Ceicily dress is a lovely design inspired by a design on Anthropologie, with vintage-inspired favorite charms like a classic sweetheart neckline, a buttoned bodice, and most memorably, a flattering fit & flare silhouette. It is an advanced project, with princess seams and lots of curves, but with extra time and attention, I believe even beginners can work it out.
Let’s have more detailed look at the design:
As usual, my pattern is made in 10 sizes from XXS to 5XL so you may find a suitable size for yourself. If you are not sure which size suits you, take a look at the measurement table before doing anything here: SIZE GUIDE.
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.
- Some light weight lining fabric
- Decorative buttons
- Invisible zipper (should be about 25inch – 60cm long, you can cut the excess off)
- 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? 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 similar to this:
You will see that there are 2 sets of lines on each pattern piece. The inner lines are sewing line (and you sew along these lines), and the outer lines are cutting lines (you cut the fabric along these lines, remember the folding lines where you have to fold the fabric before cutting). The distance between sewing line and cutting line is seam allowance, and it varies from point to point. For example, the side seam allowance is about 1/2 inch (1.2cm), and seam allowance at hemline is 1 inch (2.5cm). This is the reason why I do not remove the sewing lines from the pattern. Please use it as a guide to know how much seam allowance you need to give at each seam.
The fabric will be cut into following pieces:
- Center Front Bodice: cut 2 self fabric + 2 lining fabric
- Side Front Bodice: cut 2 self fabric + 2 lining fabric (mirrored)
- Center Back Bodice: cut 2 self fabric + 2 lining fabric (mirrored)
- Side Back Bodice: cut 2 self fabric + 2 lining fabric (mirrored)
- Center Front Skirt: cut 1 self fabric on the fold
- Side Front Skirt: cut 2 self fabric mirrored
- Center Back Skirt: cut 2 self fabric mirrored
- Side Back Skirt: cut 2 self fabric mirrored
- Sleeve: cut 2 self fabric
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/zig zag stitch the raw edge of the skirt pieces to prevent fabric from unraveling. The bodice is fully lined so no serging is needed.
2. Place 2 Center Front Bodice pieces right side facing and sew the center front seam.
3. Place the Center Front Bodice and one Side Front Bodice right side facing, pin and sew the princess seam. Repeat with the other side.
4. Place one Center Back Bodice and the corresponding Side Back Bodice right side facing, pin and sew the back princess seam. Repeat with the other pair to get 2 pieces of Back Bodice.
5. Place Front Bodice and Back Bodice right side facing, pin and sew shoulder and side seams to get the Dress Bodice. Repeat the steps with lining fabric to get the Bodice Lining. Press all seam allowance to the sides.
6. Place Dress Bodice and Bodice Lining right side facing, matching all notches and seams, pin and sew the neckline. Turn over and press seam allowance toward the lining fabric, trim seam allowance and clip the curves. Staystitch seam allowance on the lining fabric.
7. Fold and sew the Sleeve hem. Gather the cap of the Sleeve to match the measurement from the notch on the front armhole to the notch on the back armhole. Pin the Sleeve to the Dress Bodice and sew to join.
8. Place Center Front Skirt and one Side Front Skirt right side facing, pin and sew to join. Repeat with the other side. Repeat to join the Side Back Skirt and Center Back Skirt to get the Skirt piece.
9. Place the Skirt and the Bodice right side facing, pin the Skirt to the Bodice and sew to join. Remember to match all seams before sewing.
10. Attach invisible zipper to the back of the dress. There are several ways to finish invisible zippers on garment with lining.
11. Fold and sew the hem of the dress. Use bias binding to finish the raw edge of the armholes. Sew buttons to the center front of the dress bodice.
And here is the download link:
CEICILY SWEETHEART DRESS XXS-5XL (A4 LETTER PAPER)
CEICILY SWEETHEART DRESS XXS-5XL (A0 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.
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!
