The Kate Dress
So Over It London
The Kate Dress represents a couple of firsts for me. It is my first So Over It London pattern, the first pattern I made from an e-book and the first time I went to a copy shop to have patterns printed on A0 paper.
The pattern
The Kate dress is a 3-in-1 pattern. It can be made as a dress, a skirt or a top. It is classified as an intermediate pattern because there are a few elements that can be a bit challenging, but completely worth it in the end. The Kate dress has a hidden button placket down the centre front. It also has a side zip for ease of getting on and off. Even through the construction can be a little tricky, the instructions are clear with photographs of each step.
My changes
The pattern calls for 3.5 metres of cotton lawn, rayon or lightweight crepe. For a dressier look, I used a cut of matte satin from my stash, which I had bought from Fabricville. And with some effort, I was able to make it work with only 3 metres. To do so, I had to cut the pattern out flat (and not on a fold), and instead of cutting the back bodice in one piece, I added a seam allowance and cut it in 2 pieces with a seam up the centre back.
After constructing a muslin version of the bodice, I noticed that I had some extra fabric around the armscye that had to be removed. (More about how I did that alteration in a future blog post). I also needed to add a little width to the bust dart between the bust point and the waist.
I chose not to do the side slits in the skirt. This made construction easier, as I could just serge the seam allowances together instead of serging both sides of the allowances separately and pressing open.
The Result
This dress is perfect for outings in the park to see the fall leaves change.I will definitely be making another version of the Kate dress, as well as the Kate skirt.
Final Thoughts
Next time I will choose a solid fabric or a non-directional print to save with fabric consumption (the gores of the skirt take up a lot of the fabric, especially if they can only be cut one direction.
I would also like to make a version of this in a viscose twill that will be more appropriate for the office.
Also, don’t forget to let the skirt hang for a few days before hemming it. The parts of the skirt that aren’t on the grain will stretch slightly after hanging. If you hem the skirt without letting it hang, you will end up with a crooked hemline.
