Graphic Lantern Sleeve Shirt Dress | McCall’s M7838 Pattern Hack

This Saturday I walked through Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan as a vision in white in a sea of black. While everyone else has transitioned to dark winter hues, I’m holding onto the sunshine with light, bright, neutral tones. I’m sure whatever style editor decided years ago to declare ‘no white after Labor Day’ is rolling over in her grave, but I refuse to deny the autumn sunshine. I was outfitted perfectly for a warm fall day with the balance of long sleeves, exposed legs and breathable cotton.

The silhouette of this shirt dress is a huge departure from what I normally sew and wear. As a tall woman, I’ve always worn fitted clothing to make myself look as small as possible and less “intimidating”. I’ll cinch a waist, wear skinny jeans, and focus on tighter sleeves. This dress is fitted at the shoulders, bust and cuffs, then but it also explores volume with billowy lantern sleeves. The loose fitting bodice of McCall’s M7838 falls to a self-drafted gathered skirt that is nearly four times the size of my waist. Together they take on the ease of a style known as a swing dress, tent dress, or trapeze dress. I had total freedom of movement under the gathers of the skirt and I love how I can shape the skirt when I’m sitting to expose my legs or cover far past my knees.

I’m not alone in adoring this generous, oversized style. Here’s a few examples of similar shapes from Alaia and Rosie Assoulin. Their price tags are $2000-$4000; mine was less than $20 thanks to a lucky warehouse sale!

Designer Inspiration

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This dress is the first make of my neutral collection for Fall 2019. I’m exploring designs that make a statement with silhouette and bold pattern – dropping the color but still sticking to my personal brand codes. This beautiful print evokes polka dots, traditional ikat weaving and peacock feathers rendered in only white, brown and black. Through the collection I’m hoping to make staple garments I can coordinate with more pieces in my wardrobe and prove that neutral doesn’t have to be boring. 

Do you think I’ve hit the mark with this dress? Is it the voluminous neutral chic that I so desired?

Pattern

• McCall’s M7838, View C
• Self-drafted skirt with pockets from Vogue V9251 (but you can use any pockets you like)
• Sewing Difficulty – 3/5
  • Though this pattern is listed as “easy,” you will need to use many techniques to complete the bodice including sewing a back yoke, attaching a traditional collar, buttons and buttonholes, and lots of slipstitching by hand.
• Fit Difficulty – 1/5
  • This loose-fitting shirt is easy to adjust for tall proportions.
• I’m intrigued by the sleeve variations of this pattern and I will probably make it again for views A and B.

Fabric

• 100% Cotton shirting from Cloth House London’s warehouse in Camden, London
• The fabric was on sale for only £3/meter so I went rich with volume, much like the 1940’s Dior New Look after wartime fabric scarcity

Fit & Modifications

• For a #sewingtall adjustment, I added 1.5″ above the waist before cutting the pattern 5/8″ below the waistline to form the bodice.
• I added 1″ in length to the upper sleeve where it was easiest to not disturb the full lantern sleeve pattern.
• For my very thin wrists, I pinched out 1″ from the center of the cuffs on the pattern piece before cutting the fabric.
• The skirt is self-drafted using the full width of the 60″ fabric for each the back and the front. I sewed 2 rows of basting stitches to gather the fabric before adding the pockets, stitching the side seams and attaching to the bodice. The skirt is finished with a simple 5/8″ hem.

Tips

• The placement of buttons on a shirt is critical to keeping the top from gaping open. Place a button at the fullest part of your bust and then space out the other buttons to work around that.

Tutorials that were helpful

• To reduce the hand stitching for this project I learned the burrito method for attaching the back yoke and facing. This tutorial by Grainline Studio explains the method very clearly.