Friday, May 01, 2015

Alabama Chanin: A Navy and Bronze Magdalena Dress for Bella


I caught Bella in her newest jersey dress. This is the Alabama Chanin six-gore favorite, tweaked for Bella's preferred fit (custom bust and waist measures, and she likes knee-length, which is perfect with her small stature).


I used the Magdalena stencil on navy jersey, on the center panel only. Used embroidery floss to stitch around all the shapes, then cut out the larger petals to reveal the bronze-colored jersey fabric I had placed underneath (which came from a thrift-store tee shirt).


Last I added some strategically-placed seed beads. I also made a matching short-sleeved bolero, but this day was cold so she wore a sweater over the dress instead.

22 comments:

Harmony said...

Oh, that is gorgeous. Love the colors. This is my favorite yet of your jersey creations I've seen.

Lisa said...

Very striking!

Lisateresa

Flepandco said...

so pretty!

Beccy said...

Beautiful!!!!

willfulmina said...

Such a breathtaking combination!

Wendi said...

Oh my goodness, I love it! You are a force to be reckoned with, with a needle and thread! It's amazing hat she had a sweater to match that color so perfectly.
I wish I could get over my fear of the stenciling! I'm so afraid to ruin the expensive AC jersey, so I always buy a DIY kit, or make plain knits from the AC fabric.
The DIY kits are expensive, so I don't get them very often.

Anonymous said...

You are very talented Anna ! Also, I love the colours ! Cinzia from Italy

Missy said...

Very pretty, perhaps my favorite.

Katherine said...

This is stunning!

Polly said...

This is a gorgeous incarnation. I love the color combination. The bronze is stunning.

Wendi, you may want to try to buy some cheap jersey or cut up some thrift store xl tee shirts to practice stenciling. That's how I dipped my toe in....and then you just get braver and braver! Plus I think most mistakes can somehow be redeemed.

Jessica said...

what an amazing work of art! So beautiful!

Vija said...

Gorgeous, Anna! Your patience with back-stitching is well rewarded. That plus the beads and color combination makes this piece just glow.

Anna said...

Vija, I've found that backstitching is always worth the extra time (and thread). It never fails to look good.

For those afraid of stencilling, you might try the technique of stitching 1/4 inch outside the stencilled shape and cutting the entire stencilled shape out --it takes care of any errors and is a beautiful and subtle effect.

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous work for a becoming young woman!

How do you alter the bust in the AC dresses? The new book is not of assistance there, and I'm very lost.

Anna said...

To alter the bust, the easiest way is to transition to a different size marking for the bust--if you need more room, extend your pattern piece out to a larger size just at the fullest part of the bust. If you need more than that offers, just draw a new line that echoes the previous sizes. For a smaller bust than you've cut, you can sew or baste the pieces together and put the dress on inside out. Pinch out the extra fabric over the bust and pin it into the seam, then re-sew the seam to fit. Hope this helps!

the momma said...

gorgeous!

seashoreknits said...

Anna, this new dress for Bella is very beautiful. I am intrigued by idea of putting backing/contrasting jersey underneath only underneath the stencil pieces (which is what I assume you did since you used a t-shirt for the pieces).

In that only the center panel is "double backed" (so to speak), and the other panels are single layer, did this cause you any problems with how the dress hangs? It appears to be causing no problems and hangs beautifully, but I wondered if you encountered any difficulties or if it was an issue.

Holly said...

This is amazing, Anna! Wow!!! Truly beautiful!!! I am now considering bronze as my accent color when I look at Navy blue. Thanks for the inspiration!

Genelle said...

Incredible!

Anonymous said...

Stunning!

chacogabi said...

it's beautiful! I just wanted to know is this the dress pattern? or the skirt pattern?

Anna said...

This is the six-gore dress.

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