A Couple of Answers

Like everyone who writes 'blogs, I love reading the comments, but I wish Google had a better way of letting us answer questions on the comment page. But since they don't, here goes answers to two questions.

About my LLBD (long little black dress), Gwensews asked

I wonder why you decided to include pleats down the front? It's great detail, but I wouldn't have thought to put them on a full skirt.

I put the pleats in the front because I am short, er, vertically challenged at just under 5'2". I need vertical lines to add to my height. Plus, the dress is longer than I usually make because I wanted to wear it in the winter with boots. The flared skirt as shown on the pattern would have, I felt, drawn the eye down. I think the vertical pleats keep the eye moving up. And finally, a dropped waist design draws the eye to that seam. Adding vertical pleats breaks up that horizontal dropped waist seam.

About the plaid silk suiting sheath that I just finished, Ivalyn "Tee" Jones-Actie said

LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS DRESS. Especially the placement of the plaids, did the pattern have layout instructions to achieve this?

First of all, thank you for the enthusiastic compliment. You're so nice! The placement of the plaids (bias on the side pieces, straight of grain for the center front and back pieces) are shown in the layout section of the pattern instructions. Often I make changes in patterns when I make them, but this one was just so doggone cute as is, that I didn't change anything about the layout. I did, however, make a full lining, which is not called for in the pattern instructions.

Okey dokey, I think those are the only two questions asked.