Buzzy Bees in the summer time

I had a very exciting moment over the weekend. I tried on one of my old dresses, and…. it fit!!!

And then I tried on some more. And they fit, too! I could get the zips done up and everything!!! For the first time in over four years (i.e. pre-babies). Very happy times!! Because I’ll admit it – I’ve been missing my wardrobe…!

Which meant I also got to drag one of my all-time favourite dresses out of the wardrobe to see the light of day for the first time in over four years. My Buzzy Bee 1940’s dress. Yippie! 😀

I made this dress way waaaaay back when. Finished it on 27 January, 2009 in fact. Which was before I started blogging, so it’s never been posted on here. So here you go – a not-new-but-not-seen-before-on-the-blog dress.

This dress was my very first forey into vintage patterns. It’s made using Butterick 5214, a reproduction pattern from 1947 (now out of print).

The dress features an unusual front neckline, a halter neck (meant to fasten with a button but I stitched it closed as I could get it over my head easily anyway), and double angled darts on the bodice front. The bodice is lined (in my case, in a yellow poplin).

The skirt has four gores, and a side seam-pocket on one side only. The dress fastens with a zip on the other side seam.

I loved making this dress, and I love wearing it too! I always meant to make another one (in fact, I got part-way through making a second years ago, before realising the fabric just wasn’t quite right for me). Maybe now I’ll finally get around to it. 😉

Confession time: this was before I learnt to start paying attention to pattern placement. And I must admit that I wince a little at the bodice placement these days. (But not enough to not wear the dress, hah! My tolerance is quite high for that sort of thing I suspect.)

Also – despite how it looks in a couple of photos, it does actually sit level. I think I may have accidentally tugged it down when putting my hand in the pocket. Or maybe it was a result of my little photobomber and his Minions pajamas… 😉

(For those non-Kiwis out there, the Buzzy Bee is a bit of a national icon for us. It’s a very popular and common childhood toy – it’s a pull-along toy made of wood, with wings that go around when you pull it. There’s a little metal thing in the base that runs over a cog to make clicking sounds so it sounds a bit like a bee buzzing when it’s pulled along. The faster you pull it, the more like buzzing it is! So much fun. 🙂