Brightening the wardrobe with Summer Dresses

Bold fabric = a fun wardrobe. Well most of the time! I would say the majority of my handmade items have been sewn with relatively simple patterned fabrics, or plain colours, so this year I decided to jazz it up a bit.

Friday Pattern Company - The Wilder Gown

I fell in love with this vibrant rayon challis fabric which I saw at the Stitch Festival back in March, and so I bought a few metres from Minerva. The Wilder Gown has been on my to-make list for a while, and this felt like the perfect opportunity to sew it. For the sleeves, I sewed elastic directly onto the inside of the cuffs in order to be able to push them up.

Vogue Pattern 9327

This fabulous fabric also caught my eye at the Stitch Festival, so I bought it there and then from Montreux Fabrics, knowing it would be a perfect match for a long, relatively conservative, warmer-weather dress pattern. I did a bit of research on the style of dress I had imagined, and this Vogue one from Minerva fit the bill. I particularly love the high neckline!

Style Arc - Armidale Dress

Surprise surprise, there was another fabric written in the stars for me at the Stitch Festival! I was excited by the recent release of the Simplicity 'All Dressed Up' vintage illustration fabric range, and noticed it at the festival, so I picked up a couple of metres, envisioning it being used for a vintage style dress. This Style Arc button down dress pattern was perfect. You can quite clearly see that I chose to mix it up with some bold orange sleeves and collar. Should I reveal whether that was by lack of vintage fabric or by choice? You can decide ;)