A Beachy Kat Dress Variation

Woah guys, check it. I'm wearing a maxi dress. I'm going to pretend that I'm looking as awesome as Oona does when she rocks the bright full length summer gowns but I'm not convinced deep down that I am. Perhaps I just need to get used to it? This is the first full length thing I've ever owned besides my prom dresses. I'm trying to forget those existed though, the 90's were an odd time for prom dresses...

Despite not being sure if this is a good look for me, I love this dress. I've been wanting to do something like this with the Kat Strapless Dress for a while but I could never figure out what fabric to use. When Kollabora sent me this striped fabric (thanks Georgia!!) I knew this is what it was destined to become. At the beginning I wasn't sure if it was going to be awesome or if I was going to look like a beach umbrella and I kind of think both happened.

My friend Troy and I were going to shoot this on the beach but despite it being sunny and beautiful all day, as soon as we got off the bus at Navy Pier the skies opened up and we got drenched. Plan foiled by the unpredictability of Chicago weather so instead I took a few snaps on my back porch.

I used the wrong side of the fabric as the right side since it was a bit less saturated than the front and the texture of the fabric made the print more interesting. Instead of piecing the front I used the pattern pieces for the inside bustier so that they were all one piece. I also gathered the skirt rather than pleating for a softer look.

Other than the pattern changes previously mentioned the dress is basically made according to the regular Kat instructions. The bodice is boned through each seam, invisible zip closure, though I did just turn the hem up twice rather than use a hem band like on the regular Kat dress.

I'll be back tomorrow with a tutorial on how to make these pattern changes yourself.