It was actually version 2 of the Eilidh dress that first grabbed my attention on
@SeeminglyImmaterial's instagram feed. The twist in the back acts like a knot, pulling in at the waistline and accentuating the waist and hips. This makes the simple front look really classic and elegant. In fact just wearing the dress I feel the slight pressure of the knot really helps me consider my posture too, standing tall with shoulders back and abs pulled in.The fabric was a lucky end-of-roll find in hillsborough fine Fabrics the weekend after they opened up post-lockdown.
"That's proper jersey that is!" said the shop-man. Sure is! It stretched beautifully and had an air of 'I won't go bobbly' about it. There was just less on the roll than the pattern suggested but I thought with a bit og careful cutting and my on the spot decision to make the short sleeve version I could make it work.
As my Version 1 Eilidh fitted so well I cut a straight medium for hersion 2 too, with hopes that it wouldn't be too big in the bust - and if it was that it would be fixable with a bit of clever seam allowance editing (the joys of jersey!).
The back pattern pieces are such a funny shape, it's hard to visualise how the back twist works until you start playing with it. Using a fabric that's the same on both sides definitely poses construction confusion, so I would recommend marking the wrong side however you can before you start twisting!
Once you've worked out the seams in the back (amazing how that funny little half moon becomes the waist to hip seam!!!!) it's all pretty simple assembledge. Sholders (reiniforded with a little interfacing), side seams, try on, sleeves, alterations (I increased the seam allowance from the hem up on each side by 1.5cm {so 2x 3cm smaller all round} then tapered to nothing at the waistline), then the sleeves (I inserted them with a 1.5cm seam allowance as the shoulders were looking a little bit too wide), then neckband.
The pattern piece for the neckband is for the scoopback vesion of the dress, so the high back version is like, half the length. There aren't really any instrucions on how to attach the neckband so relies on the maker having a bit of prior knowledge. I attached with a zig-zag seam, possibly the most beautiful neckband I have ever seam, then took it off the ,achine to find I'd attached it back to front!!!!! I was SO glad that I hadn't overlocked this!! All because I was a bit too lazy to put green spools on my overlocker aha! I was able to unpick and reattched in relatively little time and without there being any lasting evidence of my silly mistake. It's almost as neat as my first shot haha!
I finished the neckband with a really narrow zig zag top stitch to hold the band in place and stop the inside from flipping out.
Hem with a twin needle + fin!
These Eilidh patterns but Pipe Dream patterns are so beautifully designed. I absolutely adore the fit of both of the dresses and the way they both lend themselves to being totally customisable to any kinds of jersey to create completely different dresses for different occasions. The design is clever and eyecatching, emitting the perfect amount of sass and glamour to make for the perfect occasion dress.
What other Pipe Dream patterns have you guys used? I've spied some super cute jackets and pinafores on the website...
x
Location: Loxley, Sheffield
Currently Listening to: Living Dead, Marina and The Diamonds
