As we are coming to the end of the year, I believe every one is excited for the festive season – when you can wear your best dresses to various parties and celebrations! I am working on a series of occasional wear – fancy frocks for the formal and semi-formal events! If you are looking for a nice but still warm dress to join a company party or friend gathering, remember to visit my blog for ideas!
The Iris puffed sleeve midi dress pattern I share today is inspired by a design by Temperley London (price tag about $600, but already sold out). It features mock neck design, a curved empire waist detail and a fit and flare silhouette. It also comes with long puffed sleeves for modesty and warmth!
Let’s look at the details of the dress:
The pattern is made using layered PDF, please check for your desired size before printing so you won’t waste your paper. I have included a first page with many details about sizing and printing, so please first read the first page and make sure you know what size you need! If you still do not know how to print a layered PDF, please check for the printing instruction in this post: PRINTING GUIDE.
My patterns are now made in both A4/Letter paper and A0 paper format so you can print at home or at any print shop!
For home printers, you can print this using your home printer and either A4 or Letter paper. I calculated the printing area so that you will be able to use either type of paper to print the pattern out perfectly. Always print the first page first and check with the test square if you are printing at the right scale before you print out the whole pattern – avoid waste of ink and waste of paper, save the earth!
Some PC may print smaller than actual size even when you choose 100% scale – I don’t know why this problem exist, but my HP laptop cannot print true to size. I have to scale up to 103% to get the right size. You may need to check with your PC to see if it prints true to size, if not, scale up a bit. I was informed by a reader that you can also print the pdf as image to get the right scale, however I never tested it on my computer.
SEWING INSTRUCTION
You will need
- Fabric of your choice. This pattern is intended for woven fabric. Choose soft flowy fabric for natural drape and romantic feel.
- Invisible zipper
- Light weight fusible interfacing
- Some decorative buttons for the sleeve cuff
- Scissors, pencil or fabric marker, ruler, pins
- Sewing machine/Serger or needle and thread
- Printed pattern
How much fabric do you need for this piece of garment? I do not provide fabric calculation for my patterns so to be precise, you may need to check how much fabric you need before buying. It will depend on the selected pattern size, the width, and design of the fabric you plan to use. Just to be sure, print all the paper patterns and lay them out at the width of fabric you plan to use (usually from 90 to 150 centimeters or 35 to 60 inches). Measure how much fabric you will need. Don’t forget to account for pieces that need to be cut multiple times and pieces that are cut on the fold.
Cutting instruction:
After printing out and taping all the pattern pages together, you will get something like this:
As requested by many followers, starting from now on I will provide patterns that already has 1cm (3/8in) seam allowance included. This will simplify the file that you see when printing multiple lines. If you want different seam allowance, adjust accordingly.
The fabric will be cut into following pieces:
- Front Bodice: cut 1 on the fold
- Front Skirt: cut 1 on the fold
- Back Bodice: cut 2 mirrored
- Back Skirt: cut 2 mirrored
- Sleeve: cut 2
- Collar: cut 2 self fabric + 1 fusible interfacing
Place the pattern pieces on the fabric, pin the pattern pieces to the fabric to secure them in place. Using sharp scissors, carefully cut out the fabric pieces along the outer lines of the pattern. Take your time to ensure precise and clean cuts, as this will affect the fit and overall appearance of your garment.
Make sure to mark all notches and other design features such as darts, pleats, draw marks etc. from the pattern pieces onto your fabric. When sewing the garment, pay attention to notches, they must match up.
Sewing instruction:
1. Serge fabric to prevent it from unraveling. Apply fusible interfacing to one Collar piece. This piece will be on the inside.
2. Fold and sew the French dart. Press the dart up toward the armhole.
3. Place Front Bodice and Back Bodice right side facing. Pin and sew to get the Front Dress.
4. Place one Back Bodice and corresponding Back Skirt right side facing, pin and sew to get the Back Dress. Repeat with the other pair.
5. Place the Front Dress and one piece of Back Dress right side facing, match the notches, pin and sew to join. Repeat with the other Side Back to get the Main Garment. You can add side seam pocket to the dress if you like. This is a tutorial on How to add an side seam pocket.
6. Attach invisible zipper to the back of the dress and finish the center back seam. This is a guide on How to sew invisible zippers.
7. Place two Collar pieces right side facing, sew around the edges leaving the bottom edge open. Trim off the seam allowance, clip the corners and the curve. Press seam allowance to the inside piece and topstitch the seam allowance to the inside piece.
8. Place the Collar and Main Garment right side facing, match the notches, pin and sew to attach. You can also sew it the way you sew a collar stand to a shirt. This is a guide on How to sew a collar with stand. Use buttons/hooks and loops for collar finish at the back.
9. Measure the distance from the notch on the front armhole to the notch on the back armhole of the Main Garment. Gather the cap of the Sleeve (starting from the notch on the front armhole to the notch on the back armhole, across the notch on the sleeve cap) until it matches the measurement. This is a guide on How to gather fabric.
10. Sew the underarm seam of the Sleeve, starting from underarm to the notch on the seam. Fold and sew to finish the slit and the hem of the Sleeve.
11. Turn the Sleeve inside out, align it with the armhole opening of the Main Garment. Match the notches, pin, and sew to attach the sleeve.
12. Fold and sew the hem of the dress. (Optional) Attach decorative buttons to the Sleeve.
This is one of the fancier dresses that I am going to share for the next few weeks. Although it takes more time to finish, I believe you will get a great result!
And here is the download link:
IRIS PUFFED SLEEVE MIDI DRESS SIZE XXS-5XL (A0 PAPER)
IRIS PUFFED SLEEVE MIDI DRESS SIZE XXS-5XL (A4 LETTER PAPER)
To download just click on the link above and choose “Save link as”. The PDF file will be downloaded to your device. An advertisement may pop up, just close it and continue with your download. In case some ads attempt to make you enter your personal info, just ignore and close it. I do NOT require any kind of information to download my pattern files.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Because of many cases of copyright infringement, I have restricted permission on my patterns from now on and you will not be able to open it using pdf editing software like Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw etc. Please use PDF readers to open and view the files – there are many free PDF readers that offer layer viewing and printing, like Adobe Reader, Foxit Reader…
Happy sewing! And don’t forget to share your project on my Facebook page: Tiana’s Closet Sewing Patterns or tag me on Instagram #tianasclosetsewingpatterns, I will be thrilled to see the garment in real life!
