Amy's Self-Drafted Dress in Gabriella Peachskin

Hi Everyone

I’m Amy of almondrock.co.uk and I’m super excited to share my latest make with you, so big thanks to Katie for having me here to guest post! Abstract prints like terrazzo or matisse style cutouts are having a fantastic revival. They’re so bold and imperfect and interestingly can evoke different feelings depending on the colours mixed in. After spotting a dress on Pinterest I had been searching for a great abstract floral print and sewsewsew came to the rescue.

I needed a terrazzo that wasn’t on a pale or white base as that doesn’t suit my colouring so it was really exciting to find this beautiful Gabriella Peachskin on the website which comes in grey, red, mustard or navy. Katie has a great eye for fabric so I nearly got sidetracked 10 times looking at everything that is available. I chose the red background with white, grey, mustard and black pattern. It’s like terrazzo meets flowers which is wonderful.

Peachskin is that magic combination of drapey and opaque so it’s perfect for blouses, dresses and skirts. I really wanted to make another version of my self-drafted birthday dress which features grown on cap sleeves, a faux wrap bodice and gathered skirt. I learnt pattern drafting a few years ago and it’s lovely to have it in my back pocket when I want to sew something specific.

Multi-directional prints like this are really worth their price in my mind as they open up garment layplans to be much more efficient. Even though I was kindly gifted this fabric in exchange for a review I honestly believe at £4.50 a half metre it’s a great price and definitely recommend it. It would look great in a tiered hem skirt or Cielo from Closet Case Patterns.

Peachskin does have a tendency to fray so all my seams were overlocked and the necklines and sleeves were finished with bias binding. This was cut from the same fabric and stitched before turning to the inside as a facing. I installed a red invisible zipper in the centre back and added a nice deep 1” hem to the skirt.

I love invisible zippers but know they can be tricky for people. I find it best to baste the zipper in place by hand with needle and thread at the waistline. It only has to be a couple of inches to get the intersection aligned. And I absolutely swear by my invisible zipper foot for easy first time installation. My other tips include avoiding a high iron heat so you don’t scorch the fabric and start with a new fine machine needle to avoid snagging the fabric.

The dress is boxy and breezy, perfect for the recent hot weather but would easily work with tights in winter. Peachskin doesn’t crease easily so this style is a perfect partner for the fabric and I feel relatively smart no matter how long into the day I’ve been wearing it. The sheen of the fabric and scale of the print make it a joy to wear.

I hope you liked what I made with the fabric and if you have any questions about the dress you can find me on instagram @almondrock_sews