At this stage of my life I am full on here for any dress that is comfortable, functional, but still has style. The bold colors, mix of prints and dramatic seam lines are what make this dress stand out from your standard knit maxi dress, and the fact that it manages to accomplish that and still be loose and comfortable is a feat in and of itself.
I recently bought a stack of fabric with no plan as to what to do with them, just knowing that I loved the color palette and the mix of prints and scale. All of the fabrics and fibers I chose are either 100% cotton or cotton/linen mixes, which makes them easy to mix and match into many summer pieces. Over the years I have been trying more and more to hone in on what makes my designs and fashion different than others, realizing that what set me apart is what made me start this blog almost 10 years ago.
The name of this blog uses the words ‘Style’ and ‘Safari’ because I love that my style is not only inspired by my travels, but is also to wear on my travels. For me, this dress is that perfect eclectic mix of global techniques that can be worn on the plane, on a beach, in a souk, or wine tasting, all while chasing after a child and literally having no time to think about what you will wear. Plus, it has pockets, as everything I make does, which truly is a life saver for my scattered brain.
The patternmaking of this dress was fairly easy, but the construction with the piping detail was a bit more difficult. I plan on making it again with a few tweaks (sewing the yoke on differently, thinning out the overall shape just slightly, picking a lighter weight trim) to absolutely perfect it, but I am excited to share with you the progress and hopefully sell it sometime soon!
If you would like to try your hand at making something like this yourself, remember I have a YouTube pattern making series that shows you how to make your own custom fit patterns, and I would take a look at these 3 in order to get the hang of making a design like this:
HOW TO DRAPE A BASIC TORSO OR DRESS FOUNDATION
FUNDAMENTALS OF FLAT PATTERNMAKING: THE SLASH AND SPREAD TECHNIQUE
HOW TO FLAT PATTERN 3 DESIGNER TOPS USING THE BASIC TORSO OR DRESS SLOPER
All fabric is from Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics in Berkeley and if you don’t see one of them online, you can absolutely email them with a picture of this dress and they will help put together an order for you!
