I’ve made a new dress for Cassie! does’t she look swish and smart and ultra-glam? Well, I reckon so 
Pattern; the Martha dress, from Tilly and the Buttons. I was recently contacted by Joanne from Tilly and the Buttons and asked if I would review the pattern, and I was like, an excuse to sew? hells yeah!! I thought the dress would look really nice on Cassie. And it does!
Fabric; a medium/heavyweight jacquard, quite lustrous and with a rich subtle sheen to it; in a weave of pewter grey/ navy blue/ mauve threads. It makes me think of moonlight reflections upon water. Although when I asked the family for naming suggestions, Cassie suggested corroded steel, and Craig suggested concrete cancer. Oh nice. Very poetic; yeah thanks, family!
Origins; well a week or so ago; I went down to my parents’ place ostensibly to help Mum to clean out a room of “stuff”. Obviously that meant that I came home with a large chunk of that stuff. To be added to my own ever-growing pile of stuff that itself needs a good going-through. *sigh* So I have a few more bins of fabric at my disposal *double sigh* More fabric! oh woe is me 
Anyway, this particular piece caught my eye as being a great candidate for the dress. It’s stiff enough to cope with all the shaped seaming going on in the bodice of this design, and also gives a beautiful twirly flare to that full skirt.
in full twirl mode!
I didn’t have much of it, plus it had that directional, woven-in pattern, so I cut out the skirt pieces on the grain rather than on the bias as recommended in the pattern. I think it’s absolutely fine on the grain. And even with the more economical layout, I just barely had enough fabric to cut out the pieces. I have the merest scant handful of scrappiest scraps left… I reeeeeeeally wanted the knee-length skirt rather than the mini, so I was so pleased that I could squeak those out!
Sizing; Cassie’s measurements correspond to a 2, so I cut out the 3 and custom fit to her through all those bodice seams. The bodice ended up pretty close to a 2 after all, apart from the lower back princess seams, which got taken in a good deal more, so the waist is more like a 1. The skirt pieces were tapered out along the side and princess seams to the 3 at the hemline; so the skirt is a tad more “flared out” than the pattern stipulates. Hey, the more flare the better, right?
I was a little wary of the Mandarin collar; I just knew it wouldn’t go with Cassie’s style, so left that off. My first plans for the neckline were to eventually cut away the shoulder/top edge to be a more boat neckline sort of a shape, which is a universally flattering neckline in anything, in my opinion… but during bodice fitting it was still as is, no cutting, and Cassie got to a point where she hated the highness of the neckline and pretty much threatened that she would not wear it. Aiyiyiyiyi! I promised her that she would love it by the time I had finished, but even I myself, by that time, was starting to think a high neck, even in a lovely boat line; would still not really work for this particle print …. the print was too busy? neck-to-knee it would all be a bit overwhelming? whatever the reason I could sense disaster looming on the horizon.
Anyway I had a brainwave… I suddenly thought of putting in that long front slit. I did it without consulting her, and just messaged her a picture of it while she was at work, and she immediately texted back enthusiastic approval. Phew!!! Saved!
I’d cut neckline facings from grey cotton leftovers, drew on a centrally placed line for the slit and stitched the facings on, carefully skimming around that line. I then cut the slit, under stitched all around the neckline including the slit edges, and turned the facing inside. On the outside it is stitched down by “stitching in the ditch” invisibly along the shoulder seams and also along those princess seams. Seen in the picture as a navy blue line of stitching each side of the facing there, since I couldn’t be bothered changing the navy blue in the bobbin for pale grey, hehehe.
What other mods… oh I also added inseam side pockets… well of course! I’m sorry to bang on about pockets all the time like I do; but pockets, if at all possible, are just a must-have in my opinion! I cut these from more scraps of grey cotton.
OK, so that’s that! Cassie absolutely loves it, and I do too. I even think it has Veronika Maine or Cue vibes to it; which is a very good thing. These are two of my favourite Australian clothing labels, and if I was to ever decide to buy clothes ever again I would be popping in there like a shot. Heck, sometimes still I do, just to get inspiration!
I’ve even done a “proper” pattern review, below. How long has it been since I got all official like that? ages, that’s what!
Pattern Description: the Martha dress is fitted with bust darts and gentle princess seam panels at the bodice, flowing into a bias-cut panelled skirt. It features a contemporary Mandarin collar and closes with an visible zip at the back. Choose from short sleeves or three quarter bell sleeves, with knee length or mini hemline.
Pattern Sizing; 1-8. This is a new-to-me pattern company, with new-to-me sizing, and so I like to size up for the first thing, just in case! My daughter’s measurements correspond to the size 2 so I cut out a 3 and then custom-fitted to her through the side seams and those handily situated princess seams. It ended up being whittled back down to the expected size 2.
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you had finished sewing it? in essence I think it does, although I made a few design alterations and my fabric choice is very different from the recommended so there’s that too. Actually, I think my heavier weight fabric makes the biggest difference.
Were the instructions easy to follow? very easy! The pattern envelope says it’s suitable for “Improvers” which I thought was cute! I’ve been sewing for a long long (long) time, but I’m sure I still have room for improvement
What did you particularly like/dislike about the pattern? I think the pattern is absolutely fine… though I did make several modifications to fit personal taste. I particularly like the swingy, flared gored skirt, it sits out beautifully in the stiffer full-bodied fabric and twirls gorgeously. Not that Cassie does a heap of twirling! but still I wasn’t so sure about the Mandarin collar, and neither was Cassie so I finagled something else instead, but that’s purely a matter of taste and not a fault of the pattern. I can see the mandarin collar is perfectly well-drafted and I would consider using it in a different design, like, say, with a sheath dress.
Fabric used; a medium/heavyweight, semi-glossy jacquard that has some body but is still reasonably flow-y The pattern recommends lightweight fabrics like crepe de chine and lawn, but I really think all those fitting seams in the bodice and the 6-gored skirt could really benefit from a thicker weightier fabric
Pattern alterations of any design changes you made; I left off the sleeves completely; instead I scooped out the armscye by a bit and finished the edges with grey cotton bias-binding, under-stitched, turned inside and hand-stitched invisibly in place.
My fabric has a directional, woven-in design; so to save the visual integrity of that, I cut out the skirt pieces on the grain rather than on the bias as recommended in the pattern. I think this is a perfectly doable option for this design. Plus, you will save fabric!
I also left off the mandarin collar…the neckline I cut a little lower both front and back and finished with a facing, cut from the same grey cotton. The centre front of the neckline has a long, faced slit.
I also added in-seam side pockets.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I probably will sew it again one day, using some of the other sleeve/length variations. It’s a nice, simple and classic design, which with the right fabric could be put to use as anything from a work-dress suitable for the office to a party dress.
Conclusion: A successful outcome! After some tense earlier moments during the fitting before I’d sewn in the bodice slit yet and she declared that she wasn’t going to wear it, my daughter was thrilled with it in the end and is planning to wear it to work as well as to dressier, evening-out events! An honour, if not a relief for the maker (me) indeed
Disclaimer; this pattern was given to me by Tilly and the Buttons for my honest review. All opinions are most definitely my own. There are no affiliate links on my blog and never will be; I am in it because I love sewing
The post Martha goes Impressionist appeared first on Handmade by Carolyn.