In which I learn that I am not a size 18

So remember the dress that I'm making myself for our family picture? Last night, after basting the collar on, I decided I should try on the bodice.





I etched the picture so as to save your eyes. No one needs to see my stretch-marked stomach in that much detail. You get the gist.

Can I tell you how greatly I am annoyed by this development? You can't tell with the etching, but the sleeves are beautiful. I have never sewn in sleeves so nicely. They have just the perfect poof at the top. The darts are absolute perfection. I have never sewn darts nicer than the ones in this bodice.

This bodice that doesn't even come close to fitting me.

It's my own damn fault. I've become one of those women who is in horrible denial about what size she wears. I've become one of those women who forgets about the horrible disparity between ready-to-wear sizing and sewing-pattern sizing. I measured, and the pattern told me to make a 20. I thought that was ridiculous. In the past, I have been bigger than I am now, and I have never needed to sew anything larger than an 18. I called my mom and consulted with her. She agreed that a 20 seemed excessively large. We decided that an 18 should work.

Keep in mind, I also cut out an 18 for the skirt, which is from a different pattern, but fits perfectly. This only adds to my annoyance that the bodice does not fit. Even sort of.

So what's the solution? Make a new bodice. Which also means going out and buying a new pattern, because I cut out a size 18, and thus cut off the lines for a size 20. Honestly, looking at that bodice, I wonder if a 20 is going to be big enough.

Some day, I will look back on this and laugh.

Right?


ETA: And to add insult to injury, I wasn't paying attention and first posted this on the SewRetro blog. Good grief.