Shirt dress by Burda

I'm hugely amiss in keeping up.  BUT - there's still a lot of catching up to do since I abandoned the homeship for dustier-hotter-stinkier pastures a year ago.  My partners in life - once known as Big Guy and Baby Boy, henceforth to be The Dashing Dudes Duo - keep taking precedence over my other main squeezes, the Ancient Dependable Kenmore and Frisky Husky Sergy.  Do I feel guilty?  Nah! Life with my two Great Gorgeous Guys is ever so much more fun than any self-imposed sweatshop situation.  But never fear, I'm in the throes of a new dress, and, though progress is measured in stitches per day, totally lovin' it.

The idea:  a trench-dress.  I'm a great fan of the shirt-dress - throw it on, wrap a grand scarf around the neck, toss on a pair of matching earrings, and I'm oh-so-ready to power meet The General. Or two.  Or a dozen. Watch me. Yessir!!!

The pattern, above,  Burda 7827.  Raglan sleeves, right breast yoke, waist and shoulder tabs, left breast pocket, welt waist pockets.  I had already blended this pattern from breast level down with the Chado Ralph Rucci overshirt, to create one of my favourite workwear garments, a shirt-dress made out of an amazing dark grey silk-wool blend with stunning jacquard self-pattern, that looks like a million bucks and keeps me amazingly warm.

The fabric for the current iteration is another exquisite silk-wool blend from Michael's, this one in a dark navy-grey blend. It has a subtle pattern, a self-stripe, with a little braid detail within the stripe on the front face that only a microscope... well, almost.... can distinguish from the wrong side.

The pic above shows the true colour - a steely blue, the colour being the result of two distinct thread colours - dark navy weft, pale grey warp.  The earrings are self-made:  I acquired the little lapis lazuli hearts at the Kandahar AFB bazaar, and added the hooks.  They don't look as garish in nature as under the flash.

The alterations:  almost none.  I shortened the centre back to compensate for my absurdly straight stature,   lengthened the sleeves to full length, and added standard cuffs. Other than that, at this point at least, no changes.  It's going to be, as far as I'll be able to manage, a straight (long sleeved) version A. With eighteen -count'em! EIGHTEEN!!!! buttons and buttonholes.  God help me: patience is not my strong suit.

The benefit:  once this baby is finished, I'm So Totally Instantly moving on to a spring trench coat.  Yep. I've the fabric, the lining, the patterns, and have been meaning to get one done for a couple of years, but always getting checked by something else.  This time, this is IT!  No matter that I may be a little early in the season....  when spring arrives I'll have it timed perfectly, won't I?!

PS:  the trench dress is finished, but Mother Nature decided to gift us with a blizzard, so the reveal will have to wait. This has been the longest-never-ending-story-garment I've ever tackled, and for no good reason except perhaps too many dark evenings and mornings, but now it's DONE:  I'm so happy to be movin' on!