And now the dress (see this post for part 1 and what happened to the offcuts https://www.minerva.com/posts/1074292), a rather summery concoction! Let me tell you all about this Minerva Brand Ambassador project:

Fabric

Liberty cotton/linen blend, it’s a William Morris print called “Strawberry Thief”. Very easy to work with, stable to cut and sew, definitely beginner friendly! It washed nicely too with no issues being in the washing machine (30 degree wash) and low heat dryer. I used the cotton setting on my iron and it was fine.

Pattern

Fibre Mood Mira (pattern tagged) is an old favourite, this is number 3. You can see my first iteration here https://www.instagram.com/p/CB9-Rbug5dT/ , and second iteration here https://www.instagram.com/p/CBpb_rlg4gQ/ . The only modification to this one is that I made each of the tiers 5cm longer. And I added piping (see below for tips)

There is a lot of gathering on the tiers. There are such things as gathering feet that you can buy for your sewing machine, but I don’t have one. In which case my top tips for gathering:

1. Use a different colour thread in the bobbing
2. Pull only on the bobbin thread to make the gathers
3. There are separate rectangles for the front and back. Stop your gathering stitches at the side seams (i.e. separate gathering stitches for the front piece vs the back pieces) to prevent trying to gather too much fabric at once
4. Make 3 lines of gathering (2 inside the seam allowance and 1 outside) if it really gets too difficult to pull!
5. If using 2 lines of gathering, make 1 line inside the seam allowance and 1 outside for prettier gathers (only do this if your fabric isn’t too fine - if you’re using silk for example you might end up with unsightly tiny holes after you pull the gathering stitches out.

Neckline

The instructions give the option for a very tidy bias finish, and I slip stitched it on the inside so there’s no visible stitching on the outside. I think this would be pretty easy to hack into a V neck as well if that was your thing. The back closure is with a hook and eye.

Piping

You can buy ready made (I’ve tagged one below), but you could also cut your own strips. These ones I cut on grain, which is fine for the one that attaches to the bottom of the first tier. But I really should have cut the one on the bodice on the bias, as there is a curve. D’oh! So it ripples a little where it should not. Never mind, remember for next time …

I have a tutorial for piping here. https://www.instagram.com/tv/CFuMahhpXB9/ If you watch the video you can probably tell I use this kind of piping quite a lot to break up busy prints!

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That’s it for this one, I’m waiting for the weather so I can wear it outside! PS my hat is also me-made … some random leftover bits of wax print and a dark blue linen ;-)

Till next time
Kate





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