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Built by Wendy Dresses: The Sew U Guide to Making a Girl's Best Frock
Want a fast and easy way to look completely put together? Throw on a dress! Now, with the help of Wendy Mullin of BUILT BY WENDY, sew your own custom-fit creations—25 in all.
Dresses are as useful—and as crucial—to your wardrobe as your most beloved pair of jeans. You can throw one on in summer or winter, for a night out in heels or a day in beaten-up It’s maximum style for minimum effort.
That’s why Wendy Mullin, designer of Built by Wendy—label of choice for fashion-forward actors, musicians, and artists—has created a book of DIY dress designs that are simple to sew but pack plenty of fashion punch.
All of the featured dress styles are based on three basic dress the sheath, the shift, and the dirndl. These three full-size patterns are included in the book, complete with step-by-step instructions for how to use them. From those basic dress shapes, Wendy offers multiple customizations, giving a total of 25 different dress options.
Beginner sewers will find all the basic information they need to get started. More advanced sewers will see precisely how slight pattern adjustments, such as changing a collar or sleeve or switching fabric, can create limitless possibilities for unique looks. Built by Wendy Dresses covers the basics and beyond—and proves that dresses are a girl’s best friend.
Dresses are as useful—and as crucial—to your wardrobe as your most beloved pair of jeans. You can throw one on in summer or winter, for a night out in heels or a day in beaten-up It’s maximum style for minimum effort.
That’s why Wendy Mullin, designer of Built by Wendy—label of choice for fashion-forward actors, musicians, and artists—has created a book of DIY dress designs that are simple to sew but pack plenty of fashion punch.
All of the featured dress styles are based on three basic dress the sheath, the shift, and the dirndl. These three full-size patterns are included in the book, complete with step-by-step instructions for how to use them. From those basic dress shapes, Wendy offers multiple customizations, giving a total of 25 different dress options.
Beginner sewers will find all the basic information they need to get started. More advanced sewers will see precisely how slight pattern adjustments, such as changing a collar or sleeve or switching fabric, can create limitless possibilities for unique looks. Built by Wendy Dresses covers the basics and beyond—and proves that dresses are a girl’s best friend.
208 pages, Spiral-bound
First published January 1, 2010
2 people are currently reading
188 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
May 13, 2014
I'm glad I waited until after I finished a garment from this book to review it. I made a working 9-5 sheath dress, and it required many alterations to make it wearable:
1. The raglan sleeves don't fit at all. This is a deficiency noted by other reviewers, and I wish I'd read those reviews before committing to this pattern. There were several inches of excess fabric at the front neck, and just around the shoulder seam both front and back. This was after I'd taken down this seam to a small based on the muslin fit--and I'm not small! I'm 5'8" and my shoulders are not narrow. So I took out about two inches from either side of the front neck piece and resewed it. My raglan sleeves now have a bit of a bend but the front of the garment lies flat. It still isn't perfect and the front and back shoulder seams are still looser than I'd like, but I'm nervous that if I made this any smaller, I wouldn't be able to raise my arms.
2. There was no back shaping. Others have also noted this, and added back darts. I decided to just shape the centre back seam, taking it in by about an inch on either side at the waist and tapering up to the shoulder and down to the hips. This worked fine.
3. Even grading up to a large at the bust was not large enough. I had to let out the darts, lowering the dart point by 1-2" on either side to give myself more space.
4. The waist was a bit too baggy, so I brought it in at either side by about 1/4-1/2".
5. And the skirt pattern, for some ungodly reason known to perhaps no one, was a-line. What kind of sheath dress pattern has an a-line skirt? Ideally, your hem will be pegged a bit, narrower at the bottom than at the hips by 1-2", to make that lovely flattering hour-glass shape. So I altered this as well.
6. The back of the neck is about 2" too high.
This is an awful lot of altering for one sheath dress pattern, and some of it just seems sloppy. There's no excuse for the poor fit of the raglan sleeves nor for the weirdly baggy shape of the skirt. It's called a sheath dress because it's supposed to fit like a sheath. Also, I cut a few inches off the length. It was pretty long.
It was my first effort with an invisible zipper, though, and this part worked out very well. I made an invisible zipper! It's invisible! And it zips! Properly! This has nothing to do with the book, by the way, which contains as its entire instructions on this step, "Install zipper." If you've never installed a zipper before, good luck to you.
Other notes on the book:
The general sewing and dress information in the front of the book is decent, but not targeted to beginning sewists. The patterns do not have seam allowances included--you have to add them before cutting. No information on seam finishing is included, so a good basic knowledge of garment construction will be required to know when and how to do this. The dresses are unlined; for the sheath dress, I needed to add a lining (and I am tired of it in advance). The ideas for altering the basic patterns to make different kinds of dresses are interesting and a good spark to creativity, but it's unlikely that any of the ideas included in the book will be perfect as-is, especially since the book is now a little dated (and so is its fashion sense). However, once you get an actual dress pattern fitted properly, it's likely that you could alter it in any number of ways to make different kinds of dresses.
Also, there are no photos of the finished garments, and the drawings included seem a little suspect. It would have been nice to have photographs to see how the actual finished garments look, rather than someone's artistic conception of it.
I have bought and used other sewing-and-pattern books successfully many times before, so I'm fairly sure my issues here are not from inexperience. The sheath dress pattern was just poor and required a lot of work to make it, well, work. Given this experience I won't be trying the other dress patterns in the book.
1. The raglan sleeves don't fit at all. This is a deficiency noted by other reviewers, and I wish I'd read those reviews before committing to this pattern. There were several inches of excess fabric at the front neck, and just around the shoulder seam both front and back. This was after I'd taken down this seam to a small based on the muslin fit--and I'm not small! I'm 5'8" and my shoulders are not narrow. So I took out about two inches from either side of the front neck piece and resewed it. My raglan sleeves now have a bit of a bend but the front of the garment lies flat. It still isn't perfect and the front and back shoulder seams are still looser than I'd like, but I'm nervous that if I made this any smaller, I wouldn't be able to raise my arms.
2. There was no back shaping. Others have also noted this, and added back darts. I decided to just shape the centre back seam, taking it in by about an inch on either side at the waist and tapering up to the shoulder and down to the hips. This worked fine.
3. Even grading up to a large at the bust was not large enough. I had to let out the darts, lowering the dart point by 1-2" on either side to give myself more space.
4. The waist was a bit too baggy, so I brought it in at either side by about 1/4-1/2".
5. And the skirt pattern, for some ungodly reason known to perhaps no one, was a-line. What kind of sheath dress pattern has an a-line skirt? Ideally, your hem will be pegged a bit, narrower at the bottom than at the hips by 1-2", to make that lovely flattering hour-glass shape. So I altered this as well.
6. The back of the neck is about 2" too high.
This is an awful lot of altering for one sheath dress pattern, and some of it just seems sloppy. There's no excuse for the poor fit of the raglan sleeves nor for the weirdly baggy shape of the skirt. It's called a sheath dress because it's supposed to fit like a sheath. Also, I cut a few inches off the length. It was pretty long.
It was my first effort with an invisible zipper, though, and this part worked out very well. I made an invisible zipper! It's invisible! And it zips! Properly! This has nothing to do with the book, by the way, which contains as its entire instructions on this step, "Install zipper." If you've never installed a zipper before, good luck to you.
Other notes on the book:
The general sewing and dress information in the front of the book is decent, but not targeted to beginning sewists. The patterns do not have seam allowances included--you have to add them before cutting. No information on seam finishing is included, so a good basic knowledge of garment construction will be required to know when and how to do this. The dresses are unlined; for the sheath dress, I needed to add a lining (and I am tired of it in advance). The ideas for altering the basic patterns to make different kinds of dresses are interesting and a good spark to creativity, but it's unlikely that any of the ideas included in the book will be perfect as-is, especially since the book is now a little dated (and so is its fashion sense). However, once you get an actual dress pattern fitted properly, it's likely that you could alter it in any number of ways to make different kinds of dresses.
Also, there are no photos of the finished garments, and the drawings included seem a little suspect. It would have been nice to have photographs to see how the actual finished garments look, rather than someone's artistic conception of it.
I have bought and used other sewing-and-pattern books successfully many times before, so I'm fairly sure my issues here are not from inexperience. The sheath dress pattern was just poor and required a lot of work to make it, well, work. Given this experience I won't be trying the other dress patterns in the book.
June 14, 2012
I have to say, my opinion of pattern-based sewing has improved 100% since buying a tracing wheel. Seriously. What was I waiting for?
Anyhoo - I like this book a lot. As someone else mentioned, three patterns for the price (I ended up paying $13 at Borders) is a steal, and the 30 different dresses are great inspiration, even though I won't wear most of them. I'm 95% finished with my first, the Workin' 9 to 5, and I really like it - I think it will be wearable, which is saying a lot about an old Ikea curtain!
Other things I have conquered on this dress: invisible zippers, darts, creating my own darts in the back, facings, and fusible interfacing. Up next: understanding how exactly I managed to insert those on-seam pockets, and figuring out how to do it "correctly."
***
Three months later, I've worked through the dirndl pattern, and like it much better than the sheath. The possibilities for customizing are endless - I can see myself making a ton of these!
Anyhoo - I like this book a lot. As someone else mentioned, three patterns for the price (I ended up paying $13 at Borders) is a steal, and the 30 different dresses are great inspiration, even though I won't wear most of them. I'm 95% finished with my first, the Workin' 9 to 5, and I really like it - I think it will be wearable, which is saying a lot about an old Ikea curtain!
Other things I have conquered on this dress: invisible zippers, darts, creating my own darts in the back, facings, and fusible interfacing. Up next: understanding how exactly I managed to insert those on-seam pockets, and figuring out how to do it "correctly."
***
Three months later, I've worked through the dirndl pattern, and like it much better than the sheath. The possibilities for customizing are endless - I can see myself making a ton of these!
Want to read
May 12, 2011I just bought this, and I am super excited to try out these new patterns!
ETA: Okay, I've stalled on all of the self-drafting involved with these ... I'll come back and review after I've made something.
ETA: Okay, I've stalled on all of the self-drafting involved with these ... I'll come back and review after I've made something.
February 11, 2019
An empowering guide to getting started at modifying patterns. I haven't tried the information yet, and based on some reviews, that's going to be harder than the book makes it out to be.
February 19, 2010
Another beautifully designed and illustrated, smart, fun and inspirational book from Wendy Mullin! _Built By Wendy Dresses: The Sew U Guide to Making a Girl's Best Frock_ encourages even relatively beginning sewers to take basic dress patterns and adapt them to make the dresses of their dreams... in no time you'll be slashing and spreading, drafting facings and collars and linings, adjusting length and fullness, playing with necklines and sleeves, adding flounces... In other words, drafting and pattern-making! Only less scary somehow.
However, unlike her previous two books (_Sew U_ and _Sew U Home Stretch_), this book is probably most beneficial to the advanced beginner or intermediate sewer--or even a more advanced sewer looking to break away from just making commercial patterns to deconstructing and designing her own. A true beginner would be better off starting with those other books.
The book comes with three basic tissue patterns in sizes XS - XL (from bust measurements of 32"-41", and hip measurements of 35"-44"):
--A sheath dress with raglan sleeves and double vertical darts (the bodice and skirt are one piece)
--A loose-fitting one-piece sheath dress with horizontal bust darts
--A dress with separate bodice (with french darts) and full gathered dirndl skirt
NOTE THAT THESE PATTERNS HAVE NO SEAM ALLOWANCES! This is different from her previous two books, and a welcome change, as it allows for easier pattern alteration.
These are basically used throughout the book as blocks or slopers to create 25 total dress variations, though they already have more styling/design/ease built in then a close-fitting neutral fitting shell pattern does. They are intended to be traced so they can be re-used and reshaped as needed.
That said, you don't need to actually use these patterns if you don't want to--this book could just as easily inspire you to make design changes (drastic or basic) to other commercial patterns or slopers.
Some of the 25 variations seem to skew a little bit young/cute/trendy (or just too shapeless for my liking, especially in the shift dress chapter)--I won't be making the overall dress anytime soon! Still, there is something in here for every dress lover--sun dresses, work dresses, dresses with empire waists, drawstring dresses, mod-style dresses, tunic dresses, a shirt dress, party dresses, a fitted LBD, a (woven) wrap dress...
Every variation includes detailed illustrated instructions for altering the block pattern, drafting facings and collar pieces, and for construction.
What this book does:
Like I said, this book inspires. It gives advice and inspiration on designing and constructing a wide variety of fun dresses and on choosing fabrics. Anyone spending time on any of these projects would learn valuable drafting skills and gain confidence to play with existing dress patterns to make them her own.
I particularly loved the fun spreads with line drawings showing different kinds of collars, hems, necklines, sleeves and hemlines.
There's even a little bit of advice at the end on altering thrifted dresses or cutting apart old clothes to make new dresses.
What this book doesn't do:
There are some rudimentary notes on sewing and finishing techniques and basic attention paid to zippers and buttons, but it's quite basic--you'd probably want to use a more comprehensive reference on finishings and closures in conjunction with this book.
And this is most definitely NOT a fitting book--there are a few basic pages where she asks you to analyze your figure in the usual "hourglass" "pear" etc. manner, and gives basic suggestions on what to do if a dress is too tight or loose in the bust or hips... but I wouldn't use her fitting techniques, especially if you're, say, full-busted. (She makes no mention of darts--her instructions for fitting a pattern that's too tight in the chest are to just to enlarge the side seams--a terrible idea!)
Instead, I'd suggest fitting the block patterns to your liking using a book like Fit For Real People, and THEN trying the design variations.
Still, this fun and fabulous dress cookbook is definitely a MUST HAVE for those looking to branch out from just making commercial patterns to playing with drafting and design details. Make the dresses of your dreams!
P.S. This book might make an interesting companion with Adele P. Margolis' 1985 classic _Make Your Own Dress Patterns_. I happened to get this from the library the other day (via a recommendation from Gertie's New Blog for Better Sewing) and it's fabulous. It's much more of a detailed pattern drafting book (no construction or fitting advice, although it goes into great depth about controlling volume using darts and gathers and so on), but also very inspirational and encouraging and I think the two might really complement each other.
However, unlike her previous two books (_Sew U_ and _Sew U Home Stretch_), this book is probably most beneficial to the advanced beginner or intermediate sewer--or even a more advanced sewer looking to break away from just making commercial patterns to deconstructing and designing her own. A true beginner would be better off starting with those other books.
The book comes with three basic tissue patterns in sizes XS - XL (from bust measurements of 32"-41", and hip measurements of 35"-44"):
--A sheath dress with raglan sleeves and double vertical darts (the bodice and skirt are one piece)
--A loose-fitting one-piece sheath dress with horizontal bust darts
--A dress with separate bodice (with french darts) and full gathered dirndl skirt
NOTE THAT THESE PATTERNS HAVE NO SEAM ALLOWANCES! This is different from her previous two books, and a welcome change, as it allows for easier pattern alteration.
These are basically used throughout the book as blocks or slopers to create 25 total dress variations, though they already have more styling/design/ease built in then a close-fitting neutral fitting shell pattern does. They are intended to be traced so they can be re-used and reshaped as needed.
That said, you don't need to actually use these patterns if you don't want to--this book could just as easily inspire you to make design changes (drastic or basic) to other commercial patterns or slopers.
Some of the 25 variations seem to skew a little bit young/cute/trendy (or just too shapeless for my liking, especially in the shift dress chapter)--I won't be making the overall dress anytime soon! Still, there is something in here for every dress lover--sun dresses, work dresses, dresses with empire waists, drawstring dresses, mod-style dresses, tunic dresses, a shirt dress, party dresses, a fitted LBD, a (woven) wrap dress...
Every variation includes detailed illustrated instructions for altering the block pattern, drafting facings and collar pieces, and for construction.
What this book does:
Like I said, this book inspires. It gives advice and inspiration on designing and constructing a wide variety of fun dresses and on choosing fabrics. Anyone spending time on any of these projects would learn valuable drafting skills and gain confidence to play with existing dress patterns to make them her own.
I particularly loved the fun spreads with line drawings showing different kinds of collars, hems, necklines, sleeves and hemlines.
There's even a little bit of advice at the end on altering thrifted dresses or cutting apart old clothes to make new dresses.
What this book doesn't do:
There are some rudimentary notes on sewing and finishing techniques and basic attention paid to zippers and buttons, but it's quite basic--you'd probably want to use a more comprehensive reference on finishings and closures in conjunction with this book.
And this is most definitely NOT a fitting book--there are a few basic pages where she asks you to analyze your figure in the usual "hourglass" "pear" etc. manner, and gives basic suggestions on what to do if a dress is too tight or loose in the bust or hips... but I wouldn't use her fitting techniques, especially if you're, say, full-busted. (She makes no mention of darts--her instructions for fitting a pattern that's too tight in the chest are to just to enlarge the side seams--a terrible idea!)
Instead, I'd suggest fitting the block patterns to your liking using a book like Fit For Real People, and THEN trying the design variations.
Still, this fun and fabulous dress cookbook is definitely a MUST HAVE for those looking to branch out from just making commercial patterns to playing with drafting and design details. Make the dresses of your dreams!
P.S. This book might make an interesting companion with Adele P. Margolis' 1985 classic _Make Your Own Dress Patterns_. I happened to get this from the library the other day (via a recommendation from Gertie's New Blog for Better Sewing) and it's fabulous. It's much more of a detailed pattern drafting book (no construction or fitting advice, although it goes into great depth about controlling volume using darts and gathers and so on), but also very inspirational and encouraging and I think the two might really complement each other.
March 19, 2014
I haven't used the book to actually make a dress yet but am looking forward to trying. It is a little daunting; I thought I knew how to sew and have realized from reading this book that I have not always been doing things properly! And the number of pattern drafts and changes to patterns, etc will be time consuming. The main reasons I will not be able to try the book out for a while is because I can tell it will take quite a bit of space to lay everything out and I just don't have any cat-and-toddler-free space available. Some of the instructions are a little confusing; most make sense but there were a few where I was scratching my head, so to speak, and hoping that it is easier to figure out the diagrams when I actually have the matching pieces to work with. These were in the minority, though.
I really believe that with enough time and patience this book will help me become a much better seamstress and designer. There are several dresses I am just dying to make--I will probably start with Oktober. I would not recommend this book for someone who has never sewn before or who is not fairly familiar with sewing patterns! Also, if you just want to whip up a dress really quickly right off the bat, this is not the book for you. Time and patience are definitely going to be a must.
I really believe that with enough time and patience this book will help me become a much better seamstress and designer. There are several dresses I am just dying to make--I will probably start with Oktober. I would not recommend this book for someone who has never sewn before or who is not fairly familiar with sewing patterns! Also, if you just want to whip up a dress really quickly right off the bat, this is not the book for you. Time and patience are definitely going to be a must.
April 2, 2010
This is a great introduction to dress-making for a mid-beginner seamstress, ie someone who understands the basic principles of sewing but is not very experienced in garment construction, fitting, or pattern alteration. The included patterns are good basics that come in fashion sizes XS-XL and the project ideas are an excellent demonstration of how to modify a basic pattern to create a variety of interesting looks. The suggested projects are, for the most part, cute and fashion forward but many (mostly just the only made from the Sheath dress pattern) would be somewhat unflattering on larger or curvier women and suggestions are skewed towards women with more boyish or athletic figures. Overall though I think it is a great primer on making and adjusting your own dresses.
March 20, 2012
So you want to make dresses? This is a great guide to help you along if you have sewing and pattern reading knowledge. Wendy walks you through shapes, adjusting each pattern piece and then offers up projects with variations off 3 shapes: the sheath dress, the shift dress & the dirndl dress. Expertly written in laymans terms. Patterns for 25 projects in 5 sizes are included, although you may want to trace the pieces off onto your own pattern paper if you plan to use them for more than one person or size.
Projects include: 8 projects in variations of the sheath dress, the shift dress & the dirndl dress are included.
Sewing level: intermediate
Projects include: 8 projects in variations of the sheath dress, the shift dress & the dirndl dress are included.
Sewing level: intermediate
March 31, 2015
Lots of great sewing ideas and advice. I love that the book shows several looks for only three basic dress patterns. I also enjoyed the section on how to recycle clothes that aren't working for you. The book failed to provide any real life pictures, making it slightly less satisfying and not as descriptive as I would like.
July 12, 2010
This is a good basic book about dress making. The author includes a good basic understanding of simple dress shapes, making style alterations and includes patterns for the user. The major drawback to this book is that there are no photgraphs. While the drawings used in the book are clear and illustrate the directions, they do not have the impact nor the value of photographs of real projects.
March 2, 2010
I can't wait to sew again. I'm a little wary that these patterns have no seam allowances, however, I typically use Wendy Mullin's book for general instruction on regular old industry patterns. I haven't used any patterns from her books. My bad.
September 1, 2016
I am very excited to make some of the dresses in this book and to use the slopers to design and make my own dress ideas. What I really liked is the way this book shows how to use slopers to make a variety of different designs.
April 5, 2010
Rather simple designs; may be better for a beginner.
November 22, 2010
Nice dresses, but I miss photographs, so that you can see what it really looks like. Also the pattern is on tissue paper. Since this is a library book I can't use it.
January 17, 2012
A very well written book with lots of great tips and tricks. The patterns are lovely and easily customisable. I highly recommend.
April 21, 2012
Another great how-to book by Wendy Mullin! I've only done two dresses out of this book but I love them both and the instructions were easy to follow, and now I know how to sew my own dress!
September 13, 2012
Some good ideas, and some nice patterns.
January 29, 2016
Good introduction to using patterns for a beginner sewer and a starting point to learning more in detail elsewhere (and in practice). Haven't tried the patterns yet.
May 8, 2014
This book is brilliant, and sets out simple instructions step by step.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews