Color Blocked Valerie Dress
This post is my honest opinion using a pattern I received free of charge from Forget-Me-Not Patterns.
Its always exciting when a new indie pattern company comes on the scene, so I was thrilled to review a pattern by Forget-me-Not Patterns, an up-and-coming brand from New Zealand.
FMN features beautifully simple silhouettes (like Sabrina, a pencil skirt, and Clementine, a fit and flare dress) with unique seams and style lines. The Valerie dress in particular utilizes dramatic darts, a raglan bodice, and slash pockets for a fresh take on an A-line dress. And to take these lines one step further, I chose to color block my dress!
One of my favorite fabrics to use lately has been wool crepe. Its cushy, easy to work with, has lovely drape, and is so comfortable to wear. I had some scrap pieces in hunter green and hot pink from other projects and decided I wanted to put them together for my Valerie dress. Color blocking isn’t my forte, but since I love it so much on others, I figured this was an excellent time to practice with some really nice wool crepe scraps. I had to play a major game of pattern tetris to get it all to fit, but it all came together!
The wool crepe is such a great choice for this fitted dress. Its not too shifty and delicate, and it has some mechanical give that makes a fitted bodice and sleeves really comfortable while wearing. Having a fabric that moves with you makes such a difference in form fitting garments.
This was my first time sewing a Forget-Me-Not Pattern and I was really pleased with the process. The instruction booklet is friendly and clear, and has lots of info on the fit, potential adjustments, printing and cutting, and techniques like grading seams and understitching. The pattern uses a couple of different seam allowances depending on what part of the dress is being sewn, but the instructions are always clear as to which seam allowance is being used.
The pattern instructs the maker to sew the bodice side seams and the raglan sleeve seams separately and then insert the sleeve into the bodice, however I chose to sew the sleeves to the bodice pieces flat and then sew the entire length of the side seam together, but that’s just a pattern of personal preference, and overall the steps of assembly make logical sense.
I went back and forth on which size to make because my measurements had me between the 42 and 44, but because its a fitted, non-stretch dress, I ended up going with the 44. It skimmed nicely over my hips but I did have some extra ease in the upper body. I ended up taking in all of the raglan seams and the shoulder dart, which also helped to bring the waist seam up to my narrowest point. These adjustments created a bit of a turtleneck effect so I re-cut the neck to fit the original facing and all was well again. Next time I’d do a 42 for the bodice (or maybe even a 40), with a 44 hip, for my personal preference. Lastly, I chose to omit the flounce and further shorten the short sleeve, and shortened the skirt by 2” (I’m 5’1”).
Even though its a fitted dress, I think the raglan seams actually work really well for custom fitting as you go. There’s a lot that can be adjusted on the final version if you’re in a crunch and don’t have time for a muslin or if making a muslin simply isn’t your jam.
I really enjoyed making this Valerie dress and I think its a great foundation pattern, just brimming with opportunities for customization! How would you make it your own?
