Simplicity 8662 Dress Pattern Review | Vintage 1970s Jiffy Sewing Pattern

 

Do you ever find the sewing pattern sample photos so captivating that you're inspired to recreate them? Such was the case for me with this vintage 1970s Jiffy pattern that I got from a Facebook sewing pattern destash group - the knee length dark floral version on the envelope looked so pretty (and one day I want to create that solid color satin floor-length version too!). This "falling leaves" printed satin fabric from Joann's seemed like a good pairing with the pattern, as the vertical repeat would be unbroken. 

The main feature of Simplicity 8662 is the slightly raised, softly curved V-neckline. This is finished off with a facing. A casing for elastic at the center front, with ties extending from it, adds comfortable shaping to the simple cut of this dress. The dress fastens at the center back with a long invisible zipper. 

Because the construction and fit of this dress was so simple, I felt encouraged to really take my time with finishings. Seams were either finished off with vintage rayon seam binding or sewn as French seams. My favorite way to hem lately is to use rayon seam binding, and I think it was the perfect application for this dress. 

The fabric was easy to work with and didn't fray as much as other polyester satins I've worked with. However, the large vertical repeat made selecting an appropriate garment design challenging. I find that Joann's prints tend to not be the right scale for garment sewing - too often I've gotten from there cotton prints that were so small as to be indistinguishable in a dress, or too large as to be distracting in a dress.

I'm starting to prefer working with the vintage Big 4 patterns as the finished size of these is actually consistent with the body measurements, and the instructions are generally clear and to-the-point. Despite that, the application of the inner waistband casing and outer waist ties was a bit awkward and took a few attempts. 

My modifications:

• shorten the skirt by a few inches
• reduce the length of the shoulder seam by about half an inch so that the sleeve/shoulder seam actually falls on the ball of my shoulder (a common adjustment for me as I have narrow shoulders)
• omit the elastic loop/button closure at the wrists - I found this an interesting feature but unnecessary 🙂