Rimma is excited to share her latest creation—a stunning summer dress made from a beautiful Italian Victorian Rose print Swiss dot cotton. Initially planned for a blouse, this fabric captivated her so much that she decided to turn it into a dress, using every last centimeter to create an almost zero-waste project.
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Rimma’s initial plan was to sew a Pauline Alice Coeli blouse with the fabric, to replace a similar one that had been accidentally torn. However, upon realizing that she had received 2.9 meters instead of the 2.4 meters required for the blouse, she couldn’t bear the thought of wasting 50 cm of such beautiful fabric. So, she decided to make a dress instead, using the entire cut by lengthening it slightly, resulting in an almost zero-waste project. The cotton was washed on a delicate setting in cold water and dried on low heat, coming out perfectly.
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Surprisingly, the fabric doesn’t wrinkle much and is incredibly easy and pleasant to work with. Given its somewhat see-through nature, Rimma knew the dress would need to be lined, and LaForme 0421 was the perfect pattern choice, as it’s designed for transparent fabrics. The result is a gorgeous sundress featuring a princess-seamed bodice, long ties, a neckline ruffle, and a tiered skirt with two separate layers, all adorned with delicate lace trim. It's the opposite of minimalistic, and she absolutely loves it!
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Rimma printed size 46 and, after comparing it to the size chart, noticed she was missing 8 cm at the waist. To maintain a balanced look, she distributed the adjustment across all the seams, adding 7mm to the center back, center front princess seams, side back, and side front at the princess and side seams. She also lengthened the third tier by 4 cm to use up all the fabric. For the lining, she opted for fine cotton batiste and cut four pieces on bias for the skirt lining, instead of on fold as instructed, due to fabric width limitations.
Although Rimma initially planned to include a lace trim, her local store didn’t have any in stock. She ordered some online with an expected delivery date in early November, more than a month away. In the meantime, she intended to finish the dress without the lace and add it later. Imagine her delight when the lace arrived just 8 days after the order! She was thrilled, as the lace truly elevated the design, acting like a beautiful frame for a painting. By that time, she was already deep into sewing, so her finishing touches differ slightly from the original instructions.
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Rimma followed the instructions, which suggested folding the edges to the right side by 5 mm, basting, and then zigzagging the lace trim on top. However, she chose to finish all the edges with a narrow hem and topstitched the lace using a short straight stitch instead. For a clean and professional finish, all seams were completed with French seams, and she bias-bound the waist seam, center back seam, and zipper. For the third tier, she opted for a wrapped seam, which is similar to a French seam but involves folding one layer over the seam allowance before stitching in the ditch. This technique is ideal for gathered panels as it reduces bulk.
The dress took many hours of careful work due to these meticulous finishing touches, but Rimma found the process thoroughly enjoyable. She is absolutely in love with the result and can’t wait for a special occasion next summer to wear this beauty!
