Style Arc’s Mia dress is described as simple but sophisticated. I’ve been wearing this dress a lot and it is simple and sophisticated. The fabric and pattern are sponsored by Minerva Crafts.

The fabric is Art Gallery Fabrics Paradis Woodlands rayon dress fabric. When I read the description, I knew this would work beautifully with Style Arc’s Mia

“A dream of softness, our AGF rayon is 100% natural and perfect for your best apparel sewing. Lightweight and flowy, it has an ultra smooth hand and delicate drape without sheerness. It is absolutely perfect for warm weather, and transitions incredibly into the cooler seasons because of its high density weave.”

Here’s a closer view of the gathers across the shoulder seam. There’s no gathering skills required. You sew on elastic across the shoulder seams after you’re sewn these seams together. It’s that easy.

This is a closer look at the back neck finish. You use this binding using the same fabric and it sits nicely.

There is an armhole facing you can use to finish the sleeve but I decided to keep the sleeves light-weight and did a small hem finish.

The clever sleeve design gives you lots of arm movement without the risk of flashing at the sides, when you’re reaching for something on a top shelf.

The back sits nicely too and I didn’t have to bother with a sway back adjustment.

I only needed to shorten the skirt. was the length that I needed.

I really love this dress from any angle.

There are so many strong colours in this print, it makes it fun to wear different shoes with it.

See what I mean.

Have you seen the Style Arc designs Minerva has now? When I visited Style Arc’s offices last November their staff were thrilled to be able to have their paper patterns sold in multi-sizes internationally.

This is the second Style Arc pattern I’ve made. I thought there would be some hurdles but I checked for the important information first – seam allowances, trims, suggested fabrics and any sewing tutorials. When I made my test version, all those details are in the pattern so I was able to make this dress up very quickly.

I hope you find this pattern an easy one to make again and again.