If you were following our Christmas Dress Sew-a-long, get ready for a jam packed final blog post!!

First of all, let's talk about the finishing touches you will need to complete your dress.....

We are on the final post of this sew-along with fabric from WTF. It really is a beautiful dress- very simple but the fabric is sumptuous! I wanted to make sure the finishing touches were not going to let the dress down. In my head I had a Downton Abbey style dress with a cord belt. So at The Knitting and Stitching Show I bought some cord and some tassels from Aarti J to put on the end of the cord. I also called at Duttons for Buttons so I could add a beautiful button…..when the lady pointed out the Yorkshire Rose button there was no other choice! I am a Yorkshire girl!

Once you have your preferred notions, you're in a position to complete your dress. Here's the finished product from Amanda:

And here she is wearing it to a Christmas party and looking stunning!

Here is the Christmas Party Dress at the Christmas Party! Terrible photos I am afraid, but proof that I wore it!

Click here to see more!

We really hope you've enjoyed this sew-a-long and that it has inspired you to think about making your own dress for special occassions, be it Christmas, as a wedding guest, or just replacing a beloved black lace party dress!

It's time for Part 3 of our sew-a-long Christmas Party dress with Amanda.

In our previous blog posts, Amanda has showed you how to get started and how to work on the bodice of the dress. To make a start, you obviously need the dress kit, which you can buy here. We've discounted this especially for our readers to ensure you save money and get a bargain!

Today's instalment is all about the skirt, and joining the bodice and skirt together. Over to Amanda!

The skirt was also an easy sew on the Christmas party dress. The style is a blouson effect and has an elastic casing to bring the fabric in at the waist.

I made sure that my skirt was going to be the correct length so I could use the scalloped edge of the lace for the hem.

The scallop of the lace, shown here is one of the other available colours. This product code is 7888. Click here to see more.

It was at this point that I needed a real try on with my shoes. I also wanted to make sure that the length was right and where to hem the lining to. The pattern has a slit in the back of the skirt but due to the lace I decided to miss it out on my dress.

The last part of the sew along will be the finishing touches. I love choosing these parts of a dress and I usually have an idea already planted in my head- I can’t wait to show you!

So it's time for Part 2 of our sew-a-long Christmas Party dress with Amanda.

If you aren't already taking part but would like to, click here to purchase a kit and click here for part 1.

Pin the lace to the bodice lining, right sides together. Use pins to mark where you need to sew around armholes and neckline. See photograph below.

Sew with a sewing machine, trim seam and then under stitch in to the lining as far as possible, as the photo shows.

Follow steps 6 and 7 on the sewing pattern. I loved sewing this part. It was a great sewing moment when you say…"Ahhh! I get it now!"

The bodice is so neat and precise. The back matches perfectly too. It is the pulling through the shoulder seams that seem to give it that perfect look. It does say it is a ‘Very Easy Vogue’ pattern and I am inclined to agree with that. Simple but perfect so far!

Tools to help you with the bodice:

Dressmaking pins

Sew All Thread

Bobbins & more

Stay tuned for part 3 coming soon!

Meet Amanda, our lovely blogger and the leader of our Christmas Party Dress sew-a-long.

Amanda was one of the first people to join our team earlier this year and has also been one of our most productive bloggers, having notched up an impressive 7 makes since June 2014. That's more than a project a month! Amanda always has such fantastic ideas about which fabric will work with which pattern and so when she suggested a Christmas dress sew-a-long, we started to investigate and research. We came up with the fabrics and the sewing pattern and got really good feedback on all of them. So, if you want to see what we selected and buy the kit, click here.

We'll be making Option B.

Now to kick off with Part 1 of the sew-a-long: Getting Started!

As a WhiteTree fabrics blogger, they send me the fabric of my choice to make into something beautiful! I have managed to create some beautiful makes with their fabric over the past 6 months. This post is slightly different as I asked WTF if I could make a party dress and do a sew along. I offered some ideas and with Lisa and her ability to network we came up with Vogue 8241. 

I was delighted when this fabric and pattern were chosen as it is an easy pattern with a lining, which works well with our fabric choice. This is a vintage lace in a sapphire grey. It has a slight stretch and is absolutely beautiful.

It will not need a hem due to the lovely scalloped edge, which will make it an easy sew for us.

PART 1 : MEASURING & CUTTING

 I cut out my pattern first and pinned it onto my mannequin just to check it would fit.

I then decided to cut the lining out first and once again checked it would fit the mannequin.

Once I had checked it was definitely going to fit I carefully cut out the lace. Take care with where the fold of your bodice is and make sure you are happy with where the flowers on the lace will be. I was very careful with the lace cutting as it is so delicate.

I measured the length I wanted my dress to be. I am going for a full length style with a scalloped hem so I measured from my waist to the correct length. I then folded back 3 inches of the pattern so the hem would be the scallop.

And guess what…..I pinned it to the mannequin! I also used post-it notes to remember which side is the right side.

So….cutting out all done and we are ready to sew. Join us for Part 2, coming up really soon. 

Essentials shopping list

Sew-a-long complete kit

Pattern cutting scissors

Fabric Shears

Learn more about the lace and other colour options available

Are you ready for our Christmas Party Dress sew-a-long? Due to kick off this Wednesday with Part 1 : Getting Started, the rest of the series will proceed with the following instalments:

Part 2- The bodice

Part 3- The skirt

Part 4- A perfect Finish

A final post will be made after the Christmas party that our blogger Amanda is wearing her dress to, which will be 14th December. We're so looking forward to seeing the dress if the sneak peek photos we've seen are anything to go by!

To purchase your Christmas Party blogger dress kit, click here. Each kit has been specially discounted for our customers, saving you up to £9 by buying the complete kit as opposed to buying the supplies separately. The kit includes lace, lining fabric, sewing pattern, thread and a beautiful button to create the perfect finishing touch to your dress.

You can choose from other lace colours and the lining fabric is also available in Black.

We hope you can join us and we hope you feel inspired to create your very own seasonal dress.

We are so pleased to announce a series of fantastic tutorials and how-to's, featuring some of our amazing bloggers.

First, we're going to be featuring an Ice Princess costume sew-a-long with Charlotte from Musaville. If you'd love to make the ideal Halloween or Christmas party costume for your little wanna-be Elsa, Charlotte will guide you through creating a bespoke outfit, in a small series of sewing blogs that you can easily follow along. We'll also be offering a complete kit at a great price so you can get all the supplies you need in one click!

Speaking of Christmas - instead of trawling the high street looking for the perfect dress, why not create your own? It will fit perfectly, be completely unique and you'll avoid last minute panic buying mistakes. Amanda of Sew Deputy will be showing you how you can make your very own gorgeous,  bespoke Christmas gown, so be sure to join us for this one! Again, we'll include a one click kit for your project.

Finally, we are so happy to announce that one of our very own bloggers is getting married! Skye will be tying the knot and we'll be keeping up to date with her plans for making her very own wedding dress. You can read more here. Skye has already taken a look and swatched some of our gorgeous bridal fabrics and we're pleased to say she's found the perfect lace for her dress. We'll post updates to the blog when Skye has some news....but of course, without ever revealing too much before the big day!

We hope you'll join us for what we hope will be useful, informative, helpful sew-a-longs packed full of ideas and inspiration.

If YOU have an idea for what might make the perfect sew-a-long project, then please drop us a line. We'd love to hear from you.