Vogue 1250 Refashion -- Part 1

I guess I owe Vogue 1250 another try. Why is it that not until I started the refashion did I realize the reason I didn't like 1250 is because my fabric was all wrong. My bad! The fabric I used has way too much drape. The fabric was just fine for Vogue 1179. See?

Not so much for 1250

I've been wanting to sew McCalls 6319 and decided to give it a try. I pin-fit my pattern to see what adjustments I might need to make. Oops...rewind. I first went to Pattern Review and while no one there did, I decided I needed to add a bust dart to my pattern. I do not like using the pattern design ease as wearing ease! Is it just me or is this pattern piece just screaming for a bust dart on the left side?? I didn't want any armhole gapping going on.

The red line shows where I cut the pattern apart and added a bust dart but only on the left side. Here's a picture of my altered pattern piece. I also added 2" to the bodice front and back.

I am a self-taught sewer and don't feel confined by any sewing rules. That said I hope I don't screw it up! I don't see any reason to add a dart on the other side because the shoulder pleats take care of that.
Luckily I had enough leftover fabric to cut the skirt front. I used the original Vogue lower front piece to cut the skirt back. I added a center back seam to the upper back of the original pattern and was able to cut the bodice back by placing the pattern center along the seam.. After removing the darts I was able to cut the bodice front out of the upper dress front.
After I sewed the bodice together, it became apparent that this is fabric is too drapey for this dress as well. Initially I wasn't going to line it but I dug into my stash and found some knit lining --"fabric of unknown origin" from Walmart. Actually the fabric really reminds me of "Jet Set" from JoAnns. Anyway...
The dress is going together really well. I was concerned about the neckline possibly being wonky so I added some clear elastic to the shoulder seams and the neckline.

I stretched the elastic slightly (on purpose)  while stitching and although in the photo it doesn't look that great, once I understitched, trimmed and steamed the seam it's perfect.
To give you an idea of what the finished dress will look like...

The skirt front is pinned in place.

So far the refashion is going just as I planned. More later