Learning to sew- how much fabric for a maxi dress?

Question

I have pattern 3803 from simplicity and I want to make the long style dress (C) which is divided into 3 sections- halter/middle/bottom trim. The packet says 45" 4 Yd and 60" 2 7/8 Yd. What does that mean?? Why does it appear the shorter length needs more material? Is that alot of fabric? Starting to find out it's not so cheap making your own clothes. Also what is a decent price for dress material (cotton and silk)?
Also how much material on average would I need for a 2 year olds dress and how much for a long style and short style dress.
I'm only a beginner and I know I probably don't make much sense but any help would be greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

The 45" and 60" refers to the width of the fabric, not the length of the dress. The width will be on the end of the bolt, or the clerk can tell you.



Dress fabric cottons range widely from $2 on sale on up. A decent cotton, regular price, is uaully around $6-$10 a yard, and the silks generally start around $10-$12 and go up from there.



A child's play dress is a yard or two at the most, depending on the pattern, and most patterns come with some accessory patterns like bonnets or tote bags included. There's really no way to guess how much fabric a skirt would take though since it depends on the style, fullness, print on the fabric, lots of variables.



And a word of caution.....PATTERN SIZES ARE NOT THE SAME AS DRESS SIZES!!! Buy the pattern according to the largest measurement that fits you. If it's a dress pattern and your bust measurement calls for a 10 but the hips call for an 8, buy the 10. If the waist is the only measurement given for the skirt, double check the length listed.



And ask the clerk at the fabric store if you have any problems figuring things out. They are usually happy to answer questions, and if they aren't, there will most likely be a customer within earshot who will help you out.



Good luck, and teach that little one to sew!

Answer 2

45" wide fabric needs more because the layout for cutting would be different from the 60" fabric which is wider, obviously the wider the fabric the less length you will need to purchase.



And no, it is not always cheaper to make your own clothes as we buy the fabric at retail prices and the manufacturers buy at wholesale prices.



Cannot give decent prices on fabric as do not know where you live.



There is no average amount of fabric required for patterns as it depends on the pattern requirements - pattern envelopes usually tell you how much fabric to buy so it is best to go and look at a few patterns you like and you may be able to determine how much fabric you may need.



The more you sew the easier it should become over time. Hope you learn to enjoy making your own gear. Good luck

Answer 3

And adding on to Delta's good advice, after you've measured yourself (or better, have someone measure you-- it should be more accurate) choose your pattern size. Then lay out the pattern and measure the pattern pieces at bust, waist and hips. Subtract 5/8" (1.5 cm) for each seam allowance. Double the resulting number and it should be bigger than your measurements. The extra amount is "ease", and it's a hard thing to judge when you're new to sewing (but it gets easier, I promise!)



There are a couple of ways to think about how much ease you want with a pattern. If you've got a favorite dress or blouse, you can measure that at bust, waist and hips and see if you think there's way too much ease, or not enough ease, in the pattern. Or you can just loop the tape measure around you with the pattern's measurements and see if you really want 12" of ease in the bust (or whatever the difference between you and the pattern's measurement might be).



More help here, perhaps:

http://www.simplicity.com/index.cfm?page=fitHelp_main.html

http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/t00188.asp

http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/t00136.asp

http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/t00004.asp



As for cheap... good quality fabric (which is not necessarily the same as expensive fabric) sews and looks and hangs together so much better than cheap stuff.



And yes, you can probably buy ready to wear more cheaply than you can make most garments. But you can't get made to measure custom garments as inexpensively as you can sew them. Work for the custom made look, not the bargain ready to wear look, and you'll save $$$$$

Answer 4

Throwing in a side issue: there's cheap fabric and there's inexpensive fabric. Cheap can be more expensive in the long run. "Cheap" may have dye that flakes off or "runs" and discolors other items in laundry loads. "Cheap" may be loosely woven and tear under vigorous use (children's clothing). "Cheap" might not be printed on-grain and the stitcher would need to choose between following the print and having the fabric twist as it tried to hang straight, or following the grain and having the garment look crooked when it isn't. "Cheap" comes in a full range of prices.



Inexpensive may be either cheap or good "overstock" or "last year's design" or plain standard colors or perennial patterns/designs (i.e. gingham checks).



People sew so they can copy things they couldn't otherwise afford, they sew so they can have things *fit* when off-the-rack wouldn't, they sew so they can have their own favorites rather than search through things they don't like.



45" x 4 yards = 6,480 square inches

60" x 2.875 yards = 6,210 square inches

That looks similar to me, within 5%.



Alterations can really twist things about. I once wanted to make a blouse 3" longer and purchased 1/8 extra ... nope, the way the pattern was laid out, it needed twice that ... so I had to go get another 3/4 yard to have enough without piecing where it would show. If money is tight, do trial lay-outs with newpaper before purchasing fabric. If money isn't tight, just get a yard more than the pattern specifies. A fully-lined bodice is more comfortable than one with only facings on the neck and arms.

Answer 5

I like ladies in jeans. It makes them look more home town like and it generally does not appear to be they are trying too hard but if you're trying to get this men attention, this might not be what you want

Answer 6

I do enjoy putting on long skirts occasionally. They are really actually convenient than Trousers rather than as hot to wear also.