A Nautical Navy Dress

I'm not sure exactly what it is about this dress that screams "Navy" at me, but it immediately put me in mind of mid-century secretaries and aircraft carriers.  I looked up this dress' designer, Sarah Lane, and it seems that my instinct wasn't far off--this designer's pieces date from the sixties and seventies.

Gruella looks on disapprovingly

The off-centre placket with red piping detail is lovely, and the fabric is soft and comfy.  Unfortunately, there wasn't much else to like about this dress.  The length is just plain awkward (one of those mid-century secretaries might have been able to pull it off, but not I), it's too big under the arms (notice the slight bat-wing effect?), and the side seams are actually starting to come apart.

Fortunately, it was an easy fix.  I put it inside-out on Gruella, my dress form, and pinned along the sides where I wanted to take them in.  Then I cut off the bottom at the height of the side slit, undressed Gruella (gasp!) and pinned a new hem.  Call me crazy, but I find pinning clothes very soothing (and it's a good habit to get into if you ever want to sew a flat seam).  I stitched along all of the pinned lines, and tried it on!

Voila!  It's a little shorter than I intended (I prefer my gowns a modest length), but that dress is definitely much improved!  I added a sash from a red dress waiting in my to-be-refashioned closet that just happened to be the exact same red as the piping detail.  Now I have a perfectly-fitted, nautical-themed vintage dress with an updated hemline!

I'd love to hear your thoughts about this refashion!  I wasn't sure about leaving the sleeves long.  What would you have done?