Summer Aztec Dress

I haven’t gone all conservative on hem lines but I have experienced a few too many Marilyn moments in this dress.

Below is the dress before, nice enough but after a year’s wear it could do with an injection of this season’s tribal neon brights.

You will need

• Rectangle of fabric, length = circumference of hem plus 3 cm seam allowance, width = desired extra drop plus 6.5 cm seam allowance
• Matching or complimentary contrasting thread
• Sewing machine
• Dressmaking pins
• Dressmaking scissors
• Tape measure

How to do it

1. Pin and machine stitch a rolling hem along one length of your rectangle.
2. Press the hem.
3. Pin the raw edged length of the rectangle (right side facing out) along the underside of the skirt about 4 cm up from the hem. Pin on the right side of the dress fabric, as you will be machining a decorative with the right side facing up.
4. Once you have pinned around the hem, pin your two ends right sides together to make a side seam. Machine sew a running stitch.
5. Now you are ready to sew your panel to your dress. As this is top stitching, I chose a decorative stitch in a bright thread, so as not to apologise for the visible stitching! check your machine manual for options.

Types of stitch:

Decorative top stitch

Running stitch

Fabric and provider

My fabric was part of a Sari from Radhika Textiles in Stokes Croft, Bristol.