When the print is so fabulous, using a simple design like New Look 6013 is my ‘go-to’ for this print from Minerva crafts.

New Look 6013 has simple darts at the front and the back with raglan sleeves. I’ve made this pattern before and added a full bust adjustment for when I get bigger in the Winter. My weight changes a lot but I still prefer to wear somewhat fitted dresses.

Fabric:

This crepe (John Kaldor Layered Leaves Print Crepe Dress Fabric – Lime and Black) feels lovely. It drapes well and washes easily. I chose this lime and black colourway because of the black background but there’s enough white in the print to still make it a Summer style.

You’ll find that the softness and drapey properties of this fabric makes it easy to line and hem. I still love to use John Kaldor fabrics when I can because they’re such classic prints.

I did go a bit ‘couture’ with this version. What I mean by ‘couture’ is I interlined the dress bodice and finished the hem hand sewing the hem to the interlining. Crepe is very accommodating to any shape and any level of sewing expertise you have. When you first start sewing crepe is easy to mould into shape and you get a good result with very little stress.

This dress is going to get a lot of wear because of its colourway, print and fabric structure so I chose to use a cotton poplin for the dress bodices.

In the Summer we have a lot of humidity in Sydney. Right now our weather is very Singapore like. This lasts for at least 2 months here so I specifically chose this fabrics and the interlining to make sure this dress helps me deal with our searing Summer conditions.

Couture Finish:

So I’ve raved about couture techniques so why not show you what I mean.

The Bodice: When I line any garment I need wiggle room but I also want a great finish. Wiggle room means the garment fits well but doesn’t constrict my movements. This crazy photo shows I’m hamming it up while waiting for the train. Yes there’s no one on the platform so I could show you how this dress fits but has the room to be a bit crazy in a very measured way.

On the inside, I’ve interlined this crepe and still used the facing pieces for a clean finish.

By sewing just the bust darts on the interlining, the side seams of the front bodice still matches the side seams of the back bodice. You don’t need to be a mathematician to figure this out and thankfully while maths isn’t my strong point, you should always measure twice, cut once.

Having more than one tape measure and measure slides keeps your sewing accurate. Having an unpicker to save the day is a good thing too.

The Hem: The interlining poplin is study and it is about the same weight as the crepe fabric. Keeping the interlining lighter than the fashion fabric is your goal, so your final garment isn’t heavier than you’d expect. All bets are off when it’s an evening gown. Evening gowns are another story.

The interlining is cut at the hem length and I’ve left this fabric unfinished. Hang on I’ll tell you why.

The fashion fabric is then folded up onto the interlining and then hand sewn onto the interlining. So…there’s no need to hem/finish the interlining fabric. See. It’s all good.

The sleeves: I decided not to interline the sleeves. I probably should interline the sleeves if the fabric had less drape. On this dress the sleeves are look soft and that’s what I wanted on this version of New Look 6013.

Thank you Minerva Crafts for stocking John Kaldor fabrics.