Cashmerette - Ahead of the Curve - Foxhill Dress

Sewing.patternreview ran a contest in 2022 challenging participants to make a garment using only their overlocker/serger and overstitch machines. 

I only used my overlocker and coverstitch machine for the construction of this dress. This was part of the challenge for me as I chose not to baste anything by hand and couldn’t baste by machine. There was a lot of precise pinning to get the waist and side seam to skirt seam lined up with the contrast stripe detail, and I only ran over 1 pin! 

Book:

Ahead of the Curve - A perfect book for the beginner who has trouble finding commercial patterns that fit first time! 

The fit clinic is an invaluable resource to all sewist's making their own clothing or making clothing for others. I learned a lot specifically about accomodating my full bust with patterns I already have that are not designed for a G cup. 

All the Cashmerette pattens I have made so far have fit my 95% first time!

This paper pattern comes with the book Ahead of the Curve by Jenny Rushmore. Also included in the book is a woven dress - Honeybourne, woven sleeveless top - Kersoe, long sleeve raglan T-shirt - Stanway and woven pants - Magna. 

The Foxhill dress is designed for a ponte knit, princess seam bodice with a face V neckline, short sleeved and swishy gored skirt. 

Pattern Sizing:
UK 16-36
US 12-32
Cup size C/D - E/F - G/H for all sizes.
I made the US size 18 G/H cup

Fabric:

Ponte blue geometric print from Ferrier Fashion Fabrics’s.
Grey on black spot heavyweight ponte from my stash.
Black and white stripe ponte in two different widths. 

I used the "Pret'a'template app on my iPad to design my dress using the basic shape of the Foxhill dress

Before embarking on my final dress I made a toile of the Foxhill in scuba to test the fit. I had some discount print scuba which I used because it had the right weight to it and I could sew it all on the overlocker. 

the pocket added to the side front panel of the skirt

neck line facing is understitched with the chain stitch of the coverstitch machine. didn't really work that well as the facing would still curl up and was visible from the right side

The pocket opening is topstitched with the coverstitch to keep it flat and reinforce the seam to stop it stretching

Fit alterations 

I did a bust apex adjustment by lowering it 1”. I always do this on Cashmerette patterns.

Design alterations 
For the design I was inspired by a dress I already own. It had a skirt that ballooned at the hem line but was fitted at the bodice. 

I wanted this dress to go with my Endless Combinations wardrobe so it is in blue, grey, black with a black and white stripe accent. 
I moved the waist seam up 1” so it sit closer to my underbust.

I wanted to add front pockets into the dress. There is a free download on the Cashmerette website Blog for side seam pockets. 

free side seam pockets for the Foxhill available on the website 

I wanted a different style to these so I did my own thing. 
I decided the best location would be between the side seam and the side front seam. The gap between these two seams is the perfect width for a pocket opening.

 
I did the wearable toile of the Foxhill dress first to test the shape and placement of the pockets I wanted. 

princess seams in bodice highlighted with stripe flat piping

I drafted a curve that would become the pocket opening so it would continue on from the princess seam in the bodice that finished at the waistline. 

bodice princess seam continues to the pocket in the skirt

I cut out the curved shape from the top of the side front skirt. I drafted a pocket facing which had the same curve. I added interfacing to the pocket facing curve to stabilise it. I drafted a pocket bag which started at the waist and was 12” long.

side front skirt panel with curved pocket

The curve I drew finished 5” down from the waist at the side seam. I also mirrored this curve on the side back of the skirt. 

back side skirt panels with the curved insert to mirror the pocket on the front

The insert panel on the back skirt meets the front pocket at the side seam and the princess seam on the back bodice and makes a half circle on the skirt.

To make the side bodice and pocket curve insert a feature I used the spot ponte for the side front and side back of the bodice and also the pocket bag and side back skirt curved insert. I didn't have enough of this fabric to pattern match so I didn't bother to try at all. I thought about removing the seams from the side and having it just an oval piece but without the seams it wouldn't hug the body so I scrapped that idea.

To really define the curves on the pockets and princess seams, I used strips of a narrow black and white stripe fabric in the seams.

I cut strips 1 & 1/4 wide of the stripe fabric, I folded these strips in half, pressed them and pinned them to the curved seam edge, then I overlaid the pocket facing on top and re-pinned the seam. I overlocked the pocket facing to the skirt around the curve then snipped the curve being careful not to cut the outside needle stitching as this would be the only stitch line holding the seam together as it wasn’t being straight stitched. 

the wrong side of the topstitching on the pocket pining

I pressed the seam with the seam allowance towards the skirt then coverstitched it flat which added security to the seam not unraveling.

I overlocked the bottom of the pocket bag to the bottom of the pocket facing. Next I folded the pocket bag up and pinned it to the side seams of the front side skirt. Then I pinned the front skirt onto the side front skirt.

pocket bag pinned to side front at side seam

Skirt
I changed the shape of the front and back skirt pieces to include a bulge at the bottom. I wanted some extra fabric to balloon out a bit.

skirt front with expanded fulness

I also shaved off more of the fullness on the side panels. 

Before I could pin the side front to the front I had to overlock the edge of the front skirt from the start of the bulge down. I did this so I could pull on the needle threads and gather up the extra length so the front skirt seam would be equal to the side front skirt seam. Once the excess fabric was eased and pinned into place I could overlock the seam. 

I carefully pinned the side front and side back skirts together so the curved section matched up and overlocked the seam. 
I inserted the back skirt the same as the front with the ease stitching.

On the hemline I made a seperate band from the wide and narrow stripe fabrics. I stretched the wide stripe slightly to fit the front skirt panel only. On the side front and side back I used a piece of the narrow stripe fabric. It was much smaller than the width of the sides at the hem. I pleated the side panels hem to fit the band so the skirt would balloon out at the sides. I overlocked the band to the skirt hem then coverstitched the seam allowance down.

hem seam allowance coverstitched down

Bodice. 
I really wanted to define the shape of the princess seams so I added the stripe detail to the front and back princess seam-lines, pressed and coverstitched them. 

The Foxhill dress has a faced V neckline. On the wearable toile I made I didn’t really like the shape of the neckline or the size of the facing. For my new version of the dress I went with a round neckline and I used the stripe fabric to finish the edge.

On the neckline I didn’t wrap my binding around the raw edge of the neckline because that would need a sewing machine to sew it in place. Instead to keep with the theme of the contest I cut a strip of fabric and sewed the short ends together trying to maintain the depth of the stripe so you can’t see the join. 

I pinned this right sides together to the neckline and overlocked it. 
I press the binding up and coverstitched the seam allowance down. 

Sleeves

I used the sleeve head pattern piece from the Foxhill dress so it would match the armhole shape but it’s only a short sleeve and I wanted 3/4. I lengthened the sleeve pattern by using the sleeve pattern from the Cashmerette Pembroke dress (which I had toiled earlier).

The first sleeves I added did not enhance the design so I changed them

Originally I had long sleeves cut from a grey and black narrow stripe fabric that worked with my other fabrics. I sewed these on but didn’t like the effect. They were flat and boring. The fabric didn’t pop for me and in hadn’t used it any where else on the dress. I change to the black and white stripe with the contrasting cuff and made the length 3/4. I really liked this version as it balanced everything out because it matched the flat piping and hem detail. 

Foxhill dress worn with Jalie Tania Coatigan