I don’t often make clothes for my friends. Not sure why, it just doesn’t occur to me really! But I made a decision to make a dress for my friend Alex this week. She is celebrating her birthday this weekend and I thought I would make her a shift dress for the fun of it!
Deep down she’s a hippy. She is very calm and spiritual, a yoga teacher. She also has a wicked sense of humour and is quite ‘posh’. Any English person who says the word ‘supper’ is, in my book, posh!
What also made it easier, is that we are the same size, but she is taller, but really, who isn’t?
I used a pattern I know she likes, the boatneck dress from Japanese pattern book Simple Modern Sewing by Shufu To Seikatsu Sha. What I love about this pattern apart from the flattering A-line, is that the boatneck is wide enough to slip over your head so there is no need for buttons or zips. This means it’s a quick sew.
This is the version I made for myself using Liberty fabric. There is a post called ‘I love Liberty’, which details this make.
This is the dress I made for Alex, a slightly longer version, although I fear it’s not long enough! The fabric was gifted to me, found at a car boot sale. It has a lovely drape and the geometric pattern really is so retro! Who doesn’t love orange and emerald green?
I almost don’t want to hand it over. But luckily there is just enough for a dress for me too. I will dare her to wear it with mine, just for ‘shits and giggles!’*
*this is a phrase coined by my husband, never sure if he made it up or if it’s actually colloquial Yorkshire!
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