Thursday, June 23, 2011

The Daily Dress: Shirred-Back Anthro Slip Dress

Since we're in the middle of the shirring series, how about a shirred-back Anthropologie dress? This is their Verdant Slip Dress. Oddly, Anthropologie always refers to shirring as "smocking." I don't think heirloom seamstresses would appreciate that!


This is such a pretty print, don't you think? I love those big clusters of flowers.

But let's talk about what's important here: the shirring. The back has a panel of shirring and the skirt below has lovely soft pleats.

I'm kind of dying to check out the construction of this dress. Has anyone tried it on? Or better yet, own it? I especially want to know how they elasticized the skirt below the shirred panel.

I'll be in Rockefeller Center today; I might need to take an Anthro trip!

20 comments:

  1. It could be my imagination but there does seem to be a zipper on the left hand side of the dress. that would explain the non elasticized waist-band. I could be wrong though!

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  2. Yes, it does look like there could be a zipper on the side as Aphra said. Beautiful dress though. Although I love your red rose dress much better!

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  3. Ooooh, aaaaah. Pretty. Vintagey colors. I like the perfect little square of shirring. It might be interesting to compare the fit of a fully-shirred back to the little piece on the verdant dress. It seems to me that your version with the shirring all the way across would be more comfortable and prevent odd wrinkling on the side panels.
    Thanks for the continuing tutes - I've almost got up the courage to deal with the elastic thread!

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  4. The anthro website does say that it has a side zipper

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  5. Hi Gertie, back in the day,the back panel would be the full length of the dress, with the top shirred only. The panel in this dress is probably like that as the shirring only goes from strap to strap, not side seam to side seam. And it's shirred more heavily than you are talking about. To do that you need a stronger shirring technique - like couching a hat elastic, or even zigzagging 3mm flat elastic. With heavier shirring, the skirt panel gets enough gather on to look good. Hope that makes sense! :)

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  6. Quite a few people refer to shirring as "smocking", even though quite a few of us know is isn't so. The pre-shirred fabric in the fabric store is labeled as "smocked" too. (So not worth the price. Shirring is easy enough and they want an arm and a leg for the stuff.)

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  7. Good thoughts everyone! Even though it does have a zipper, I would imagine the skirt panel still stretches with the shirred panel. I don't think the skirt panel is cut in one with shirred panel because it would be pleated separately. My two cents!

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  8. Lovely, I think you should go try it on bc I want to know how they did it too. Probably a side zip but I'd still like to know and I have to drive 30 min and take a 8yo and 3yo with me to go to Anthro which falls into the please just kill me now category.

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  9. You can tell that the shirred top and skirt panel are separate pieces because the print is doesn't match at the seam line. If you go to the Anthro site and mouse over the back waist area, you'll see little puckers across the top of the skirt. Maybe they: shirred the top panel, basted in the pleats on the lower panel, then stretched the shirred panel just a touch while stitching them together.

    I love playing sewing detective!

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  10. Friend's daughter had a 'budget' dress of this style and couldn't get it on or off. I put a side zip in for her. It cost her more than the original price of the dress!

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  11. I'm really appreciating this series after trying on some things at Anthropologie with these shirred panels (not this dress, though). I was seriously thinking of doing my own experimenting to steal, er, borrow this idea...so helpful for those of us who tend to fluctuate in size around the middle :)

    But what I really want to know is: where the heck does one find their fabulous print fabrics?? I love the vintage-y boho type prints they have and I very rarely see similar things for sale. Or maybe it's a failure on my part to visualize how certain fabrics take on a different character depending how they're made up?

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  12. Hey Gertie I make dresses for my daughter like this and I just stretch the bodice to fit the skirt.She can easily pop it over her head and it is one of her favorite dress styles for summer.(I also sew a casing at the top and tread elastic through it so it lays flat)

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  13. This may be a stupid question then, but what's smocking? I've also always called shirring smocking and just assumed it was another regional variance from one side of the pond to another, is that wrong?

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  14. Smocking is an heirloom technique. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smocking
    you manipulate the fabric to form a pattern. Shirring uses elastic and is a technique to gather a lot of fabric into a short area.

    Tania
    Hope this is clearer than mud ;-p

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  15. Gertie,

    Thank you so much for the shirring tutorials! I have a Vogue Dress I made last year with elastic in the middle of the back and I love the look and fit - great waist definition, but very comfortable. I am sure shirring would accomplish the same thing and look better! Also, as one of those heirloom sewists, thank you for calling it "shirring" and not "smocking" even if anthro doesn't know better.

    Lisa
    Pink Hollybush Designs

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  16. OK, if we're on stupid questions, here's mine: What is the difference between Heirloom and Couture sewing? I know what Heirloom is... smocking, lace inserts, etc. I've always just wondered about why the separation between the two fine sewing techniques. Does courture use heirloom techniques ever and vice versa?

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  17. @Tors - I'm a brit and I would use smocking to describe what the americans call shirring. Using thread, whether elastic or not, to gather up fabric in rows will always be called smocking to me. However, slightly bizarrely, to me the thread used for smocking will always be called shirring elastic because that's what my mum called it. She would make me a smocked dress using shirring elastic.

    Smocking predates shirring elastic by centuries and was used as a way to get non-stretch fabrics to stretch, so I think the word smocking wins :)

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  18. I have spent most of my life up until your first post on the shirred-back dress thinking of shirring as smocking and what is properly called smocking as hand smocking. I actually spent some time on google trying to find tutorials on shirring a few years ago for the purpose of making sundresses. No wonder I didn't find anything. Thanks for clearing that up!

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  19. SMOCKING is the application of embroidery stitches to a finely pleated panel of fabric. The stitches are decorative and most provide elasticity although certain stitches are specifically for a non stretch situation.

    HEIRLOOM SEWING is the use of age old sewing techniques, by hand or machine, in concert with the finest fabrics and trims available. Think of a handkerchief linen blouse with rows of hemstitching. Another example would be a silk dupioni smocked child's dress as seen in Kate and William's royal wedding on the flower girls. It is called heirloom sewing because the styles are timeless, classic and able to be passed on and worn by the next generation. In this country heirloom sewing is a part of deep Southern culture and you can see children wearing their mother's dresses to church on Easter as we did in my family. Today this type of sewing is certainly not limited to any particular region of the U.S. or world. There is a strong history of heirloom sewing in the Puerto Rican, continental Spanish and other Latin cultures as well as in Australia. It's great fun and very creative and enjoyable...Bunny

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  20. @Joolz
    Agree with your description re smocking and using shirring elastic! It must be a Brit thing? My Gran once gave me a totally smocked swimming costume with boning - I was just a small girl at the time and a very disappointed birthday-girl that year - so I've always hated smoking! But I'm sure a browse through smocking at the V&A would change my mind :)
    katy
    london UK

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Thanks for your comments; I read each and every one! xo Gertie

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