Corduroy seems to always find a way into my Fall sewing plans and I can always count on Anthropologie to have a offerings to inspire me. When I saw this shirt dress on their website, I had to have a new corduroy shirt dress of my own.
I’ve made a couple of shirt dresses before using a variety of Big Four and Indie patterns (here, here and here). I decided to use a new pattern, McCall’s 7575 for this dress, because I loved how the bodice was shaped by long darts.
I also love shirts with back yokes and two piece sleeves. View C was my choice because it’s tunic length, easily modified to a dress.
My corduroy was purchased at Fabric Depot. It has a soft hand and a touch of lycra, which makes a form-fitting dress sooooo comfortable to wear. The rust color caught my eye, a must have!
I followed the pattern but modified as follows;
- I lengthened it by six inches.
- I added a very wide self tie to the side seams (8” wide to allow for turning the edges under for a clean finish) . Positioning this was a bit tricky. The Anthro waist tie rides a bit above the waist, and it took a few tries to get it right. Also, I think the Anthro waist tie is faced so that you don’t see the wrong side when it’s tied, but I didn’t have enough fabric. I think it looks okay one-sided with an edge stitched finish, but if I had to do it over again, I’d buy more fabric.
- To recreate the close-fitting look of the Anthro dress, I lengthened the bodice darts (both front and back) so that they extended the full length of the dress. Then I top stitched them down to give the look of french seams.
- I added French seams on the side, back yoke and on the sleeves and topstitched them all.
- The Anthro dress doesn’t have pockets, but I added a couple. I’m not sure that was a wise choice ( ??) as the tie overlaps over the pockets. The pockets might be a bit of a distraction from the lines of the dress. Opinions welcome…
I love this pattern and will definitely add it to my arsenal of shirt patterns! I always feel ready for Fall when I’m wearing corduroy, a throwback to the days when I bought corduroy skirts to wear to school, I suppose. It’s so funny how that ritual of getting ready for the first days of school still dominates my Fall mood in spite of the fact that my family is beyond that stage of life.
When I’m taking photos for a blog post, I always try different shoes with a dress because as long as I’m at it, I might as well see what the options are, am I right?
As you can see in the photos, I tried the dress with booties with tights, booties without tights and tall boots. I think I like the tall boots best, although I’m not sure the mustard tone of my tall boots is really warm enough to go with the rust color. Opinions welcome!
Happy sewing and thanks for stopping by!
This is a fabulous dress! I love what you have done to hack this into your inspiration. I like it with the tights and booties as well as the tall boots. It all looks very cute. I bet you will really enjoy wearing this.
Thanks, Becky! It was really fun to see, probably because I love topstitching;)
Love this on you. Great colour and style. As to your question about the pockets, I think they do compete with the waist for attention. I have the same pattern and had thought about lengthening to a dress..and you’ve just shown how good that looks!
Thanks Chris and thanks for the opinions on the pockets! I think I’m feeling the same way…., they will be easy to take off I hope!
I love the dress and the added tie but not sure about the placement of it. Are you very short waisted? I vote for the tall boots!
Thanks!!I placed the waist tie a bit high because the anthro dress is positioned just under the bust. Also I am a bit short waisted.
In my opinion this is the cutest dress ever. Corduroy, the tie coupled with the boots – darling!
Thanks, Faye! The tie was such an easy modification, might have to do it again in the future!
It’s beautiful! Looks great with all shoe options. My personal fave look is the tan boot combo – autumnal essence🙌🏾
Thanks, Hila! The tan boots are in heavy rotation now, perfect for kicking fallen 🍁….
Beautiful! I love red in the fall! Looking through your collection, it is obvious that the shirt dress is timeless and seasonless!
Thanks, Linda! I never get tired of sewing shirts and shirt dresses…I love the topstitching, the buttons, the collar, the whole thing. Does that make me a sewing nerd?
Ah perhaps! But it makes me one too. I should quit my job so I can fulfill my dreams of topstitching! 😁
Ha! Yes, work does tend to get in the way!
Really beautiful dress – and the fit is exquisite. I think it would look better without the pockets, the tie is enough focus on the front. I think your ties look fine as they are with wrong side visible – I wonder if they would have been too heavy if you’d had enough fabric to double them? Maybe lined with something lightweight, if the hemmed edges & wrong side really bother you.
Thanks, Janee! Yes, I think the pockets will have to go…thanks for giving me a nudge that way. I hadn’t considered the weight of the corduroy with regard to the idea of a double sided tie. You are likely right! For now, I’m going to leave as is and wear the dress a few times. I’m hoping it’s an annoyance that stops bothering me over time:)
Wow, you look great in red! Count me as another corduroy lover, and I love this dress! My favorite combo is with the boots as well- gives it a bit of a western vibe.
Thanks, Anne! Nice to find a kindred spirit who loves corduroy! I like your take on the boots; I love a western vibe!
I adore this dress on you Linda! Love the colour and I think your knee-high boots go perfectly with it, plus the shade of them actually bookends your hair colour nicely.
Thank-you Diane! I didn’t even notice that the boots matched my hair color:) what a happy coincidence!
I Love your dress, the color and your tall boots … FIESTA
Thanks, MonicA!
The perfect dress for autumn!
Yes, it’s in heavy rotation…
You had me at corduroy shirt dress, but the ties!! They really elevate the whole thing! This is so fabulous, and such a beautiful color. I love corduroy too, though I have a hard time finding colors that I love–they’re either too twee or too dark. It’s so luxurious to sew. I’m working on a pair of tan corduroy pants for my oldest son, and they are going to be so snuggly!
Thanks, Elizabeth. The ties were such an easy modification too! I know what you mean about corduroy colors..I felt really lucky to have found a color in a hue that would work for me. Corduroy pants sound warm and comfy for a guy…can’t wait to see them on your blog!