Amanda's Sew Over It Kate Dress

Hi there everyone,

It’s Amanda (AKA @amanda_isewalot) back on the Sew Sew Sew blog with a lovely summer make for you.

I was super excited when Katie asked me if I would like to get involved with the blog again especially as she has added some beautifully summery fabrics to the site just lately.

My plans have certainly turned towards sewing for the warmer months of late as we have been enjoying some glorious sunshine and lovely warm weather.

From this eBook the Kate Dress and Shirt was one of the last patterns I had left to try and it had been on my hitlist for a while.  I think this dress works best in a fabric which has a reasonable amount of drape but also has a good weight.  When I saw this Ellie Floral Crepe on the site it certainly grabbed my attention.  I love the print and coupled with the colour is definitely perfect for summer.  This crepe is a double crepe which means it is perfect for dresses, skirts and trousers.  The fabric is, in the majority, polyester but also has a lycra content which makes it really comfortable to wear. It is also completely opaque and, as with most crepes, is textured but has a hash like texture which is quite unusual.  

I made a straight size 8 which is my usual size in Sew Over It patterns and, on the whole, seem to fit me really well.  My measurements are B34”, W25” and H36.5”.

This pattern is not a quick one to make due to the dress being collared with a concealed button placket and a side zip.  It also has 4 optional splits in the skirt which I omitted from my version.  Sew Over It’s instructions are really great and I didn’t have any confusion over any of the steps.  The bodice is constructed first, then the skirt with both of them then being sewn together and the zip inserted.

I didn’t really make any changes save for taking about 5” off the length of the skirt and shortening the waist by about ½” .  I also only had a 8” red zip in my stash so used that instead of the 22” zip called for and I just made sure it was placed over the waistline to give me enough room to get the dress on and off.  It’s worked perfectly as I can get it on and off even without undoing the buttons.

The fabric was perfect for this project and, despite being a crepe, pressed pretty well.  The drape of the fabric is just what the skirt needs which I think is a really flattering shape and just skims over the body.  I’m looking forward to wearing this dress all summer and am totally in love with it.

Until next time.

Amanda xxx