I made this dress as my 'Christmas' dress. It's retro Butterick 6582. I had my husband's work party, and a friend's 'mad men' themed party to go to. I splurged on the fabric (a silk-cotton blend) because I figured if I bought a dress in a store it would cost much more :) . Turns out and I didn't buy quite enough, so I had to split the back pattern pieces into two (top and bottom). I also put the zipper in by hand, I like the feel of it (it feels more flexible than an invisible zip) and the zipper is cheaper. I also put in a kick pleat at the bottom, using instructions from Threads.
The dress is underlined, but not lined, as it's a summer dress, and I didn't want to take the time to sew
a lining and insert it by hand.
I'm not sure about the fit, I think I got it right through the waist and hips, but I had issues with the bust and shoulders. It really needed a FBA, I did a lazy FBA by increasing the side seams by 1/4" on each front piece and taking in the darts by 1/4", but it wasn't enough. I just wasn't sure how to do a real FBA with the lines of the pattern (it's like a one-shoulder dress with a piece added for the other shoulder, and double darts). I wanted it to be pretty form fitting, like a 'wiggle' dress, but man, women must have had to make lots of alterations, or wear lots of shapewear back then.
I can't really tell how it's supposed to fit, here's the pattern envelope (I made the blue version):
