Built by Wendy DRESSES

The Sew U Guide to Making A Girl’s Best Frock

By Wendy Mullin

With Eviana Hartman
(Potter Craft; February 9, 2010)

Nothing transforms your look faster than donning a dress. Perfect in every season and for any occasion, dresses are experiencing a major surge in popularity. In fact, according to a recent New York Times article, dresses “can turn heads with equal grace at a work meeting, a Sunday afternoon wedding or during after-dinner drinks.” Downtown designer Wendy Mullin, whose Built by Wendy clothing line is a favorite of fashion-forward celebrities like Zooey Deschanel, Parker Posey, Kirsten Dunst, Michelle Williams, and Amy Poehler to name a few, knows first hand that a dress is a surefire fix for any fashion emergency.

With this belief in mind and expanding on her popular Sew U series, Wendy has created Built by Wendy Dresses (Potter Craft, February 2010; $27.50) which offers 25 fully customizable variations of her favorite dress silhouettes, complete with three full-sized patterns from her own line (a $45 value). Wendy guides readers through the process of fitting, customizing, and sewing just the right dress, from the “Uptown Girl” (page 160) a perfect little black dress to a breezy summer tunic like the “Cannes Do” (page 87).

With her insight and eye as seasoned fashion designer, Wendy explains how to assess your shape and provides suggestions about which silhouettes will flatter the most. She also reveals how to use simple adjustments such as adding a collar or changing a sleeve to reinvent pieces you already have. Built by Wendy Dresses will inspire anyone with a sewing machine to create fun, fashionable dresses – after all, they are a girl’s best friend!

About the Author

WENDY MULLIN founded Built by Wendy, a NYC–based line of women’s and men’s clothing and accessories in 1991. In addition Wendy authored Sew U and Sew U: Home Stretch; and designed a line of sewing patterns for Simplicity. Visit her online at http://www.builtbywendy.com/.

Built by Wendy Dresses

The Sew U Guide to Making a Girl’s Best Frock

By Wendy Mullin

Potter Craft * On-Sale 2/9/10 * 208 pages * $27.50 hardcover

ISBN 978-0-307-46133-9