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You are here: Home / Sewing Tutorial / New Pink Dress – McCall’s 7974

New Pink Dress – McCall’s 7974

in Sewing Tutorial, What I Wear on 03/02/21

There is nothing like a new dress to boost your mood. This pink dress checks all my style boxes; pink, floral, flattering, modest, dress, etc. I’ve now made McCall’s 7974 two times and I am not against making it again. It is an amazing pattern. It fit me straight out of the envelope (but I did whip up a quick muslin to check before I made it). I constructed it slightly different than the envelope instructions in a few parts with the goal of nice finishing on the inside. Ex. burrito method for the yoke, french seams, hong kong seam finishing on the facing and button band. I documented the process and made a full sewing tutorial. Enjoy!

Sewing Tutorial

Raising the Neckline

To raise the neckline I added a little wedge to the the front of the bodice. In the picture you can see the tan paper addition. I drew a straight line up from the bottom of the neckline, parallel to the center front line. I added enough to be able to put one more (correctly spaced) button and additional seam allowance. You can see the little “X” I added at the top of the center front line. It almost touches the old cutting line. The dot I added on the tan paper is a new match point. I adjusted the facing pattern piece to match the bodice adjustments. Pattern piece #6 has NO changes. The small adjustment made a big difference for my fit preferences. I hope this helps if you are hoping to make a similar adjustment.

Details & Links

The pink floral fabric is from fabric.com. The mother-of-pearl buttons are from kabooco on Etsy. The pattern is McCall’s 7974.

Related

9 Comments

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Comments

  1. Kaylee says

    March 3, 2021 at 3:20 pm

    The dress looks great! I have this pattern but forgot about it so I haven’t made it yet. This got me excited to make it, though!

    Reply
    • Paige says

      March 13, 2021 at 6:07 am

      You definitely should add it to your sewing plans. It is a great dress!

      Reply
  2. Abbi says

    April 13, 2021 at 3:42 am

    This dress looks wonderful! I am curious if you used any of your knowledge on making fitting adjustments while constructing this dress or if you left it as is. It looks like it fits like a glove! Thanks for sharing

    Reply
    • Paige says

      April 13, 2021 at 10:56 pm

      I made a quick muslin of the bodice and it fit perfectly, so I didn’t need to make any adjustments when I made it the first time. This pink dress was my second time making the dress and all I did differently than the pattern was raise the neckline a little bit so I could add one more button.

      Reply
  3. Chris says

    October 17, 2021 at 11:58 pm

    I absolutely love the raised neckline that you did! I have started watching your video but I do not see where you have shown how you alter the pattern at the neckline. Looking at the comments, I see that you said (about five months ago), that you would add it to your blog, an illustration I guess? Is that somewhere I can locate it…I’ve been able unable to find it on my own. Thank you for your time!

    Reply
    • Paige says

      November 8, 2021 at 5:43 pm

      I recently updated this blog post with photos of the alteration on the pattern. Scroll down to see them. I hope it helps!

      Reply
  4. Sophie says

    April 15, 2023 at 12:22 pm

    Thanks for sharing your modifications on this pattern. I wanted to do it for a wedding, and now I can take into account your thoughts to make a better version!
    By the way, your version is stunning.

    Reply
    • Paige says

      May 3, 2023 at 11:09 pm

      Thank you so much! I hope the video and modification notes help. Best wishes!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. McCall’s 7974 – MELT. STITCHES says:
    August 3, 2023 at 10:26 am

    […] low V-neckline (and potential cleavage) by raising the neckline by ~3cm. I followed the method by Paige Handmade. Don’t forget to mirror any mods onto the facing […]

    Reply

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Hi! I'm Paige... Paige

...an elf who has achieved Master Tinker status. Give me a tool and I’ll make something! I am married to the coolest nerd and Mama to two girly girls.

My mission is to take the overwhelm out of projects, so you can go get creative and make something you love! a little more backstory…

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