5 years ago
Today I’d like to present the Highlands wrap dress (pattern by Allie Olson patterns) in this lovely linen viscose blend fabric in blue (this color since discontinued). It was a joy to sew up, but I tried to tweak the fit of the pattern and the result is pretty disappointing, which I will tell you all about!
Summertime garment sewing is my favorite type of sewing. I love sewing and wearing viscose and linen fabrics, feeling the fabric swish around when I walk and being able to wear white and brighter colors in the bright summertime light. This fabric immediately caught my attention with its bright blue leaf print and the fact that it is a combination of some of my favorite fabrics. This combination is particularly luxurious because the viscose adds a weight and bounce to the drape of the fabric, while the linen makes it less likely to wrinkle and adds to the breathability of the weave for summertime heat.
This pattern is one I’ve made twice before: once in a medium-weight polyester fabric, and another time in a lighter-weight cupro. Unfortunately, the armscyes of both are too tight and hug my armpits uncomfortably. The waist also sits higher than my natural waist and the elasticated waist at the back especially rides up too much and creates a bulky silhouette from behind.
However, I love how easy it is to wear this dress in cooler summer weather, and the side slits in the skirt as well as the below-the-knee midi length are the perfect amount of cover-up and swish.
So I decided to try modifying the pattern by both removing a bit (progressively up to ¼” at the bottom of the armscye) from the front and bottom of the armscye and lowing the waist one inch. To do the latter, I cut and spread the pattern at the lengthen line indicated and then redrew the lines. I also created a toile of just the bodice from the waist up, and it looked fine! But that was my mistake; without the weight of the skirt, my toile bodice didn’t hang in quite the same way.
Unfortunately, once made up, I realized that the front wrap was too loose by about 1” and gaped open. Thinking I could remedy it with a quick fix, I added two pleats on both front wrap pieces close to the waist where the waist tie and busy pattern print would hide them, but the excess fabric in the front looks a little strange. Also, the armscyes don’t hug my armpits anymore, but it looks like the neckline is pulling towards the center front and the upper bodice sitting too far away from my shoulders, which just looks wonky.
So all in all, I’m disappointed in this make and I feel a bit discouraged with this pattern. I think the main issue is the front wrap, and that in my next attempt, I’ll remove the excess fabric from the front wrap and redraw that line. That might also correct my problem with the way the shoulders pull towards the center front because I really didn’t remove much from the armscyes at all and I don’t think that that adjustment was an error.
Despite my hardships with the pattern, this fabric was wonderful to work with! It has a lovely bounce and a nubby linen feel made softer with the viscose. It presses well with heat and steam and is easy to sew. Unfortunately, the blue version of this fabric has been discontinued, but Minerva still has a few other colors you can try!
I also think that although this fabric is stunning, it’s too busy for an entire head-to-toe garment for me. So since this dress bodice is beyond saving, I’m looking for ways to repurpose this fabric and create a skirt out of this dress. I think it would be really nice as a skirt, and this fabric is too nice to waste. Stay tuned for that transformation!
#minervamakes #minervamakers #isew #memade #memades #sewing #sewist #sewists #sewinginspo #sewinginspiration #sew #sewcialist #sewingproject #sewingprojects #sewingideas #sewingprojectideas #sewingpatterninspo #lovesewing #ilovesewing #sewsewsew #sewersgonnasew #makersgonnamake #sewaholic #sewaholics #shareyoursewing #sewinglove #handmadewardrobe #handemadeclothes #isewmyclothes #diyclothes #dressmaking #fabricinspo #seamstress #memadeeveryday #imakemyclothes #imakemyownclothes #fashion #fashioninspo #memadewardrobe #memadefashion #diyfashion #diywardrobe #fashionsewing #indiepatterns #indiesewingpatterns #summerdress #allieolson #allieolsonpatterns #indie #indiepatterns #wrapdress #dress
Summertime garment sewing is my favorite type of sewing. I love sewing and wearing viscose and linen fabrics, feeling the fabric swish around when I walk and being able to wear white and brighter colors in the bright summertime light. This fabric immediately caught my attention with its bright blue leaf print and the fact that it is a combination of some of my favorite fabrics. This combination is particularly luxurious because the viscose adds a weight and bounce to the drape of the fabric, while the linen makes it less likely to wrinkle and adds to the breathability of the weave for summertime heat.
This pattern is one I’ve made twice before: once in a medium-weight polyester fabric, and another time in a lighter-weight cupro. Unfortunately, the armscyes of both are too tight and hug my armpits uncomfortably. The waist also sits higher than my natural waist and the elasticated waist at the back especially rides up too much and creates a bulky silhouette from behind.
However, I love how easy it is to wear this dress in cooler summer weather, and the side slits in the skirt as well as the below-the-knee midi length are the perfect amount of cover-up and swish.
So I decided to try modifying the pattern by both removing a bit (progressively up to ¼” at the bottom of the armscye) from the front and bottom of the armscye and lowing the waist one inch. To do the latter, I cut and spread the pattern at the lengthen line indicated and then redrew the lines. I also created a toile of just the bodice from the waist up, and it looked fine! But that was my mistake; without the weight of the skirt, my toile bodice didn’t hang in quite the same way.
Unfortunately, once made up, I realized that the front wrap was too loose by about 1” and gaped open. Thinking I could remedy it with a quick fix, I added two pleats on both front wrap pieces close to the waist where the waist tie and busy pattern print would hide them, but the excess fabric in the front looks a little strange. Also, the armscyes don’t hug my armpits anymore, but it looks like the neckline is pulling towards the center front and the upper bodice sitting too far away from my shoulders, which just looks wonky.
So all in all, I’m disappointed in this make and I feel a bit discouraged with this pattern. I think the main issue is the front wrap, and that in my next attempt, I’ll remove the excess fabric from the front wrap and redraw that line. That might also correct my problem with the way the shoulders pull towards the center front because I really didn’t remove much from the armscyes at all and I don’t think that that adjustment was an error.
Despite my hardships with the pattern, this fabric was wonderful to work with! It has a lovely bounce and a nubby linen feel made softer with the viscose. It presses well with heat and steam and is easy to sew. Unfortunately, the blue version of this fabric has been discontinued, but Minerva still has a few other colors you can try!
I also think that although this fabric is stunning, it’s too busy for an entire head-to-toe garment for me. So since this dress bodice is beyond saving, I’m looking for ways to repurpose this fabric and create a skirt out of this dress. I think it would be really nice as a skirt, and this fabric is too nice to waste. Stay tuned for that transformation!
#minervamakes #minervamakers #isew #memade #memades #sewing #sewist #sewists #sewinginspo #sewinginspiration #sew #sewcialist #sewingproject #sewingprojects #sewingideas #sewingprojectideas #sewingpatterninspo #lovesewing #ilovesewing #sewsewsew #sewersgonnasew #makersgonnamake #sewaholic #sewaholics #shareyoursewing #sewinglove #handmadewardrobe #handemadeclothes #isewmyclothes #diyclothes #dressmaking #fabricinspo #seamstress #memadeeveryday #imakemyclothes #imakemyownclothes #fashion #fashioninspo #memadewardrobe #memadefashion #diyfashion #diywardrobe #fashionsewing #indiepatterns #indiesewingpatterns #summerdress #allieolson #allieolsonpatterns #indie #indiepatterns #wrapdress #dress