Megan Dress by Tilly and the Buttons

I'm quite excited to have finished this beautiful dress by Tilly and the Buttons! I loved how simple the instructions were to follow, even going into the details of how to sew darts and tucks. While I have known how to sew for most of my life, it's so helpful to have a reminder right there or even just a new technique that I haven't tried before.

After looking through several fabric shops, I found this pretty fabric in my usual haunt, The Fabric Store. It has a plenty of body, which is perfect for the structured shape of the dress. My one regret is that I didn't take into account the lack of stretch in the fabric (it's extremely rigid). If I were to make the Megan Dress again, I'd either choose a blended fabric with a little bit of give or I'd make the top half of the dress in a size larger than usual to allow for some movement - although the fit wouldn't be so perfect!

The first stage of making the dress involves sewing the darts and tucks in the bodice and skirt. There are eight in total, but they're simple to sew and give the dress great shape. Once the darts and tucks are in place, you can sew the front and back pieces of the bodice and skirt together. 

The next step is to sew the bodice and skirt together. This is a great time to try the dress on and make sure it fits, since you haven't yet gone to the effort of attaching the neckline or sewing the zip in place. The neckline facing is made simple thanks to the step by step instructions that even explain understitching. Once the facing is on you can insert the zip. 

Now for the sleeves! The gathers do require a little bit of effort to get the sleeves fitting just right. I actually ended up re-doing my sleeves, as I found they were far too tight. I cut the second version of my sleeves a size larger than the bodice to create a bit more space to move, although this probably has a lot to do with the structured fabric that I used. 

Now all that's left is to sew the hem and you're done! I have fairly long legs, so I didn't cut anything off the hem. I can definitely see this pattern becoming a work dress with a bit more length and using a different fabric. I love how versatile it is and can't get over the amazingly thorough instructions. 

If you're on the hunt for this gorgeous pattern, it's featured in Tilly's Love at First Stitch pattern book.