Little red dress with a big personality!
My love of raglan sleeves and the Aeolian T-shirt Dress pattern by Pattern Fantastique continues…
I feel so good when I’m wearing this dress.
There is a lot of fabric in the top half of the dress (how about those sleeves?) but I think the volume is nicely balanced by the shortness of the dress. Well, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!
I took a leaf out of the designer’s book and sewed this version in linen. The pattern is designed for knits, but it’s not a great leap to make it out of a woven. The changes I made to accommodate the change in fabric type:
- I bound the neckline
- I folded over the bottom curve of the back facing before stitching it down
- I included a double fold hem (more details on that later)
I love sneaky little details on the insides of my makes. Do you? Any excuse to use some chambray and liberty… right? Lizzy recently commented that I should change my blog name to Liberty Anna. She definitely has a point!
Did you spot my labels? My stylist designed and gave me 100 ‘Anna à la mode’ (translation: Anna in the style) labels for my birthday. A very thoughtful gift from a non-sewing friend.
The French language nicely leads to my next point… French linen! The glorious linen used for this dress was one of my precious purchases made on a Stitching Up Paris tour. I read Liz’s blog post about her fabric/yarn shopping in Paris only weeks before we left for our overseas adventure. Liz talked about Barbara’s personalised sewing, knitting and/or crafting tours. Oh yes please! I emailed Barbara and we made a time for my very own shopping adventure.
It was a fabulous afternoon of patting fabric, buying a couple of gems (like this linen) and bumping into Rachel and Julie. It’s a small online blogging world!
Barbara was an excellent guide. I recommend her tours without hesitation. Now I just need to get back to Paris so I can do another. Meanwhile, I have a little red dress with a big personality to remind me of my Paris fabric shopping adventure. In my eyes, that’s the best kind of souvenir you can have.
The dress is drafted to be knee length (the pattern comes with five different lengths), but I prefer my dresses to be above the knee. I cut the dress as per the pattern and turned it over 5/8″, and then for a super deep hem, another 6″. This is my first, but definitely not my last, super deep hem. I think they might be a little addictive!
Pattern: Pattern Fantastique’s Aeolian T-shirt Dress (knee length)
Size: M
Fabric: French linen purchased in Paris
Alterations: Sewn in linen rather than a knit. Created a super deep hem for an above the knee hemline
So elegant and I really like seeing all the special little extras you include.
Thanks Robyn. I’m usually a little too shy to share the inner workings of my makes, but these insides were both pretty and neat, so it was an easy decision.
I think this looks fantastic and it really suits you too.. It has a very elegant casualness too it and the new labels are perfect for it!
Elegant casualness… I like that! Thanks.
I’m glad you posted this! I have this pattern in my stash to sew up, but wanted to see how others were doing it as the styling on Pattern Fantastique is a little wild. Yours looks lovely, and the sleeves drape nicely. Now to find the right fabric (knit or woven) and make myself up one!
Thanks Meg. It’s always a gamble sewing up a newish pattern. I’ve also made a knit Aeolian dress… I’ll share that in the next few days. I used some of my European knit stash, predominately cotton with a little stretch, and the dress still hangs nicely without being made from a super drapey fabric. I don’t think I’m done with this pattern yet!
This dress looks so cool and comfortable, and I do love the look of the deep deep hem. I’ll check this pattern out as I love knits…and like you said it’s made for knits too.
I’ve made a knit dress too. I’ll be sharing that very soon.
This is a great design on you – loving the deep hem. The inside details are lovely.
I got a lot of satisfaction from sewing this dress. Here’s hoping I get loads and loads of wear out of it too.
This is beautiful! I love your inside shot, too. I hadn’t heard of this pattern before, but I’m liking it!
It’s a relatively new pattern company Joanne and I only know of one other person who’s sewn this pattern. Lara made a boxy tee in jersey – http://thornberry.wordpress.com/2014/12/18/aeolian-tee/. I’ve already used this pattern three times and I don’t feel done with it yet!
This is beautiful. I love the tiny details inside which show how well it is made. You have brilliant style! 💝
Thank-you Amanda 🙂
I love the colour, the shape (especially the hem) and the length. I desperately want to be able to pull off this kind of style, and you are most definitely to blame 🙂
I do take full responsibility…
This looks awesome. I love it and that linen looks amazing!
The linen is amazing Bree.
Chic & comfy, great colour and the fabric looks a dream. Love the inside detail and your shoes, I love yellow shoes.
I have a bit of a thing for mustard at the moment. I’m trying very hard to talk myself out of buying some mustard linen for a summer dress.
Buy it buy it, it will look so good on you plus it will match all your other lovely colours!
Ohhh that hem depth is sassy! I love it! This is a gorgeous colour on you and those labels are too rad! Awesome work as per usual! 😀
The deep hem will be featuring in my next few posts. Discover something new and work it, work it, work it…
[…] a workout recently, making first a beautiful Liberty tee then using the same pattern to make a dress in woven linen (by the way, I want to steal everything that Anna has been sewing lately – such gorgeous […]
Gorgeous!
Thanks Andrea.
You look stunning in this! I took my white one on a road trip. Yes white linen in the car for hours on end madness. It survived. I just couldn’t take it off. Thanks for posting!
LOL… white linen, family road trip… that dress has a strong will to survive. You obviously need another one in your life. I’ve made a knit dress too and now I’m thinking about a brushed cotton or wool version for winter. Addicted much? Oh yes! Hoping I sent some traffic your way…
I even got dark chocolate on it. I am wearing it right now!
Yes I need heaps more. I have to make another to document the pattern hack so I’ll be on the look out for some thing special. I have been contemplating making a winter weight one. Yes the Aeolian has been moving along since Thornberry and yourself have been posting your Aeolian triumphs.
What a cool dress! I really love the shape of it. It looks awesome on you.
Thanks Kat. I’m really happy with this dress. There will be more of Aeolian’s in my future.
Stunning dress and especially so that lovely deep hem!
Thanks Helen
[…] to say about this that I haven’t said already (or that Anna hasn’t said – her linen Aeolian is here) – and construction was very fast and straightforward. I wore it to work today in […]
[…] Is it too early to call Pattern Fantistique’s Aeolian T-shirt/Dress my pattern of 2015 in the second week of January? My two previous versions were a tee, and a linen dress. […]
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[…] and I had to be ready to leave at 7:15. I still had to shower and wash my hair. So, inspired by Anna’s deep hems, I just pinned and topstitched it in place. Now it was looking good! I just had the neckline to […]