Two summery shift dresses: McCall’s M5464 & M5716

I love a shift dress – such an easy, smart work outfit and depending on what fabric you use, it can be fun and floral or conservative and corporate. In an attempt to find ‘the perfect shift dress’ I made two summery shifts in different patterns. Both patterns have a single front piece with no waist seam but use darts in different ways to create the shape. Quite a fun pattern puzzle exercise.

The first one was a remake of McCall’s M5464. This pattern was the first pattern I ever made in a sewing class I took many many years ago. The princess darts are classic and create a really lovely line. I used a printed cotton that I bought in San Francisco ages ago and couldn’t find a pattern that fitted. The fabric is maybe a little too lightweight for this type of dress but it works and looks good.

The second shift dress is McCall’s M7516 which comes with patterns for pants and a jacket too. This shift uses bust darts and waist darts to create the shape and the slash at the neckline makes for an interesting feature. This fabric is a heavier weight cotton with bright floral print. The weave is almost like a soft canvas and it worked well for this type of dress.

These are the two patterns. Both quite old school from McCall’s and follow a similar structure.

A simple zip up the back and slit finishes off the back. For these types of dresses and skirts, I have started including a leather triangle at the top of the slit to secure the stitching and create a little something special at the back. I quite like this little feature. I used it on the other dress too but don’t have a photo included here.

For the M5l716 floral dress, the back gapes a bit so next time, I’ll need to adjust slightly. The pattern is designed to be a fully lined dress plus neck facings. I didn’t think a lining was necessary for this version so I just did the facings and used bias binding around the arm holes.

For both patterns I added 2cm at the waist to account for my long torso. I thought I would need to add more width down the side seams but ended up taking it away in fittings.

The front slash is quite a nice feature although I haven’t mastered the art of sewing a slash. I worry that it will pull out and look ugly after a few washes. Any advice is welcome!

Both dresses came out well and the patterns both have their benefits. I wear the dresses a lot and often get comments.

Patterns: McCall’s M5464 and McCall’s M5716

Modifications: For both I added 2cm at the waist. I also added width at the side seam for M5716 but in the end didn’t need it and I didn’t do the full lining but just used the facings and bias binding at the arm holes.

Fabric: A medium weight cotton print with leaves and flowers in browns, yellows and oranges. For the second dress I used a heavier, almost soft canvas, cotton with bright coloured daisies.

Do it again?: Both patterns have served me well and they are the type of style that never goes out of fashion so I’m pretty confident these ones will come out again. Maybe next time I’ll opt for the more ‘conservative and corporate’ look.