Hello sew-friends! We are one day away from the official start of the fall season, so it's high time that I share this summer maxi dress. I started this dress sometime around the end of July and it was supposed to be a quick and easy make. Unfortunately, I ran into some fitting issues that prolonged the process. Really, it was a good reminder to make a muslin every time you sew. (File that under advice I give but don't always take!)
This fabric is a gorgeous teal blue linen that I've had in my stash for a few years. It was a gift from The Fabric Store when they had a brick and mortar shop in Los Angeles. That location has sadly been closed for about five years but I'm still happily working through my stash of fabrics from them. They have the most wonderful, sumptuous linens in really beautiful colors. If you're looking for linen, they are my top pick. I chose linen for this dress because I wanted something breathable and suited for maxi-dress (i.e. summer) weather and I think it’s a great fabric for this pattern.
Before I get into my experience with the pattern, I just want to say that these are my opinions and my personal experience. Especially because I'm a designer, I hate being critical about other people's work. Plus, sewing patterns are really hard to design and they are not going to work for every one straight out of the box. Most people will need to make pattern adjustments to achieve a good fit.
That said, I hope that my experience can be helpful to others when they are making this pattern. I didn't read any blog posts about this pattern until after I started sewing and I wish I had read them sooner because they had the same fitting issues that I did.
I made this dress using the Wide Strap Maxi Dress pattern, designed by Elbe Textiles and published by Peppermint Magazine. The pattern is free to download but you also have the option to donate at purchase. Peppermint Magazine has a whole collection of free sewing patterns by a variety of designers. It's really such a cool idea to have free patterns with their magazine. (Check out their library here.) This dress is a maxi length with wide straps, a square neckline and elastic at the upper back.
I've never sewn a pattern by Elbe Textiles before but I love their aesthetic and I'm curious about their zero-waste patterns. They are based in Australia and the pattern favors measurements in cm over inches. The measurement and fabric charts include both units but the instructions and elastic recommendations only use cm. It's a little thing but it was annoying to have to keep converting from cm to inches all the time. One other little thing, the line drawing of the dress does not show a center front seam but there is one. It's a design feature that I like but I was confused that it wasn't on the pattern cover.
I selected size E based on my high bust measurement and did a 3/4" full bust adjustment. (For reference, my measurements are HB 35.5", FB 39", W 29" H 40" and I'm 5'11" tall.) I also added about 6" in length below the pockets because I wanted the dress to truly be a maxi length. Ultimately, I think I did select the correct size and made the right adjustments. But it I make this pattern again, I would also lower the dart by 1/2 to 3/4 inch.
One last note on the pattern drafting, I redrafted the front facing because I did the FBA. It seemed a little funky though so you might want to redraft it as well. I also applied a lightweight interfacing to the front facing, which the pattern does not call for. (The back facing is gathered so I did not apply interfacing there.)
The pocket construction is a style that I've never done before. It's essentially a side seam pocket with a cut out opening. The pocket is constructed and attached to the front of the dress before attaching to the back of the dress. The construction is more similar to a slash pocket that you would do in pants except that the opening is smaller. It's a really cool detail that I think adds a lot to this simple dress.
This pattern uses French seams and finishes everything really beautifully. Even the side seams are finished with French seams which is very tricky due to the split. Btw, click here for my preferred method for sewing French seams with a slit.
The instructions have you finish the hems before sewing the front and backs together and finishing the bodice. Personally, I prefer to hem my garments at the very end so that I can be sure that I'm getting the length that I want. Being tall, I often cut things longer than I might need, just to make sure they don't end up too short. For this dress, I half finished the side seam splits so that I could sew the side seams and then finished the hem very last.
Ok, so now it's time for the saga of the straps and elastic. First, I basted the straps to the dress and tried it on (before the elastic casing was made). The straps felt super long and everything was really loose. So, I shortened the straps a lot. After attaching the facing and inserting the elastic, I tried on the dress again and the straps were too short. So, I unpicked the facing and made new straps. (My memory is a little blurry here but I think they were two long on the second attempt and I made them a little shorter.)
I also really had to fiddle with the length of the elastic to get it comfortable. Just call me Goldilocks! I wanted the dress to feel loose and comfortable so I had to find the right length of elastic that created some fit without being too tight. It's really tough to make all these adjustments after the facing is already sewn in. The easiest thing would be to make a muslin and play around until you figure out the best strap length and elastic length. Otherwise, you'll be messing with the facing and casing.
One last thing to be aware of, the straps can shift left and right in the back because they are attached to the casing and it can move over the elastic. So, the wide straps are great for hiding bra straps but can easily shift out of place. (It kind of kills me that one of my bra straps is showing in these photos. It’s one of the perils of taking photos with a remote control. I just don’t always know if everything is in place.)
All in all, I like the dress and have enjoyed wearing it. I did not enjoy the process of sewing it, sadly. I went in to the project hoping for a quick and satisfying project but it ended up being frustrating. I love the fabric and the drama of the length though. I think this dress falls under the success category but it was certainly a journey! If you want to use this pattern, I say go for it, just make a muslin and be prepared to fiddle around with the straps and casing. You can also make this dress easier by sewing traditional side seam pockets and skipping the French seams.
