Vogue 1314 review: BCBG Knock Off Dress with Lace Embellished Yoke

One of my favorite brands is BCBG Max Azria. Their outfits are so edgy and feminine. When I entered the PR Best Patterns contest, I wanted to make use the Vogue 1314 dress pattern to make the BCBG Valery asymmetrical ruched dress that I pinned a while ago! I made the dress but, you know the story!!!

The BCBG dress is lovely but I didn't want to make another LBD so I decided to use a lovely pink knit fabric that's been in my stash for years. I don't recall where I got it from. As for the lace, I found a paisley lace in my stash that fit the bill.
Now, you know I love challenges when it comes to sewing. As if a homeschool mom needs more challenge in her life! Lol!
First challenge was drafting the yoke and the cut-out. It was actually easier than I thought. All I did was draw a line from the shoulder to the armhole and use the sleeve ruler to draw a little oval shaped cut-out.
Once the yoke was cut and sewed, I thought the front needed a bit more lace so I cut out some more lace using the paisley shape and hand tacked it to the front.

Second challenge was adding an exposed zipper to the back of a side ruched dress!!!! During the process I kept on telling myself, it's time to follow a pattern to the T and stop tweaking!! But who am I kidding! I just love deconstructing patterns. Since the pattern doesn't call for a zipper, I cut 2 back pieces instead of the fold and added a 1 inch seam allowance.

I fully lined it with a wine colored knit lining from the stash. It helped with enclosing the yoke. As for the sizing I cut a 12 and took in about an inch on the sides for a snug fit. I also pegged the dress at the hem with a 4" difference.
As for ruching, I find it easier and faster to baste the front and back together at the sides, which works best with light to medium weight fabrics because it's less bulky. Then I gather and serge with a 1/4" elastic cut to the desired length of your finished gathers. Clear as mud?

If you follow me on Instagram, you've seen my indecision about adding sleeves or not.

I finally went with no sleeves because of the hot weather here in Cali. I do like the idea of having the contrast of one lace sleeve and one regular. Maybe another time.

Once the lining was done, I bound the neckline and armholes and coverstitched the hem.
And voila, mission accomplished!