I loved my first version of the Lois Dress by Tessuti Patterns so much, that I ‘needed’ another.

To get me through the 5 days of weather above 25 degrees celsius that we get each summer in Holland.

Of course.

So, without further ado, I give you the Lois Dress Redux!

Lois Dress experience: how’s this for customer service?

With my first Lois Dress, my only problem was that the size I cut out (based on my body measurements), ended up being too big.

In my blog post about my first Lois Dress, I lamented that it would have been easier to have figured out the correct size if all the finished garment measurements were provided, not just the finished measurements for one size only.

Shortly after I published that post, Colette from Tessuti patterns reached out to me and explained that the difference between the waist measurement for each size was 2 inches. So, for example, if the size small measurement provided was 32 inches at the waist, the next size up would be 34″ and the subsequent size 36″. Plus, she also said that they’d taken on board that it might be easier for us sewists to include the finished measurements for all sizes and that they would be doing this in the future!

This is what I love about indie sewing designers.

That they are responsive and open and will reach out to you if you experience any difficulties. Well, usually. And Tessuti Pattens definitely falls into that camp!

So, armed with this new information, I sized down one size for this Lois Dress to a size 10.

This time around, fitting was a breeze and everything came together very easily. There was no need to play around with dart sizes or add in an extra darts.

Although don’t you hate it when you have to reprint and assemble a PDF that you’ve already put together once? Somehow feels even more like torture than usual…

Linen + Rayon 4eva

I just want to gush about this fabic.

It is probably one of my favourite fabrics ever.

This was definitely one of those makes that starts with the fabric. I saw it online at The Fabric Store and fell instantly in love. Of course, like many high-quality fabrics, it was expensive though…

Enter the Lois Dress pattern. One of the things I really love about this pattern is that you get a midi-lengthed, dramatic looking dress with upper-arm coverage out of less than 2 metres of fabric.

For me, this will be a go-to pattern for show-casing a lovely fabric that is too expensive to buy a lot!

This is the first time, I’ve purchased a linen/rayon blend before. And it’s pretty much a match made in heaven, right? Silky smooth and soft like rayon, cooling and natural feeling like linen. And less wrinkly.

I kind of now want to sew all the things in linen/rayon.

Ummm, so that’s all folks…

Now, I know my blog posts tend to somehow end up dissertation-lengthed. But, this time, everything went so smoothly that I don’t really have much else to say. If you’re searching for more detail about making the Lois Dress, you may find my last post more interesting than this one!

For me, the key construction tips for sewing the Lois Dress is that attaching the centre of the bodice to the skirt is crucial. And not to be attempted when tired late at night. Ask me how I know that! It’s not difficult, but just take it slow. And baste.

Unlike my last version, I actually needed to install the zip this time. So I got to test out the slightly mind-boggling  process of installing a side zip that’s half hidden inside a dart! I’m not going to lie, it felt a tad bamboozling, but the instructions will get you through.

Without doubt, the most difficult part of the Lois Dress for me was just picking the right size. And since Tessuti Patterns reached out to me to help with that, the rest was a breeze…

And speaking of breezes, I think this Lois Dress now deserves an early evening stroll along a beach…

 

Oh and, finally, a little P.S! If you like to get your blog hits through Bloglovin’, feel free to follow me over there: you can find me here.