Sheer high low dress tutorial

I made this dress back in China and never got around to doing a post on it due to becoming pregnant and feeling sick then not being able to fit into it....but here it is now! Still loving it the day I made it a year ago. I love how comfy it is with the elastic waist, yet is is uber feminine. Perfect for that special date that you want to feel comfy by look stunning! This dress does take a little bit more time, but it is easy to do with very little seams. If you want to see a similar dress I made and wore when pregnant go here, and see it non-maternity here. 

SUPPLIES:

2 yards sheer fabric

1 yard of lining fabric - optional (preferably matching the sheer fabric color)OR use the sheer for under

elastic - enough to fit around your waist when stretched

scissors

pins

sewing machine

thread

*optional - serger 

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cut the top of the dress from tracing a non-stretchy top you like the fit of, you only need to cut till your natural waist, plus an inch. Add seam allowances. (like picture 1)

2. Cut out a rectangle for the bottom section of the dress that measures at least twice the length of your waist, and the length as long as you want.

3. Cut out 2 more rectangles, one more sheer fabric and lining. You can just choose to have the sheer underneath or the lining underneath. I choose the sheer. You can just wear a slip underneath if you don't want to add lining. Make them (which ever or both) a comfortable width around the knees when walking.

4. Sew the to ends of the skirt part together and inner sheer part and/or lining part together to make a couple skirts.

5. Gather all bottom halves/skirts and sew them together with a straight stitch. Gather them to be as wide as your hips, the elastic will make it as wide as you waist. (like picture 2)

6. Cut the bottom skirt part into a taper if you like. Do this by laying the bottom flat so front of the skirt is facing forward and the one back seam of the skirt is facing backwards. Make sure the under skirts whether lining or sheer is cut straight across a few inches above the highest tapered part of the skirt.

7. Hem all the skirts.

8. Sew up the sides and shoulders  of the top with straight stitch. 

9. Hem the neckline and sleeves.

10. Pull the top into the dress so the raw edges or openings are touching, with right sides touching. Because the skirts are gathered and the top is not, I marked every fourth of both openings, on the top and the bottom to make it perfectly even. So you will need to gather the  the bottom's opening as you go.

11. Finish the edge by serging or running a zig zag stitch along the raw edge.

12. Measure the elastic to fit stretched comfortably around your waist. Mark the elastic and the raw edge into fourths. Match up the markings. Sew on the elastic while stretching it to line up on the markings.

FOr more help - you can browse this tutorial for pictures....it is a similar dress!