How can I fix this dress?

[breemonkey]

Hello!

I'm in need of some assistance.  I am making this dress with a very fitted bodice and I'm unsure of what I need to do to make it fit right.  I have already taken in the side seams about 1 1/4" on the top, tapering it down to the same waist measurement as the original pattern.  Now I find that I have a lot of excess fabric bunching up right under my bust and the sides.  The waist measurement is about right, so trying to take in this excess fabric doesn't work.  I have experimented with the size of the darts, but it doesn't seem to help.  I'm starting to wonder if maybe I need to do a full bust adjustment.  According to my bra size, which I was professionally measured for (thank you, Victoria Secret), I am a D cup, and thus the patterns should be made for my size, however, according to some charts I've found online, I'm actually more like a D cup.  Any help in solving this mystery would be much appreciated!

[misplacedhippie]

this is what i would do

1. get a friend (preferably a close one)
2. put on the bra and underwear (hoes whatever) you plan on wearing with the dress
3. put on the dress - Inside Out.
4. since the waist and i am assuming the straps are right, have the friend pin the bodice along your body making a nice outline of you (even on both sides) this might take a while if the friend doesnt sew, but it will work. make the pins go up and down along your body. with your bunching location I would start at the bottom and work up, making sure the fabric laid pretty under the boobs along the stomach, then work on the bustline.
5. Carefully remove dress (friend might have to help)
6. sew along the pins, tightly to the inside, or along the outside, either way it might have to be adjusted, but only a little.
7. turn dress rightside out and try on.  *remember you still have to trim press and clip your seam*

different companies measure for their bras, you might wear a D for company X then a C for company Y then a DD for company Z go with the numbers for a pattern.  just make the dress fit and flatter. dont worry about the boob size the pattern calls for, measure your bust and go with that size, the lettering is arbitrary sometimes and varies a lot. 

hope that helps.

[breemonkey]

Thanks misplacedhippie!  I'll give it a try.

[Thesingingllamas]

the length of the bodice from wait to bust point may be slightly longer than yours, but you need the length to cover the rest of your bust. The darts look like they are hitting at the right place, for some reason I think it might look better with a strapless bra if you aren't already wearing one.
I can't tell where your apex (nipples) is, but the darts should point to the apex, but not go to the apex. To be very fitted you may need to do contour darts, which instead of being straight are curved. To do this, like it has been said, put it on inside out and pin. I pin, then mark so that I can take the pins out before removing so I don't get poked or poke my model with pins.

Visually, you don't look like a D-cup, which makes me think you might have a different rib cage shape than the pattern was made for. See : http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/palins-wardrobe-scandal/ and http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/a_question_of_thoracic_shaping/