Are you ready for day two of the Cappuccino Dress + Tunic sew-along? Yesterday we began with assembling the neckband and preparing the pockets. Today we will be preparing the pieces for assembly, assembling the front dress/tunic, and attaching the neckband.
We have a lot of sewing to get done today, so let’s get started!
Prepare the pieces for assembly
1. Stitch two rows of gathering stitches 3/8” and 5/8” from the top edge of the dress/tunic’s center-front panel between the dots you transferred from the pattern, leaving thread tails several inches long for pulling.
2. Pin the neckband’s lower front edge to the top edge of the dress/tunic’s center-front panel, with right sides together and matching the center notch. (Note: The right side of the neckband is the side without the understitching.) Pull up on the gathering stitches to match the width of the neckband’s lower front edge to the center-front panel’s top edge. Stitch the neckband to the dress/tunic front with a 1/2” seam, backstitching or lockstitching at both ends. Finish the seam allowances using your preferred method and press them toward the neckline temporarily.
3. With right sides of the two back dress/tunic pieces together and the edges aligned, stitch the center back seam. Then press the seam open and finish the seam allowances using your preferred method.
4. Pin the dress/tunic’s side-front panels to the back at the shoulders, with right sides together, the raw edges aligned, and the notches matched. Stitch the shoulders together with a 1/2” seam, lockstitching or backstitching at both ends of the seam. Press the seam allowances open and finish them using your preferred method.
Assemble the front dress/tunic
1. For View A only, pin the front panel to one side panel and pocket facing, with right sides together and matching the notches, pocket placement dots, and V-neck dots. Stitch the side panel to the front panel and pocket facing with a 1/2” seam, stopping and lockstitching or backstitching at the center panel dots. Take care to stitch precisely through the large dot at the top of the pocket as you sew. Repeat with the opposite side of the front panel and the second side panel. Do not finish the seam allowances yet.
2. For View B, pin the tunic front panel to one side panel, with right sides together and matching the notches and V-neck dots. Stitch the side panel to the front panel with a 1/2” seam, stopping and lockstitching or backstitching at the center panel dots. Repeat with the opposite side of the front panel and the second side panel. Do not finish the seam allowances yet.
Attach the neckband
1. Carefully clip into the neckline at each top corner of the side-panel fabric only (not the dress-front fabric) without clipping through the dot or your stitching. This will help to create a crisp corner at the front of the neckband and enable the neckline to be attached more easily. Press the stitched seam allowances down, away from the neckline.
2. Pin the basted edges of the neckband to the neckline of the dress/tunic, with right sides together and matching the notches and seams. Pin the finished seam allowances at the bottom edge of the neckband out of the way for this step. Stitch the neckband to the dress with a 1/2” seam, starting and stopping and also backstitching or lockstitching precisely at the dots.
Hint: You might like to hand-baste this seam before stitching it in order to remove the pins and eliminate any possibility of shifting as you stitch.
3. Finish the stitched seam allowances along the neckline and front seams using your preferred method. Finish each center-front section below the neckline separately from the neckline itself, so the seam allowances can be pressed in different directions. Then press the front seam allowances toward the center front, and press the neckline seam allowances away from the neckline, so they all lie smoothly.
4. For View A only, turn the dress right-side out, and pin the pockets into place at the side seams, matching the notches and pocket placement dots. Press the pockets flat and baste the layers together along the side edges with a 3/8” seam.
We’ll see you tomorrow for day three where we will be finishing up the dress/tunic.