My Pink Linen Sapphire Dress
notes on my pink striped linen Sapphire dress
In the leadup to the Sapphire launch, I thought it would be fun to do a series of posts about each of the Sapphire dresses and tops I’ve made for myself (this is the second post). Plan is to post some photos along with a few notes on each dress so you can learn about the fabric I chose and any mods or adjustments to the pattern pieces that I made.
Pattern notes:
Sapphire (coming soon!), with the shorter sleeve and dress length, with no modifications to length. I did make a few small deviations from the pattern in this version.
-facings out
Perhaps the most obvious modification was that I sewed the facings to the outside of the garment rather than to the inside. The pattern “default” is to attach them on the inside — this is the way the diagrams show it in the instructions — but I also included a couple of notes in the instructions to help you put them on the outside if you prefer it that way. I think it would be really fun to use a completely different contrast fabric on the outside!
- sideways/cross-grain details
Because it is a striped fabric, I played around with the cross grain a bit, cutting the sleeves and the facings out on the cross grain (that means you rotate the pieces so they perpendicular to the grain and cut them out sideways). I think it’s really fun, especially because it makes the facings really pop away from the garment. You don’t really notice it as much on the sleeves? Oh well.
For some of the larger sizes in the Sapphire pattern, you have to cut the skirt pieces out on the cross grain (the skirt pieces get wider than 44” and 54” in some sizes), and you could do some fun things with stripes or border prints for the skirt.
- length
I am 5’8 and so - as the length adjustment section in the pattern instruction notes — I would normally add 2” to the length of the skirt to make it the way the designer (me) intended. I did not add any length to this one, so this dress is “midi-length” and it hits me at about mid-calf rather than a few inches above the ankle as intended. As I said in my last post, I love it at all lengths and I think it’s great to play around with length so you have a variety of different dresses.
Fabric notes:
This striped European laundered linen is from Merchant and Mills, which you can purchase at a number of shops. It is pricey but worth every penny. I am pretty sure I bought this one from Ewe Fibers? But am pretty sure they are now out of stock BUT I just saw it online at Domesticity (you can shop online on in person in Baltimore), a lovely shop (hi Christina!!) that carries my patterns. What’s not to love about pink stripes? I fall hard for any combination of pink and orange, honestly. The 100% linen fabric is a mid-weight so it’s on the heavier end as far as fabrics I would recommend for Sapphire, but it’s still completely appropriate for summer because: linen.
How I wear it:
I like to wear it with my bright blue suede Birks (complete with matching pink cocktail, above), and I wore it with hoop earrings and felt flowers in my hair for a friends’ Midsommar Party last spring.
One thing you can’t really see in these photos is that cut a big hole in the top of the back skirt with my rotary cutter by accident when I was cutting out the pieces. There was no way to cut another back skirt, as its the largest piece, so I cried a little inside and then mended it with a tiny patch. If you know to look for it you can see it but…it’s on the back, so oh well!
Good news - the Sapphire Pattern is coming soon - so watch this space for updates on when it is ready! Get details and see more photos and posts over on the Sapphire page:
And get ready for this pattern with the notes and charts in my Get Ready for Sapphire! post.
PS. Sign up for my newsletter or here on substack if you want to be the first to know when it drops!
LOVE! And also, those birks!!!
This is so perfectly you!