The Birdsong Dress

Here's one of the first projects from my New Year's project list I managed to finish, and I'm so happy about the outcome! I spotted the fabric at www.bambiblauw.be and immediately loved it. The print was dark enough to work with tights and cardigans and be worn during the colder months, always a plus in my book!

The pattern for this dress is nothing more than my usual basic bodice sloper with a self-drafted peter pan collar and an a-line skirt. I love starting dresses like this, since I'm sure they will fit me well. I also added inseam pockets to the skirt.

The dress closes in the back with a lapped and hand-picked zipper, and is fully lined in black cotton voile. It's not super tight in the waist, which I like. It's a comfortable dress to wear all day, but the print makes it stand out enough to feel a bit special.

Drafting a collar like this is super easy: I fold back the seam allowance on the shoulders of my front and back bodice pieces and tape them together on the seam line. I then put a sheet of pattern paper on top of this, trace the neckline and draw the collar the way I want it. Add seam allowance and voilà! A collar pattern. This one is lightly interfaced so it's not too stiff.

Have I mentioned how much I love the print? It's made by Timeless Treasures and just ticks all my boxes: there's animals, some colour and a certain fun factor, but it doesn't feel too childish. That's one item to cross off my New Year's list!

I'm ending this post with a note to readers who use Pinterest: I finally caved and made an account, and added a little button to this blog that allows you to pin anything you see on here. You can find it above the blog archive!