I think it would be easier with a simpler fabric.
Aw that’s soooo pretty! I would definitely be making multiples, in every colour.
Thank you! It’s definitely going to be a favorite.