Lolita Patterns 3013: Sugar Plum

I was lucky enough to pattern test this dress and I gotta say, I love it! I've always admired this type of dress that looks like a skirt/blouse combo but could never find a RTW one that fit and always imagined that fitting one would be a nightmare. This came together really easily though and I had to make minimal fit adjustments. Lolita Patterns have a different sloper for the larger sizes rather than just grading up a small size and it really does make a difference.

I made a Sz18 with the waist graded into a sz16. I still had to do a 1"FBA and I added 1" to the back width but the shoulders fit perfectly and I think if you were a D cup (I'm an F), the bust would have been perfect. I rotated most of the fba into a side dart and the rest into the under bust pleat. The underbust pleat was giving me grief when I first did it, I had it pressed towards the side and as soon as I pressed it the other way towards the front it sat beautifully!

I found the sleeves nice and generous without being too puffy or sticking out and for once I didn't need to do a bicep width adjustment!

 I used a nice Japanese cotton Lawn from Spotlight for the blouse and a Ponte knit from my stash for the skirt. I never wear woven tops so I was pleasantly surprised at how comfy they can be, not as much movement as a knit but not too bad all in all.

 

  

I did do a couple of design changes, I just can't seem to help myself! There's meant to be a zip in the back but I found when I muslined it up that I could just pull it on and off so I left the zip out. The skirt has in seam pockets too but they gaped a bit so I decided to leave them off too.

The original neckline is a high one so I changed it to more of a V-neck which I find more comfortable. Finally, the blouse is meant to be lined but my cotton lawn was thick enough it didn't need to be lined so I made some self fabric bias binding and finished it around the neckline and sleeves with that and just serged the rest of the seams.

It's such a pretty dress with the neck ruffles, I finished them with a rolled hem on my serger. First time I've done that and I am so impressed with how it looks! The buttons have been sitting in my stash for a couple of years and it was so nice to finally use them!

I'm really impressed with the dress, the fit and the construction/instructions was very nice, what I'd class as a higher-end rtw finish which is what I always strive to achieve. I can't wait to see what Lolita patterns comes out with next!