A Stripey Little Number

I first saw this dress on Shannon and more recently on Lara.  After seeing Lara's version I rushed out and bought New Look 6071.  I paid full price no less, something I don't usually do.  I had this lovely black and grey cotton lycra that had been previously ear marked as a tee and I envisioned it made into this dress although was a little unsure about how the stripes and the draping across the bust would turn out. 

My initial plan was to have the sleeves short but once I had finished I decided that I liked the idea of a 3/4 sleeve, hence the band at the bottom.  It made my job of hemming the sleeves easier and I think the band with the stripes running in the opposite direction gives at dress some interest.  The only other change I made to the dress was to grade the skirt from a size 10 to a size 12.  I needn't have bothered though because the skirt had quite a bit of fullness in it anyway but a little extra movement in a casual skirt can't be a bad thing. 

I had read that this dress had quite a deep and revealing neckline but I was pleasantly surprised to find that this one, although low, certainly wasn't revealing on me.  Because the weather is less than tropical still though, I decided today to wear it over a lace edged tank for extra warmth.

I really like this dress.  It is both comfortable and stylish and would look equally good with boots and tights or sandals so it will make a practical transitional dress.  Today I am wearing it with tights and leather boots by Isabella Anselmi.

Would I make this dress again?  Yes, definitely!  I would like to have a go at making it into a tee shirt to wear with jeans.