Origami Bamboo Sleeve and Yoke Dress

Hello everyone..... although i have been subscribing to instructables, I have never made one myself. When I saw this contest, I thought this is a good opportunity to start with.

I have tried to explain the best I could but this is a very confusing pattern and this instructable is preferable for those who have prior pattern drafting and sewing knowledge.

• Paper for drafting (any paper will do including newspaper)
• Pencil
• Ruler
• masking tape
• pins
• scissors
• fabrics - I have used 2 different fabrics which I had at hand. However, it is preferable to use a solid colored fabric to enhance the bamboo effect
• basic extended bodice and sleeve pattern

• Take your basic sleeve pattern..... for this style to be enhanced , you need to have long sleeve (which I hate so I went with the shortest possible length with 6 bamboo slants)
• Decide on the number of bamboo slants you need and number them from the hem line

• Cut line 1 till the edge but not completely
• Insert a triangular piece of paper +- 12 cm at the base
• Stick with masking tape
• Draw over the lines
• Pin the triangle at the line and fold the pleat
• Cut the excess at the hem and side seams

• For bamboo slant no.2....... cut along the top edge of the first pleat until the line 2 intersection
• Cut along line 2 till the edge
• Follow same instructions as you did for line 1

• Go along line by line working your way up towards center of sleeve

• Finish all 6 lines .... at this point... I found that the pattern overlapped and I couldnt place it flat on the fabric so i added one more slit at the center and made another small pleat so that I could lay the pattern flat without overlap

• Pin on fabric (you will need lots of pins)
• Cut the pattern out on fabric
• DO NOT stretch the fabric while moving it to the ironing board
• Iron the pleats (you can do without ironing also)

• Sewing of the sleeve is done in the reverse order of drafting..... that is .... you start sewing from the top (the last pleat) and move downwards towards the hem
• Details of sewing the individual pleat given with the yoke

• I made 5 bamboo pleats for the yoke
• The method is same as the sleeve
• Cut each line, add triangular piece, fold and cut excess

• Pin the yoke pattern on fabric and cut

• Like the sleeve, we start sewing from the last line (the 5th one)
• The first pleat (the fifth line) is not done like the bamboo pleat because it is too close to the neckline
• Therefore I made it like a dart with the excess on the right side of fabric
• Fold the 4th line,pin it (see the pic above)
• Fold the fabric upwards and sew a thin seam to secure the pleat

• Follow the same step for the next pleats until you finish all 5
• Sew the right lower corner to secure the last pleat (the last pic)

• Take thin piece of fabric on the bias
• Place a thick thread and sew the bias band

• Line the bias band on the edge of the yoke
• Iron the yoke with bias band

• Take extended bodice pattern
• I have made zig zag hem
• Cut on fabric

• Pin the yoke on the bodice pattern
• Sew top stitch on the sides

• Pin the shoulders
• Sew the shoulders
• Overlock the seams to give a neat finishing

• Neck facing is cut for the front and back neck for the bodice
• The shoulder part of the neck facing are joined together and the edges overlocked
• Pin the neck facing to the main bodice right side to right side, pin the pieces
• Sew around the neckline
• Snip the seams so it is neater when you reverse it
• Understitch the neckline, iron it
• Hem the neckline

• I used the yoke fabric for the bottom part of bodice
• Pin the zig zag and top stitch
• I used the border pattern on the fabric at the hemline
• Sew the side seams upto the zig zag only (as I wanted to make a side slit)
• Fold and finish the side slits

I thoroughly enjoyed making this project and hopefully you will too when you replicate this origami bamboo pattern.

Thank you for your patience :)