Hey guys. I would like to introduce you to Anna, my newest piece for the Mood Sewing Network.
So, Oona and Sonja originally planned this silk challenge, in which they both would make Anna dresses with a notoriously difficult fabric. Once I got wind of what was going on, I walked straight into that party and invited myself to be the third wheel. I can’t help it; I love being part of a Mood Fabrics sandwich. Especially when it involves Thakoon Crepe de Chine. I mean, COME ON.
So, as we all know at this point – this is the Anna dress, the newest offering from By Hand London. For mine, I decided to try my hand at the maxi version with the slash neckline, after getting good results with my wearable muslin shorter version. Since the dress itself is very simple, it was the perfect excuse for getting my hands on the aforementioned silk Crepe de Chine.
I’ve never sewn with this type of fabric before, so I was admittedly a little nervous. Would I regret my decision?
Really, though, it wasn’t so bad! The crepe texture of this fabric actually made everything a LOT easier – it gave the pieces something to “grab” onto (as opposed to being all slinky and slippery all over the place). For cutting, I did pin my selvedges together to keep everything intact, and I used a lot of pins on the actual pattern pieces as well. One protip – make sure you use silk pins; this stuff is very delicate and normal pins may leave holes! I also used a microtex/sharp needle on my machine. The fabric fed through very smoothly (again, thanks crepe, for your grabby lil hands!) and it pressed with very little fuss. I like this stuff!
Construction was very straightforward. I finished every seam with a french seam, and tackled miles of blind stitching by hand along the thigh split, sleeves, and bottom hem (I just want y’all to know that I watched the Great British Sewing Bee while doing this, and as a result I am celebrity-in-love with Patrick. Don’t tell Landon.). The facing and zipper edges are finished with pinking – I actually deliberated on this a lot, pinking isn’t necessarily my favorite seam finish, but I felt it was important that the edges were not detectable from the outside of the dress as this silk is very thin. Fortunately, it doesn’t want to unravel much so I’m not concerned about that.
I also stabilized the slash neckline with scraps of selvedge from the silk – just pinned them within a bit of the seam allowance and staystitched them down with a tiny stitch. Keeps things nice and gape-free!
“Hold the phone, Lauren – did you say thigh high split???”
Uh huh, I sure did.
Truth, I normally don’t have much of a reason in my life to wear something like a floaty silk maxi dress with a thigh split. However, it was a fun project and I am totally fine with scheming up date ideas as an excuse to give this silk lady the exposure she deserves! Do you think eating pizza in this dress would be the worst idea ever? 😉
Now, I leave you with some walking photos. What would this post be worth without a couple action shots, amirite?
WOULD YOU JUST LOOK AT HOW THAT SILK FLOATS AND FLOWS.
Finally, here I am giving my best Angelina Jolie impression:
What do you think? Silk Anna yeah, or Silk Anna fuck yeah?
Psst! Mood Fabrics is running a one day flash sale for 20% off fabrics sitewide! If there was ever a good time to dip your toes into the world of silk, that would be now.
I think you should do everything in this dress! It’s stunning!
it looks amazing in silk!
That is completely gorgeous!
Amazing!! love it!
OMG! So beautiful! It looks so luxurious. I love the movement of the skirt. Off to check out that sale at Mood. Thanks for the heads up!
Oh, that blue! Love!
I think it would be fabulous to go groceries shopping as well. I love this version!
Like a Stepford wife!
When you own a dress like this, you can do anything you like in it! Lovely, unique dress, Lauren. Enjoy it! Don’t leave it hanging in the closet!
Wah! Pretty! I agree; you should do everything in this dress. Also, I need you to keep making things and cheering me up with alotta posts because I just got banned from knitting and sewing due to a knitting elbow (Lesson learned: knitting marathons are bad for you). Pretty please? 🙂
I will do my best! 😉
Very pretty!
Stunning fabric both type and colour
Isn’t crepe de chine the BEST??? I adored working with it too, and it’s a dream to wear 🙂 Personally I think pinking is a great option, especially with facing and zipper seam edges – I use that finish a lot 🙂
Gorgeous dress, and such a fun, sexy slit! Totally wasn’t expecting that…
You just may make me break my self-avowed pattern ban! That looks amazing on you!
I saw the Mood sale in my email and dang. . . might just take the plunge for that crepe de chine! You’ve convinced me that sewing crepe de chine might not be so terrifying as I thought.
This is soooooo beautiful Lauren…stunning in fact! And that’s the best Angelina Jolie imitation I’ve seen yet ;o)
I WANT THIS. Best item yet babe!
Emily Sprouse *Crazy Hearts: Nashville* Production Coordinator (615) 424-2941 cell (615) 234-9305 office emily.sprouse@gmail.com esprouse@eastern.tv
Gorgeous! I think you should plan a trip to see something at the Schermerhorn.
FUCK YEAH!
This is amazing and floaty and the most perfect color. I’m officially in love with Anna… oh, and you look flippin awesome, too 🙂
Fuck yeah!
Beautiful! Love that color, too 🙂 Well done – and I like the way you finished your seams. Thanks for the heads up on the Mood sale, too! Saw the email, but didn’t take time to read!
Everyone is making this dress and I need to get on the bandwagon. I mean, common, I’m known for dresses. lol. You know what I love about your posts? They always provide construction details that I jot down in my notebook in case I need to use them. Thank you!
You are more than welcome! I’m thrilled to know that people find my info helpful 🙂
I love the colour and style of this dress, very sophisticated! Talking of suphisticated people Patrick in his amazing suits on the GBSB, YUMMY😊
Right!? I love a man in a suit (and yay that Landon wears a suit every day haha), but a mean in a suit that HE MADE? Be still, my heart.
Wow, that is stunning! Shooting up there into my favourite Annas of all time!
This dress is gorgeous! You need to take it out from in front of the back yard shed and bring it Downtown! A classic dress that deserves to be Seen!
F**k yeah! That is one stunning dress. You look fab.u.lous in it!
Oh geez this looks soooooo great! I have actually NEVER dared to sew with any kinda silk, but it’s definitely time. Picked up some exquisite loot from Mood when I was in NYC and seeing your Anna is giving me the kick in the ass I need to get moving. Thanks for sharing! x
Stunning! And no, eating Pizza wearing this dress sounds like a fucking great idea.
Eating Fast Food in a silk gown, oh how I love a little decadence in every day boredom 🙂
And I never bought silk needles, so I can’t compare them, but I use insect needles for fine fabrics like those. They are very thin and longer than normal pins, I really love working with them.
Fabulous fabulous fabulous! You can tell how much you love this dress from the photos– you look straight VIXEN in all the shots!
Let’s be real, here, it’s really because my hair just looks really really good in these picture 😉 Haha! Seriously, thank you though ♥
Silk Anna = FUCK YEAH!!! You look absolutely stunning! And when you have such a pretty dress – you just MAKE UP occasions to wear it! Pizza date sounds fine to me!
Woops… That comment was from me… sorry for being all creepy and anonymous there!!
I’ve just bought the Anna pattern for my first sewalong. You’ve inspired me!
Super sexy. What a winner of a dress – the flow, the colour, the sheen, the thigh high split!… It has the works baby.
Now if you went to the supermarket in this little number I’m sure you would get some heads turning : )
Silk Anna eff yeah!
Winner winner chicken dinner! Silk Anna wins.
this is a stunner! and you should most definitely wear it everywhere. love that color on you!
This is gorgeous, I have bought silk for my Anna for a wedding im going to in Oct, but have no idea how to go about sewing it eeep.. Not sure how to press/prewash/prep eeeppp.
Mine is fairly see-through so was going to make a complete lining but not really sure how to hide the seams (French seam where I can) but not sure about the zip etc.. 😐 any words of wisdom would be highly appreciated.. 🙂
beccamurph_197@hotmail.com
X
Well, make sure you get the right needles and pins and that your scissors are good and sharp… when you’re cutting, try to do so in a way that keeps the silk from shifting around too much (Sunni and Jen both have great tutorials on how to do this). You should prewash your fabric the same way you plan on washing it irl… for me, that is dry-cleaning (and only if needed, I hate dry cleaning haha), so I didn’t need a prewash. For pressing, turn that iron on low and use a press cloth! Test on a scrap first to make sure you’ve got the right temp – with this silk, I could press it pretty high without getting a shine.
I think you should do a slip instead of a full lining – a lining wouldn’t be terribly hard to drop into such a simple dress, but it will mess with the lines (too much volume at the top, and the bottom is going to have to be beyond perfect to get everything good around the slit). With a slip, you could just finish every seam with a french seam, omit the facings and bind the neckline with self-made bias tape, and then throw a slip under it. I actually plan on doing this with my third Anna, but idk if I’ll get to sewing it up before you need the info (I hope too soon, though, since the fabric is super fall-themed!). With the zip+French seams, I actually did get stumped on that bit… what I did was leave the back open and then insert the invisible zipper as normal (make sure to pink those raw edges!). Right below the zip, I clipped all the way through the seam allowance, which then allowed me to finish seam under the zipper as a French seam. The snip doesn’t fray on my fabric, but if it does on yours you can always whipstitch it down. The rest of the seams should be easy to encase as a French seam, including the shoulders and waistband 🙂
Ok, that was a novel! Sorry! I hope this comment is helpful. You can always email me if you need more assistance 🙂 Good luck with your dress and hey, thank you for your comment 🙂
Thankyou so much ❤ .. replied to your email 🙂 X
You totally nailed it! I’ve been thinking about the Anna ever since it came out, but your dress is the dress that has made me a complete convert! I’m totally making it in silk. Boom!
A big F**K YEAH! Oh my gosh, it is gorgeous. Your sewing techniques really show what a wonderful seamstress you are!
Um yep, totally gorgeous and exactly what I’m thinking of making my Anna out of, something luxurious and yummy in a solid color.
Absolutely fabulous. The bodice fit is fantastic. Pizza would be fine but I see a glamorous cocktail.
Hello! Just found your blog recently and I’m a fan already – great inspiration for me as I’m just trying out dressmaking for the first time. Love this dress – it’s on my sewing to-do list for when I have a bit more confidence!
Stunningly beautiful – both you and the dress.
Snap! I just started making this version too! Thank you for the tip on stabilizing the neckline – I was going to interface the facing, but your way seems much lighter. This Anna looks super slinky! I can’t wait to finish mine…!
You look freaking awesome. Angelina go home!
i say yes on the pizza!! just have a fancy drink with it too 🙂
I was waiting the whole post for the Jolie leg pose to happen, patiently even.I didn’t even speed scroll to just see all the pics. I kept going “She’s gotta do it, I mean who can make a thigh high split and not even….” Hah! It looks great on you. If I have to sew with silk, I like grabby silk more than slippery.
haha this comment pleases me to no end 😀
Omigawd, looks SOOOO hawt! And hells yeah, eat your heart out boys, there’s a new Angelina in town!
Oh, definitely “Silk Anna fuck yes” from this corner. And you should not ever wear any color but that beautiful royal blue.
Silk Anna fuck yeah!
Also, Patrick Grant: yes. I nearly applied for the next season of GBSB just to get myself in the same room as him.
Beautiful. Great choice on both the color and the crepe. Also like the idea of using the selvedge to stabilize the neckline. And hello, thigh! 😉 Now that you have this dress, Landon needs to take you out more.
Peanut butter and jealous!!!!! Love this dress so much!!!
AAAAHHH FANTASTIC!
what a stunning dress, you look amazing!! that blue is perfection.
Fabulous! it really looks great on you
Your angelina jolie impression is perfect! As is your anna. You’ve inspired me to work with more difficult fabrics – thank you!
I’m still not sold on the idea of a maxi for myself, but this is really lovely and dreamy on you. And silk crepe de chine is just divine, isn’t it? I don’t sew with it nearly enough, need to do something about that. Lovely finishing on the inside – it looks like a vintage piece from in there!
This is actually the first version of an Anna that I really like! I wasn’t such a fan of the pattern, but your dress is gorgeous! You look amazing in it!
I really love this! I love all things blue, and your fabric looks like it has amazing drape! I’m tempted to buy the Anna dress myself, but maybe I’ll wait until next Summer – not so practical in London in Autumn/ Winter!
This is hot . Seriously hot. I have no words.
Wahou ! I’m so love with your Anna dress ! It’s really great on you ! And the last pic, stunning !
OK, that’s it. I’m buying this pattern. Dude.
I’m in love.
That is all.
Absolutely stunning, Lauren – both you and the dress 🙂 That fabric is utterly sensational and the rich deep blue is just gorgeous. LOVE!