DIY Dress and Statement Sleeve Jacket

Have you ever made something without a clear idea of how you would style it? That is what happened on this statement sleeve jacket for my next look in my red, white, and blue collection. Let me tell you about these projects, what worked and what didn’t. And why sometimes, not having a plan, leads you to finding a style you never even knew you would wear. If you missed any of my previous looks in the collection you can find the looks here: Jessica Dress, Floral Dress, Off Shoulder/Wide Leg Pant.

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Statement Sleeve Jacket: McCalls 7730

Pattern and Fabric: McCalls 7730 and Cotton Fabric from Hobby Lobby

Pattern Sizing/Info: I made view B length with the sleeves from view C. I cut a straight size 8 and tissue fit the pattern to make sure no major adjustments were needed.

What I like/dislike about the pattern: I love the sleeves but they are a ton of fabric. It is a double layer of the fabric to give a nice full bell and they are a tad on the heavy side. The jacket has a partial lining which you can see stops at the bell sleeve.  I read some reviews of adding a facing extension around the neckline or other ideas to make this lining look nicer but I stuck with the lining the way it was drafted for my jacket. It is lined with a cotton solid. The jacket is on the short side which isn’t always my favorite but for layering over dresses I think it works.

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Thoughts on McCalls 7730 Statement Sleeve Jacket

So, I made this jacket because in my head I styled it with wide leg jeans and a cami and kept it more casual. The problem came in when I actually started to put the outfit together. I just did not love it with any of the jeans I have. So, while thinking about ideas my sister in law suggested a fitted solid dress or skirt. I liked the idea and went for it. The sad part is, although I like the dress and jacket together, there aren’t many opportunities I will have to wear it. So, I will be on the hunt for the jeans I want or maybe I will get around to making my own one day and be able to wear this more casually.

Also, the sleeves on this thing are a small nightmare to photograph. Thank you to my 8 year old photographer for having patience with her mama as we were sweating in 95 degree heat trying to get one or two pictures that could show the sleeve of this jacket better….oh the hard life of a sewing blogger…LOL

Here I am telling that sleeve to cooperate already!

DIY Wiggle Dress Pattern

Let’s talk for a minute about the surprise winner out of this look. I really thought I would be all about the jacket. I mean I love that fabric and really wanted some statement sleeves but I never expected to love this dress so much. First, I never feel all that comfortable in tight fitting dresses. It’s not so much a body image issue…I mean, I certainly love me some spanx for sure and feeling “all held in”, but it’s more of a where do I wear this thing issue? And somehow rocking this to preschool pick up seems a bit much for me personally. But if I were someone with meetings to attend, dressier dinner parties to go to or basically in a complete different life than the one I currently lead (HA) I would wear this thing all the time.

One of the things I love is the fact that this dress was refashioned. The dress your looking at came from this maxi skirt and a cardigan I made years ago of the same fabric. It is a ponte from Joanns that is thicker and hot as all get out…that being said, I love the heavier knit for this dress. I just need to wait until cooler months to wear it because taking pictures in the summer heat in this thing was brutal.

Patterns for Pirates Wiggle Dress Pattern Info

I used the Patterns for Pirates Wiggle Dress and chose to make the above knee, 3 quarter sleeve, low back scoop with the high neckline. It needed to be graded from an XS chest to a S in the waist/hip. I cut my sleeves using the XS measurement as well as the elastic around the neckline.

This dress hugs and flatters (I mean, there’s spanx under there, don’t get me wrong) but I feel like it is a great bodycon style dress. The absolute best part is this dress is so quick and easy it’s almost unreal. I believe I spent under an hour cutting this out and putting it together. Using my serger on the seams helped to whip it together and I topstitched using my favorite honeycomb stitch on my machine (I think I should probably break out the coverstitch machine and figure it out…I did buy one and should be using the investment!!).

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Now, I just need to find a little cooler weather and a nice event to wear this to. Sadly that probably means it may hang out in the closet a bit. I hope you enjoyed this look at my latest red, white and blue collection creation. Until next time,

Happy Sewing