Continuing with my chosen theme of sewing with floral fabrics in March, I have selected this very crisp cotton print of florals on a black background.
Do you like to step outside your comfort zone with different fabric choices from time to time, to experiment with your style?
Dark florals are a print style that I have taken a while to warm to, however I can now declare quite confidently that I really do like them. It’s one of those strange facts about life that the more you look out for something, the more of it you see and I now see dark floral fabric on everything, everywhere I go, from clothing, including men’s shirts, to lunch boxes and home furnishings.
Dark floral dresses seem to have been hitting the worlds runway shows for a few seasons now and the designs have filtered down to the high street collections. As home sewers and dressmakers though we know we can make it better than the high street! Better quality fabric and a much better personal fit and usually for a better price too. That said, inspiration has to flow from a starting point. I have put a link to my pinterest board which contains a small collection of the big name designers, like Dolce & Gabbana, Carolina Herrera, Alexander Mcqueen and Michael Kors, who have all explored this idea of the dark floral in their various different ways.
Follow Sewing Avenue’s board Dark Floral Inspiration on Pinterest.
Pockets
When I was creating the pattern for my Dallia shift dress I wanted to make it a very wearable garment and nothing makes a piece of clothing more practical than the addition of useful pockets.
They give you somewhere to keep your tissue or your loose change. They can however have a down side when it comes to creating elegant lines on a dress, skirt or shirt. It is very tempting to fill your pockets with items which really pull the cloth out of shape.
There are many different types of pockets, the Patch, Welt, Kangaroo and In-seam Pocket, to name just a few, and each has its uses on different styles of clothing. I wanted to include pockets on my Dallia Dress which would give it a relaxed day wear look and be useful but not change the line of the body, so I have gone with the inseam pocket style here.
How to sew an in-seam pocket
This is a technique which uses a separate in-seam pocket piece. It gives you the option of having pockets on both sides of the dress, just one side or even leaving them out of the pattern all together.
In this project I am putting pockets in both side seams.
Start by marking the position of the pockets that you want, they are suggested on the pattern, however you can adjust the positioning so that it is perfect for you.
With right sides of the pocket and the dress fabric facing one another, pin pocket piece in place between your markings. Stitch along the seam allowance between your markings, leaving the 1.5cm/ ⅝ inch unstitched at each end of the pocket piece.
Repeat this for the other side.
Place the back and the front of the dress pieces right sides together with the pockets extended to the outside of the seam.
Pin the seam including the pocket pieces in place.
Stitch the side seam from the hem up to and then around the pocket pieces, reinforce at the pocket markings by sewing a few back- stitches, then continuing up to the under arm edge.
Press the pockets flat.
Under-stitch inside the pocket pieces ¼ inch/0.5 cm from the side seam to prevent them from rolling out.
Take a look at all the new patterns in my pattern store which updates regularly as new PDF downloadable patterns are added.
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very nice.
love your dress !