BEFORE & AFTER: PRINTED CUT OUT DRESS

It seems we're all looking forward to the coming summer months, so I thought I would share with you another of my 'cheat' dress projects - a summer cut out dress. It's not exactly a traditional sewing project because I'm not sure a wrapped bodice counts, but it's simple and effective and I thought you might find it useful. For me this dress brings to mind Carven, Mara Hoffman and all manner of other fun S/S12 collections. Apologies to all of those of you for whom it is the middle of winter, indeed it is for me too in Hong Kong, but I did this project while I was in Australia on holidays! Something to bookmark for summer perhaps?

You need:
- A thrifted midi skirt
- Scissors
- Needle and thread
- Straps to make the halter - I used raffia

How to:

1. Put the skirt on and measure the minimum length you want.

2. Cut off the skirt about an inch below the minimum length.

3. Hem the mini skirt.

4. Cut the piece of leftover fabric open so it's a long strip of fabric.

You will now have a mini skirt and a piece of fabric left over from the hem - it should be  atleast 15cm wide to do this and wider if you have bigger breasts/wider ribcage.  Check out the moving image below to see how I wrap the top. I'm wearing a bikini top in the demonstration but would usually do it without anything on and just wrap really tight for support. You can wear a bra if you prefer - just make sure to cover it properly.

5.Start with the fabric behind your back - tuck the part of the fabric across your back into the waistband of the skirt so it looks like the back of a dress.

6. Holding the two ends with your hands, bring the two ends around across your breasts.

7. Twist the pieces of fabric in the middlen at the bust and bring back around in the direction they came.

8. Tuck into the waistband.

9. To add straps - pin them in place once you are wearing the top, then remove the top and sew the straps on.

10. When you are ready to wear the dress out, sew the ends of the fabric to the underside of the waistband of the skirt using a few small stitches, so it doesn't move around while you wear it.

And there you have it - another simple minimal sewing dress. You could use this process to create the perfect little back dress, and even use contrasting fabrics/straps etc to created an entirely different look.

Wearing: DIY dress, Witchery Heels, Karen Walker Sunglasses.