I’ve been guilty of buying a pattern, but not printing and sewing it right away on more than one occasion. Silly, I know! The racerback look is popular, cute, and probably why I hesitated on sewing one up. I’m not a fan of my bra straps showing, strapless bras aren’t really comfortable, and I don’t own a well fitting racerback bra. That sounds so silly, especially when you consider how many Brazi’s I’ve made. But here’s the thing- all the Brazi’s I make for myself have been hacked to have straight straps because I don’t like straps near my neck. My daughter likes the cross back Brazi, and tracing the pattern in her new postpartum and nursing size is on my agenda for today. Anyhow, the Spoxxy sat unprinted in my computer for a few months.
Then I saw someone post a Spoxxy made as a nightgown on the Stitch Upon A Time Facebook page, and quickly decided to make myself one! Who doesn’t need some new nightgowns after a few months of social distancing at home? Not that I lived in nightgowns, hahahahahahaha! 😉 Who am I kidding? I put on shorts and a tank top to go for walks and thoroughly enjoyed being comfortable in a nightie the rest of the day.
Since this was “just going to be a nightie”, I used some lightweight rayon spandex that I found at an estate sale. And of course I end up loving the look and want to just keep it as a dress!
Look at that grin on my face- I couldn’t stop smiling because it’s just such a cute, comfortable pattern. The racerback fits well, and the bands don’t bunch up where the upper back meets the gathered body. Which is a problem I have seen on similar styled patterns by other designers. I thinks it’s the angle of the cut?
The smooth curve of the racerback, the gathering at the back, and the over all shaping of the dress is quite flattering. The pattern calls for a band at the hip for the top version, and elastic at the waist for the dress version. I contemplated adding the waist elastic, but since the shaping hits perfectly at the natural waist and flares out to skim the hips, I didn’t see the need.
After I sent my daughter a photo of my dress, she commented that she needs some comfortable dresses that she can nurse in. So Mama dug through her stash and found bits of charcoal and gray rayon spandex that were just big enough to piece together a color-blocked version for her. Due to fabric constraints, I had to add a seam to the bottom section center back, but it’s still quite wearable and fun. I don’t have any modeled photos of her yet, since it takes a while for packages to get to another state.
Obviously, I need to make myself a few more Spoxxy dresses and/or nightgowns because the fit is just so spot on! Using a more substantial weight of rayon spandex (rather than the flimsy estate sale stuff I started with) will make it even better with improved drape and recovery.
So, the next time you notice an unused pattern sitting in your computer, print it out, and sew it up! Or give the Spoxxy a try, and see if you end up with a happy smile like me!
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