I fell in love with this particular printed Viscose Challis on sale from The Textile Centre and ordered 3 metres at a price of £15.27 for the length.

After considerable humming and hawing I decided to make the Harley Bodice with a Penny (Sew Over It) skirt. The viscose has a superb drape and is so fluid that I now realise that this style of dress is just so wrong for the fabric! The bias on the skirt panels means that it was the very devil to get an even hem. Whilst I continued with making up the dress, I did not spend hours and hours on the construction – no French seams, no side seam pockets!

The other major error in making this particular style is the fact that the bodice and waist need to be fairly fitted. I cut out the dress a couple of weeks ago and since then have lost 7lbs in weight (I believe that 10lbs weight loss is equivalent to 1 dress size) so it will always have to be worn with a belt. In the meantime, I have ordered more of this design. When it arrives I know that I will be making a ‘Moira’ dress that will be absolutely perfect to showcase the print and drape of the fabric.

Project #71 completed 3rd November 2021