Miranda here, dress maven and reluctant fashionista. Over the past six years of seriously sewing for myself, I now count 34 dresses in my closet. That's when I embraced my inner Ms. Frizzle by making dresses out of whatever fabric I darn well wanted to: moths, birds, owls, sea creatures, horror movie characters, woodgrain, weird sparkly polyester blends.
The majority of the dresses I've made have been based on the dirndl dress pattern in Wendy Mullin's book Built By Wendy: Dresses. It's infinitely adjustable while remaining basic. Recently, I've been experimenting with adding a waistband, pockets or a hood. A hood requires a side zipper, which isn't so scary once you know that you can alter your pattern easily. This book helped me learn what sewing rules to follow and what rules you can bend and break.
Other patterns I have used:
Colette Patterns - Truffle (from the Colette Sewing Handbook)
Colette Patterns - Macaron
Burda #6016 - "Heidi"
Burda #6066 - "Theresa"
Jamie Christina's Miz Mozelle pattern
Sewing my own clothes has allowed me to own my goofy, girly style and to become comfortable with my body. When your clothes fit both your body and your personality well, it just feels good. If you've never made yourself a whole garment, I can tell you wholeheartedly that it is worth every stitch. You are worth every stitch.
