Stretch Dashiki Dress: McCalls 6886
Last month I dedicated a whole post to one of my favorite patterns, McCalls 6886 and I've made it again. I shared a few ways I've modified this very simple bodycon dress. (You can read about those here.) This time I kept it simple letting the fabric do all the work.
The simplicity of this dress lends itself to be paired with big, bold and/or busy prints like this dashiki print. I've sewn this pattern using a stretch dashiki fabric before (three times actually in a cream colorway) but those were orders for others. I always meant to make one for myself and thankfully I had two panels of this denim dashiki lycra fabric.
I purchased this fabric from African Fabrics Overload Facebook group and while I love the fabric, I did not have a satisfactory experience with them. The main issue was after paying I had to contact someone more than once to make sure that my fabric was shipped. I took forever to arrive and I just really dislike being told something will ship on a certain date and never receiving a confirmation. Unfortunately they are the only source I know of for lycra dashiki fabric. If anyone knows of another source please share in the comments.
This is View D because I wanted the dress to fall at my knee. I did line this dress as the fabric is as opaque as I would like. Other than that no modification was made, just careful placement of the two pattern pieces. To achieve this look you need to use a panel for the front and another for the back, sadly this results in quite a bit of wasted fabric.
Pattern Description: Close-fitting, pullover dresses have neckline variations, and stitched hems. E and F: neck bands.Sizing: 6-14, 14-22 I cut a 16, View CDifficulty: 1/ EasyFabric Used: Lycra dashiki fabric from African Fabrics Overload Facebook GroupDoes it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope? YesWere the instructions easy to follow? Super SimpleLikes: Quick bodycon style dressDislikes: nonePattern alterations or any design changes made: NoneWould I sew it again? probably a dozen timesWould I recommend it to others? 100% YESConclusion: A great basic pattern! The options through modifications are endless.