Maya Dress V Neck Hack

This post was originally shared on the A & R Makers Blog in 2021.

What better way to kick off my 2021 sewing than with a hack of my most popular DIY sewing project from 2020, the Maya Ruffle Dress. I’ve been dreaming up a mini Maya with a v-neck for months, and when Trin’s call for blog contributions came up I had to jump on the opportunity to sew with one of these beautiful linens. Choosing a colour was a no-brainer. I saw Meg Handmade sew with Magenta Linen, so I wanted to sew with Magenta Linen. 

I got just over 2 metres of this gorgeous colour, which was enough for this hack and a little extra in case I made a mistake. It was just the right amount and with the leftovers, I should have just enough for a scrunchie or two. I love a matching scrunchie moment! For these photos I styled my Magenta Maya with a DIY Scrunchie Headband and earrings by Cities in Dust Jewelry. 

So let’s get into the hack! I followed all the same steps as my original tutorial and changed the TOP pieces' shape. Instead of cutting two rectangles, I cut 4 trapezoids. I bound the edges that would make the V with some Liberty Bias Binding and overlapped them on the front by 10cm. I french seamed the shoulders and continued the rest of the steps as usual. 

Below are the measurements I used if you’d like to give this a try. (width x height)

Top Trapezoids - Refer to the image above. (cut 4 - 2 Left & 2 Right)

Sleeve Rectangles - 138cm x 25cm (cut 2)

Skirt Rectangles - 114cm x 50cm (cut 2)

Refer to the diagram in the Maya Ruffle Dress Tutorial for the rest of the dimensions and instructions.

The final result was a little bit different than I expected but I actually love it! I didn’t think it would drop so much on the sides but I feel it actually softens the look a lot more and creates a really beautiful shape. If I make this style again, I would only cut 2 trapezoids for the front and 1 rectangle for the back. This would make it reversible and help it from slipping off my shoulders. Before I wear this to work (and let me tell you this is going to get a lot of wear at work, I’m so lucky I get to wear all my handmade creations) I’m going to add a little tie and then it will be perfect! 

I hope your 2021 sewing plans are getting off to a fabulous start... Im predicting MORE ruffles, MORE tiers and MORE COLOUR!