Suitable for obvious diagonals

Designing from the print - channelling Chinelo - technical challenges - and jelly!

I saw this fabric and decided it was right for a dress for a wedding in a field with a festival vibe. I have a record of using African fabrics for outfits for weddings and gala dinners, as well as for maxi festival dresses, and with its blingy little stones, this fabric suits both categories.

It will go with my orange wellies with bling-stones too, should the weather require it.

Here are the first drawings:

Sketchbook	Maquette

For the first time ever, I've channelled Chinelo and not made a paper pattern - but I did have to make a paper maquette. I've taken measurements from the body and from other dresses and chalked them on the fabric, working with the print to determine the cutting.

Here's a list of the challenges:

• Remember to stay stitch the diagonal cuts
• Pull the jewels off that are inside seam allowances
• But work out how to stitch round them when they fall into top-stitching line, or close to a seam on the right side of fabric
• And be prepared to glue some back on afterwards to improve the finish
• Diagonal cut straps will not go over tops of shoulders and sit right: it has to be off the shoulder
• So the straps are purely decorative and the bodice needs to work without them, avoiding  malfunctions (and a strapless bra is a necessity)
• Huge quantity of skirt fabric to be reduced down to 80cm waist. And it's heavy!

So it's been technically challenging and it has been "design and build" as the carpenter says. I'm not there yet, but I think I've passed the slough of doubt and am reasonably confident it will work. Two weeks until its first outing, and no free weekends - just keep doing a little bit each night.

Meanwhile, the redcurrant jelly has set and is ready to go into jars. All go round here!