Mirri Dress Sewalong

The Mirri wrap dress Instagram sew-along - #wbmmirridress sewalong - started last Saturday and finishes tomorrow, May 1.

I joined because it was co-led by a new sewist-friend, Julie @consistentlydifferentdesigns. Julie lives in Minnesota and has family in Iowa, so you understand the connection we made. 

The Mirri dress pattern, by Wardrobe by Me, can be purchased online, for €12 Euros that equals $14.52. A few parts of pattern instructions were vague, but it was really helpful to access the Mirri dress Youtube tutorial. 

It took a while to print 29 pages, tape... and tape and tape... the pattern together. Between organizing the pages, matching lines, and choosing which size line to cut, it's much like a jigsaw puzzle. Still, for the expediency of having the pattern "right now," it's a convenient way to sew clothing. 

I would have labeled pieces with more information (shown in red), to make it perfectly clear which length is which. I made the knee-length dress, B.

Thanks to Julie, who is long-waisted like me, I learned in advance to add length to the bodice. For me, that was ¾", but now that I've finished, I'd make that 1". As well, next time I'll cut 1½" off the hem length. 

Only five pattern pieces are needed.

I used 2 yards of this cotton jersey print design called "Hello Sunshine" by AGF (Art Galley Fabrics), purchased from Fabric.com. 

It took only a day to cut and sew the dress. 

Most of it was sewn on my Bernina 234 serger. I bought this machine in 1985, and I'm certain this is the first serger Bernina manufactured. I remember going to a Des Moines, Iowa, Bernina store - Ingersoll Bernina (long since out of business) - to try out the machine by making a pair of sweatpants for our son. Yep, I sewed them in the store! I wish I could remember what I paid for this serger. Maybe $325?

I'm glad to have been able to sew the dress on this because, as it happened, while doing some piecing on my Bernina 770 QE, a thread tangled in the copper wire inside the bobbin case. When I pulled on the fabric to pull out the thread, the wire completely came out of the case. 

When I showed it to my local Bernina dealer (Al at Sharky's), he told me it broke!

Bernina does not sell a replacement wire for the bobbin case, so I had to buy an entire new case. You can see where the copper wire fits beneath the silver part, so I don't know how it caught some thread. But, what can you do?

Though the Mirri dress looks like a true wrap dress, in fact the "wrap" is pleats sewn-in the front. 

Having a stretchy waistline, the dress is simply pulled on over the head, 

I wish I'd made this in a size 10 instead of an 8, but if I suck it in...  and lose five extra COVID pounds...

Did you notice my bracelet? It's from Zappy Dots. It's a hinged bracelet that can be decorated with whatever magnetic "dot" you choose to put on it. 

This dot is the "Cutter Wheel" design by Megan Dougherty - rainbow bright to go with my sunshine Mirri dress. Isn't it pretty?

Book Recommendation

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro isn't what I expected, but when a story is about "humanoids" designed to be with children, what could I have expected?! From the start, it takes speculation to determine what's going on.

Klara is an Artificial Friend - called an AF - who starts "life" in a store, awaiting purchase. Because AFs  are solar-powered, getting a spot in the sunny store window is a coveted position. When in the window, Klara attracts the attention of Josie who returns to visit Klara several times before she's bought. As Klara lives with Josie, she learns more about her fragile health, and that, for example - she uses an "oblong" to learn and study from home. The girls share secrets, and Klara does all she can to help Josie, enlisting help from friend Rick to carry Klara to Mr. McBain's barn, and Josie's dad to find a Cootings machine. Klara understands and accepts her role, even when Josie moves on without her.  

This book is unusual, and certainly not my typical read. But outside-the-norm is good for thoughtful reflection.

Linda's score: 3.4/5.0

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