This is one of those “Why didn’t I sew this sooner?” patterns. I mean…I know why:
- It’s hard to find dresses/skirts that work in my lifestyle. I like to go from running and/or yoga, to playing in the garden, to vacuuming to park to desk to sewing to kid-carpool to making dinner… I don’t have a 9-to-5 job in a sea of gray cubicles anymore…I have a 24 hour job.
- I’ve had some pretty severe “misses” in the dress sewing category. Everything I *think* is going to be lovely, flowy, easy ends up being maternity, frumpy, terrifying. The only exception of late has been my black shroud of a Kielo dress which I love, but doesn’t work in 90+ Fahrenheit heat.
But OHMYGOD do I love this dress. I finished it 6 days ago and I’ve worn it for 4 days, including today. In 90+ heat, hanging laundry on my “solar dryer” and THE POCKETS are perfect for clothespins!
I feel a lot like how I remember my Grandma Crouse…in her dresses, puttering around the farm house in Pennsylvania…then it dawned on me… I’ve been thinking of the pattern name in my mind as TEA HOUSE dress….DUH. This is a HOUSE DRESS. Like grandma used to wear! I can be really obtuse sometimes.
I bought 3.5 yards of this 45″ width of fabric (WOF) in the remnant section at Bolt Neighborhood Fabric Store in late May. There’s something about going in there when Mahri is working….I feel so at home. Anyway, I grabbed the fabric instantly. It reminds me of Anna Marie Horner’s fabric designs, although I don’t know the designer of this particular fabric. It’s a light cotton, likely found via a jobber or something by the lovely Gina (owner of Bolt.)
Anywho, this fabric HAD to be either a Sew House 7 Tea House Dress, the long view with the wide belt. It had to be. But….on the back of the envelope, it says for 45″ WOF, one needs 5 yards for my size. Now…I’m pretty good at pattern tetris, but not usually 1.5 yards-saving-good. I had a back-up plan of an elongated Seamwork Mojave with a belt if I couldn’t get it to fit (one Mojave hanging on the line here), but luckily I got it to fit.
Obviously, I didn’t try any pattern matching whatsoever….not that I would have if I had endless yardage. This is like a hippie-rainbow-ikat-plaid-stripe-tie dye crazy fabric. I prefer my sanity.
I couldn’t wait for perfect light to take photos – sort of pointless this time of year…so here are some clearer shots albeit in the shade. I prefer the dress tied in front. I didn’t do an FBA, and while I get some slight boob-separating from the yoke, I don’t really care. It feels fine and there’s no actual tugging, pulling, or tension marks, so I’m calling it good.
The drafting is superb. The skirt is rather flat in the front, and front-flat-yoke area makes it so I don’t feel the usual maternity vibes. This makes me just elated. It’s full and swishy enough I can do chores, walk all around, breezy in the heat, but I don’t feel like I’m going to start square-dancing.
While there is a back-box pleat under the back yoke, it doesn’t add too much volume. There’s just enough extra room to give back-shoulder movement, and walking movement in the skirt as the back is one-piece.
The midi-length is my favorite. Long enough I can put off shaving, but short enough I still get a lovely breeze in the heat.
Let’s talk about the yoke. There’s some extra work here in prepping the yoke with easing technique and also applying some interfacing. It’s quite brilliant. It actually FEELS worth the work when you’re wearing it. It molds and fits tailored around your shoulders, but not tight… If you know what good tailoring feels like, it’s like that. Then it’s combined with this easy dolman sleeve styling… Am I gushing too much? At least you know my elation is real – I don’t hide my hate for most dresses. lol
So…I want like … 5 more and I’m opening my heart to dresses a tiny bit. I like belted, but not fit/flare. I like casual workhorses with clever shaping. I’m not sure I’ll find myself with a closet full of dresses, but this one will remain a favorite for quite awhile. I’m already drawing up thoughts on dresses that would feel similar, and looking at fabrics for more Tea house-dresses.
How do you feel about a “house dress?” Any fond memories of them in your life?
Your dress is fabulous and that Fabric…I might have to pop over to Bolt myself today even though I’ve sworn off purchases for a while. My grandma wore house dresses too as she’d putter around the farm in eastern Washington. She’d cook clean gather eggs, etc all while wearing a dress! Yours is lovely!
You know, I think you’re on to something… I need chickens. 😂 Seriously, it’s like being close to my grandma again. I love it.
This grandma loves it on you! I might have to check that out for myself . I have a okay print that should work perfectly.
Thank you Barbara! I ADORED my grandmas, so it’s a nice added bonus – like a secret hug.
This is really cute. I’ve had this pattern forever…I don’t even remember where I got it. Must have been a bundle sale or a contest prize or something. I’ve been ignoring it because I do prefer a fit & flare silhouette (big bust, narrow hips = I prefer a silhouette that manufactures proportional balance) & this kind of looked like cultwear to me. But I’ve gotten obsessed with Sew House 7 & I’ve been looking at this pattern in a whole new light.
As an aside, it’s so funny hearing people talk about the Portland “heat wave”. Like, yeah, I am not in love with the temperatures recently, but it’s been SO NICE in Portland compared to Kansas! Such a nice dry heat, & most of the day is a perfectly reasonable temperature. I’m still looking forward to cooler temps next week, but man. This is why I moved here!
The technique she uses for the neckline is like a beginner’s version of stuff I’ve learned from a Savile Row tailor – it’s worth it for that alone. I love using steam to re-block fabric, and how much more powerful it is than it seems it should be…. yeah. that sentence makes more sense in my head.
lol. I’m a rare Portland Native. This heat shouldn’t be here until August. We are in a temperate rainforest region. Temperate dammit!!! 😀 That said…. I’ve lived in Kentucky, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and have had extended stints in New Mexico and California… I know the heat of which you speak. The Kentucky heat was brutal, but the thunderstorms were things of wonder. You’re going to miss those low thunderstorms.
As a kid, I picked berries and stacked wood in the August heat – but it used to be only a month of hell. Not end of June through August hell.