The Factory Dress...

I've had my eye on The Factory dress pattern by Merchant and Mills forever (this is an affiliate link but it's the best price I found) .  Here's the front cover:

I thought this would be a great dress for the long, hot summer that is coming.  I did read through the many reviews on line and the biggest complaint was generous sizing.   I'm okay with that I think.  Loose fitting would indicate that it would be cool to wear.  It could also indicate that it is not flattering but do you really care when it's a 100 degrees outside and the air conditioning just can't cool well enough?  I don't.

So, knowing that there could be some darting issues I started with a bodice muslin to see if added length was needed:  Here's the results:

Sorry, no photo with the muslin on. There was too much belly showing.  Amazingly, the fit wasn't too bad.  I need to add about 3-inches in length for the dart.  I will shortening the dart length by about 1/2-inch.  The neck opening will be raised by an inch.   I will add 1/2-inch for rounded back.

I dug around in the fabric stash and found a navy fineline twill.  I think it is a cotton blend.

Here are the final results:

After making the dress, I decided to add a bit of embellishment.  I did a simple running stitch using navy Pearl Cotton in size 8.   I like the way it turned out.  Here's a close up of the embellishment on the collar:

Conclusion:

This is a very easy item to sew.  I did not have the same issues that others seemed to have with this pattern.  Maybe my fabric was more forgiving.  It does have a roomy fit.  Perfect for summer.

I do think that there will be a second dress.

Happy Stitching!