My Easter Dress is Finished!

I've been so busy trying to finish all of my projects! I finally finished my sweater last week and yesterday I finished the hem of my Easter dress, completing the dress just in the nick of time! Here is the result!

 

I'm so proud of myself! 

I can't wait to get more fabric and make another one! I used simplicity sewing pattern #2444 and fabric from Fabric.com and my local JoAnn fabrics. 

The invisible zipper was my first time sewing any type of zipper. I was successful on the second attempt and used my zipper foot that came with my sewing machine. I had bought the universal invisible zipper feet package and tried it out, but they didn't fit correctly on my machine so I ditched them and went with my regular zipper foot. It honestly was not difficult to do. After reading and hearing all of the horror stories about zippers, I thought I was going to have a hard time, but it was actually easy!

Two tips on invisible zippers I have discovered:

1. Don't try to machine sew the zipper all the way to the bottom. The first time I tried to put the zipper in, I did this, and it resulted in horrible puckers. I tore it out and did it again, but only machine sewed to the point where the pull was when it was unzipped. Then I went back and hand stitched the rest of the zipper in. This made a much smoother look to the bottom of the zipper. 

2. Hold the actual zipper portion out of the way with your nail or a seam ripper, or anything that will work when you are putting it in. This allows you to get close to the edge of the zipper without the invisible zipper foot. During my first attempt, I didn't do this and I accidentally sewed the actual zipper to the dress (because I was trying to get as close as I could), which prevented me from being able to use it! So make sure you hold it out of the way! 

Live and learn from my mistakes people!! 

My next project is to make a necklace to go with this dress and my bridesmaid dress for my best friend Susan's wedding! I'll post pictures as soon as I start! I also plan on taking this week to make at least one of my two summer dresses I am making to take on our trip to Asia this summer. Posts to come! 

I hope everyone has a happy and warm Easter holiday with their family and friends! 

Happy Sewing!