Chalk & Notch Shay

I have so many bodice patterns! Crew neck, v neck, square neck, boat neck, but I didn’t have anything that seemed like it would work perfectly for a scoop-neck inspiration photo I found on Pinterest a few months ago (the pink dress in the gallery below).

I asked my Instagram story followers if they knew of a pattern, and one came through with the suggestion of Chalk & Notch’s Shay dress! Although it is a full-blown dress pattern with skirt and unique sleeves, I was most interested in the scoop neck in both front and back, and the princess seams were a bonus (give me princess seams over darts ANY day).

Additionally, since making a progressive light-to-dark tiered maxi dress last year (in shades of pink) I wanted to do another color block look. I ordered my Kona cotton from Etsy and although it’s a lovely quality, I wish I’d gotten a slightly lighter shade for the middle one. C’est la vie, that’s online fabric shopping for you!

I made a wearable mock-up from purple floral quilting cotton (I believe an estate sale find, but the stash all starts to run together sometimes). It’s very easy to put together and a quick make, even with a full lining. I always fully line my bodices, especially if they’re sleeveless. If it’s a summer dress and I’m worried about lining making something too hot, I use cotton voile. The goal is to make the neck and armholes look perfect without the odd lines of a facing you can sometimes see through thinner fabric.

I did have to make my usual adjustment to accommodate for my short shoulder girdle - remove 1-1.5” from the shoulder seams, remove a sliver from the underarms. This effectively moves the bust shaping and waist upwards to fit my torso that’s short, but short on top rather than through the middle.

Both my mockup and my blue tiered dress fit a bit too loose, though. I’ve had this problem with other patterns, too - I read the measurements to select my size, cut it out, and it’s just a bit too big. I wonder if I’m not sewing enough seam allowance? Or if my measurements are incorrect? Or if more patterns nowadays are adding in extra room to be safe, like Big 4 used to do. It’s not too noticable and I can’t begrudge the comfort, I suppose. It just seems odd to not have it fit like a glove.

This fit issue is the only thing that’s got me hesitating on making a third C&N Shay dress, this time from a beautiful forest green linen (fabrics-store.com). Perhaps if I make the version that has buttons up the front instead of a zipper in the back, I’ll have more control of the bodice’s circumference when finishing the garment up with closures. Buttons are such a hassle compared to a zip, but with linen especially, I feel more inclined to make it perfect!