My eyes are definitely always on the lookout for color. I feel most people’s wardrobes are full of basics – the perfect black pant. The simple nude pump. Mine is overflowing with the exact opposite: the statement shoe. The print you can see from space. Call it years of being a wallflower or someone who struggled with confidence for a long time, but I hit a point after college and grad school where I was ready to be seen.
So, when I decide to go neutral, it’s usually a moment. There’s a reason behind anything we create, being it a garden we were inspired by or a feeling we can’t quite put our finger on. I suppose sometimes, in a world awash with color and chaos, I felt drawn to simplicity recently. And quiet. So, naturally for my voyage into neutrals, I needed to find the most complicated pattern imaginable….
I discovered a new designer the way most people do these days: on Instagram. Roberts | Wood had posted the most stunning white patchwork dress, full of joie de vivre, done in shades of white. I was immediately smitten with the pristine pause in my feed. Color had been removed, leaving behind only texture and personality.
I clicked through a bit to see if Roberts | Wood had a shop – and was thrilled to discover that, not only do they sell their pieces, they sell patterns to make their pieces. And while my mind spun with ideas for color and print for the Bow Patchwork Dress, I decided to follow my instinct for quiet. And my next sewing moment was born….
The Design
The trickiest part of this pieces was going to be fabric choice. We don’t have a high end fabric store here, but I knew I could find what I needed at my local JoAnn’s (with a little bit of ingenuity). I wanted to find a mix of cotton eyelet, white on white print, and lace, with a bit of sparkle thrown in (Stacy and Clinton still ring in my head: Color, Pattern, Texture, and Shine).
The pattern calls for 5 different fabrics (though there are also instructions for how to use just 3), which you mix and match to create the bow like design. I opted to go with four shades of white (and the lightest of gold), with a few sheers that I would back with white cotton. Once I picked the fabric, we were off!
To recreate this dress, you will need:
The Construction
The first step with any pdf pattern is the printing. I opted to print at home and tape everything together, but the pattern also comes with an A0 option, which you can get printed from online shops or your local Kinko’s, which means far less taping.
But, once I printed everything out, I taped the pieces together and cut everything out.
One thing I really like about this pattern is that it’s super organized. This has a LOT of pieces, which are pretty easy to mix up given the sheer number of them and different types of fabric if you don’t have a system from the start. Once you decide on your fabric, each one is assigned a ‘pattern’ on the pattern pieces and a number that corresponds to the row it belongs to (with 1 being the first row of the bodice, 2 being the second, and so on), plus how many replicates you need to cut out..
That way, you always know which ones you need to cut out of your eyelet vs. your sequin vs. your gold fabric, and where they will be positioned, without getting too confused.
Because there are so many pattern pieces, it took me an entire afternoon to cut it all out. I highly recommend a rotary cutter for this step – there are so many small pieces and so many curved edges, scissors were just a bit much for me.
For the sheer lace fabric and sequins, I also cut out a backing piece out of solid white cotton for each (we’re past the era of showing our knickers…)
Before you start constructing everything, the pattern recommends you lay everything out in the order it will be sewn. I can’t recommend this enough. By the time you cut everything out, you are working with 180 pattern pieces (the bodice is 66 and the skirt 114). You read that right: 180. Needless to say, it is SO easy to get confused and mixed up.
Organization is key: If you lay out each layer in order and follow the map provided in the instructions, you’ll zip through it in no time. It also means you can easily see before you start if any pieces are missing.
I started with construction of the bodice, which was made up of 4 rows. As recommended, I laid out each row of pieces that would be stitched together to create a horizontal row, which would then be sewed to the next row below it and so on.
But first, I basted together all of my sheer pieces to the cotton backing…
Then, starting at the top layer, I sewed each piece together in order to create a horizontal strip. Once sewn together, the pieces will create a vertical pattern that looks like bows (and will feel like chaos as you go – but keep the faith). After each row was done, I carefully pressed each seam flat (use a press cloth for sequined fabric)
The seam allowance for each piece is 3/8″ (1 cm) – this actually is really helpful, because it means you don’t have to notch or clip the many MANY curves. One thing I will say about this pattern – it doesn’t really give you a ton of sewing instructions and sort of assumes an intermediate level of sewing skills. If you don’t have a lot of experience sewing on curves, this will be challenging for you. I recommend practicing a bit on some scrap pieces before you jump into your real fabric.
My general strategy for this type of sewing is:
- Go slowly – you will spend your life unpicking seams if you go too quickly
- If you have 1 straight piece and one curved piece, I always put the straight piece on the bottom, and slowly curve the top piece to the edge as I sew
- If you have two curved edges, I personally find it’s best to have the convex-curved piece (ie, the one that curves outward) on the top, and the concave piece (or the piece that curves inwards) on the bottom.
I kept going, one layer at a time, sewing each one together. Again, for more beginner sewists: this is going to be a bit of a headache to get all of your seams aligned. You will want to use a LOT of pins and match and pin each seam, before easing the rest of the piece and pinning in place. For piece that will meet on an angle, check where the seams will meet at the 3/8″ seam allowance.
Although it can be frustrating (and mine is certainly not perfect if you look closely in certain places), it is totally worth it in the end for the effect.
To finish all of the edges, I topstitched all of my horizontal rows, which will keep your seam allowances flat. I opted not to top stitch vertically, but you can if you really want an Uber-finished look.
I then turned my attention to the straps: this dress had four adorable straps that tie at the shoulders in a bow (and provide the added bonus of an adjustable bodice length. Tall girls rejoice!). For, this, I cut four strips that were 3.375″ wide by 25″ long out of my shimmery gold cotton.
I pressed each one in half with right sides together and stitched at 3/8″ along one end and the long edge. Then, I turned the strap so the right side of the fabric was facing out and pressed it flat. Following the pattern, I pinned the strap to the bodice pieces at the front and the back, with the raw edge inside the seam allowance, and basted them in place.
The pattern for this dress called for a facing, but I personally preferred it to be fully lined. If you use sequins or any other type of scratchy fabric, you may also want to fully line the bodice to protect your skin when wearing it. Using the facing as a guide for the upper part of the lining, combined with my standard bodice block, I drafted a front bodice lining and two back pieces, which I sewed together at the sides.
Although I’m not 100% sure what happened, I don’t have any photos of the drafting part of the process! Sometimes I can get in The Zone with sewing, especially if I’m working at night. If you’re really struggling with this, I would check out YouTube for some help with bodice drafting. Or else pop a comment below and I’ll try to do a mock up.
Next up: the skirt! Here’s I used the exact same strategy as for the bodice, starting with backing my sheer fabrics and laying everything out in order. For the skirt, the pieces are thankfully larger, which makes the sewing less fiddly (and you start to see progress much more quickly).
The skirt is made up of 5 total rows, which essentially become circles of larger and larger diameters. Starting with the top row, I stitched each seam together, following the pattern as a guide. Then, I sewed each row together one at a time and topstitched the horizontal seam..
I will admit, this is where I went a bit rogue. The pattern wants you to sew row 5 to the bodice, and then add row 6, which looks like a top with a little peplum. Then, I was supposed to add the zipper to the bodice and skirt, before adding the next row. I took matters into my own hand a bit, and decided to construct the skirt fully before attaching it to the bodice (as I do for most dresses) and then added the zipper.
I will say: trust the designers. While my way totally worked out, I actually created some extra hassle for myself, as the back pattern pieces do not connect in a straight line. So, I had to fiddle with things a lot more than if I had just followed instructions. Sigh. Live and learn from my mistakes…..
Despite the million pattern pieces and miles of sewing, It really came together beautifully in the end. I loved the shimmer from the sequins and the gold fabrics, combined with the texture of the lace and the subtle white on white print. It was both simple and remarkably complex, neutral but with a depth of character. It’s a dress that shouts without saying a single word…
The Debut
Even though I am many MANY months overdue in writing this process up, this beauty made her debut in March for my birthday dinner with friends. I am completely in love with the charm of the patchwork, and am already wondering if she needs a rebellious older sister done in shades of black and navy….
White is not a mere absence of color;
it is a shining and affirmative thing,
as fierce as red,
as definite as black
G.K. Chesterton
With the Spring semester finally behind me, this past week was the first where I felt as though I could take a real breath. I went on a getaway last weekend with some of my very best friends. We have a house on the beach we’ve rented a few times and every time we go, I realize there is nothing more restorative than being by the ocean with the people who know you best.
I’m hoping to use the summer to recharge and readjust. I pushed myself way way too hard this semester, and found myself falling into bouts of insecurity. Doubts can creep in and color all of our decisions when we least expect it, and I find the more frazzled I get, the more likely I am to question myself. So this summer I plan to rest. To travel. To find inspiration and sew my heart out. To just be for a bit.
To find beauty in the absence of something, rather than the excess of it.
xoxo
Construction Details:
Pattern: Roberts | Wood Bow Patchwork Dress with Shoulder Ties
Fabric : 1-1.5 yard each of white eyelet, lace, and cotton fabrics from JoAnn’s
Additional notions (zipper, thread): JoAnn’s
Outfit Details:
Dress: Made by me!
Belt: Anthropologie (similar)
Necklace: Swarovski (similar)
Bracelet: Kate Spade (similar)
Handbag: Alannah Hill, gift (similar)
Shoes: Sophia Webster (thrifted or similar here)
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Any items marked with a “c/o” (courtesy of) a retailer mean I was provided with an item for free in exchange for a review and/or feature on my blog. I always provide my honest opinion of any item I’m reviewing, regardless of whether it was sent to me as a courtesy item or if I purchased it myself. In addition, this post may contain affiliate links. This means that if you click and/or make a purchase through certain links or ads on this site, I may make a commission from that click and/or purchase at no cost to you, which helps with the day-to-day running costs of my blog.