Impromptu Meetups
In a little summer dress.
This post has been sitting around in draft mode for weeks- this week is O-week at Uni and I will be teaching practs every day of the week this semester (yay for not being an unemployed loser, boo for not having found a real job yet). I met up (in real life) with two sewing bloggers recently: Jenny (I decided it would be more fun to pass her the Simplicity Sewing Book she’d won than mailing it-luckily she agreed) and Emily (we talked about meeting up ages ago but never actually got around to doing it).
Tiny side-seam pockets of lazy drafting (I don’t use these because I wear the dress belted at the low waist. See below).
As usual, I don’t have any pictures of the actual meetups (despite carrying a camera with me on at least one occasion) so the reminiscing will be mostly textual: Emily and I spent Saturday morning t*tting around The Fabric Store (I bought fabric for other people sewing and lining from the remnant bin, because I line everything) and then headed to the Little Creatures Dining Hall for lunch. We then trammed across the city to the NGV International for the Ballet in Fashion exhibit (it’s free-go check it out!) which we somehow managed to miss half of (we missed the half with the Ralph Rucci and Victor and Rolf costumes goshdurnitt!) before crashing in their Tea Room (they do high teas avec petit-fours et al.) for some much needed refreshment. I wore my Japonism dress which, by the way I have gotten a lot of use out of, this summer.
Jenny and I met up the following Thursday (Happy VD! harhar. To everyone that celebrates it: yaay best day eva! How romantic etc. To everyone that doesn’t: Verily, Love should be demonstrated every day not just one day a year, yadayada) at the Royal Arcade on Bourke Street Mall and hung out at the Koko Black cafe there free entertainment provided by various dramatastic V-day couples surrounding us (and having unreal interactions with the cafe staff). Jenny is a pâtissière and brought (crustless, yay) marbled cheese cake. Much fun was had by all (Jenny’s version here).
I off-set the panel print at the back so the bouquet wasn’t erupting out of my nether regions..
I then met Carl for dinner at The Toff followed by the Sarah Blasko concert (with Orchestra Victoria) at the Melbourne Arts Centre (canned version of her Sydney Opera House concert from the week after, here).
Pattern: Patrones Plena Temporada Primavera, No 313, Dress 7.
Fabric: Viscose blend panel print (from 3 years ago, back when I still bought the occasional item at Spotlight) fully lined with cotton voile.
Modifications: Shortened 2 cm at waist, omitted the elastic at back, narrow hemmed outer fabric and lining together.
Comments: Beaded belt bought years ago in the Chatuchak night market Bangkok. Hat, Gregory Ladner Australia (from David Jones 5 years ago).
Patrones 313 is a pretty cool issue with a couple of things in it that I’d like to make at some point: the beige belted shirt dress, the short black shirt dress and probably one or more of the evening wear dresses too (marked with asterisks).
Reviewed here by curiouskiwi.
Disclaimer: All non-self-generated images remain property of their original owners and are used here for purposes of illustration, discussion and review.









What an awesome meetup! I met a fellow seamstress the other day and of course we went to a fabric store and then just did whatever we felt like. Very low key, usually we meet in a group setting were there are 10 or so fellow seamstresses (can’t call myself or anyone for that matter a sewist). I kind of like the laid back approach. I think you have the best fabric selection in your neck of the woods. That is beautiful. Do you buy online or in person. That is amazing.
Thanks, I buy fabric in real life (i.e. from stores) and notions and pattern magazines etc online (evilbay/ etsy). I have, on occasion bought fabric online but have rarely been satisfied with it (differences in colour, texture, composition from whatever was listed).. A couple of exceptions were some silks off evilbay/ etsy and a couple of European knits off of craftymamas.
I love that dress, and the print on it is just amazing! High tea and fabric shopping sounds like the best combo ever, it’s been a while since I’ve gone out for high tea and I’ve never actually done real fabric shopping in person. My nearest fabric stores are at least 45 minutes away from where I’m at and parking is a nightmare for the nearest and supposedly best one (plus no one wants to go with me). In any case, I’ve had fairly good luck buying online, fabric lottery can be a fun game to play sometimes.
Thank you! I think you guys have a lot more online fabric choices available to you (i.e. real shops not just weirdos on evilbay XD so it’s quite different-not to mention shipping rates seem way better out there). Having said that I’d totally go fabric shopping and high-tea’ing with you if I visited.
What a great day you had. And wearing such a super cool dress too.
I’m so impressed with your Patrone skills. This is something I’ve really failed at.
Thanks. Their sizing can be a bit inconsistent sometimes you probably just got a bad ‘un-I’ve had one or two of those-I think it’s because they derive their patterns from RTW brands so perhaps they don’t always size it back properly or whatever =S
Wow. You fit in about as much socialising in 2 days as I can sanely manage in a month. I’m impressed. Love the shift (…is it shift? I always get SO confused between shift and sheath…) dress, very you. I’m with the others – it is gorgeous fabric
Hmmmm, valentine’s day in a chocolate shop…. now there’s an eye opening experience :p
I am only letting you use the word summer because a.I like you a lot b.You live on a different hemisphere. I barely remember what it is and that’s from living in Italy years ago! Anyway, love that print so much (bold and blue, my favourite things) and it looks great on you.
The more I learn about this sewing malarkey the more lining everything seems the way to go.
I have been spending a lot of time with your Pants Friday Freebie and I might be hitting the paper and pencil at some point in the next few weeks. For now I am comparing the Romaniuk – Knight way of drafting with Winifred Aldrich, and marvelling at the style in which R-K write. The latter is definitely getting a blog post, even if I never make trousers!
hahaha the all day long rains have started here (i.e. winter is coming/ here) but it’s been pretty hot/ sunny during the day pretty much up to last week. I’m looking forward to winter as I much prefer winter wear over summer wear. I’m very happy you’re getting use out of the book-I’ll be doing a post sometime down the line about things people have made from Friday Freebies and the like – I’ve had a couple of people tell me of things they’ve made from them and that makes me very happy XD
How was Sarah Blasko? Awesome?
Very good. The intro was a strange dude whispering while playing a ukelele but apparently that’s a thing now XD
Small meet ups are very cool. I miss my partner in crime, Mela…
This dress is fabulous on you. You are fabulous in this dress.
You nailed that fabric placement. Perfecto!
I’m jealous! I want to meet you in real life! Also, that dress is fantastic, especially paired with the hat!
Sounds like a fun meetup! I love this dress! So breezy and summery.
I’m really into this dress. That 60′s sack-ish silhouette is always so surprisingly flattering! And that print is amazing!
What great two days you spent with them! Wish I could go…
I love your tunic dress! The fabric is so beautiful and you sewed up very nicely! That looks really great on you!
gorgeous fabric! It’s such a great summer look too. Breezy with out too much of a sunburn possibility.
Yes love the dress on you and jealus of your meetup! High tea is the best.
Love the fabric you used and as usual you had a great eye for matching fabric with patterns. How do you find working with patrones mag? Aren´t the sizes too small? I´m making shorts at the moment and the cuffs I´m suppose to attach are ridiculously small for my legs. Í should stop the spinning madness I´m into lately!
Meet ups are so much fun!
Thanks Merche, with Patrones I have to grade down a size from their smallest but I have found (as I mentioned in an earlier comment) that they don’t always have the most consistent sizing-probably because they derive their patterns from RTW clothing which tend to be all over the place wrt sizing and fit. Overall though I find their stuff pretty good. In the grand scheme of things I’d say Burda/Knipmode>Patrones/ La Mia Boutique>Simplicity>Kwik Sew>Vogue>Butterick> McCalls XD
you’re into patrones!! i stopped because it has nothing to do with what they were before . i still treasure some early 80′s mags.
lovely smock and the hat too.
Thank you. Yes, I know what you mean I have some of their pre-transformation 200 patterns a mag issues. They still come with some gems though and those styles are lot more contemporary and unique than some of the alternatives XD
Yay, I haven’t been able to comment for ages (computer blip) but all of a sudden I can. Your dress is amazing, love that print and style. You look so cool!
Fab dress. Definitely works well with or without the belt.
How lovely to take in so many fab things all in the vicinity of ‘local’. Sometimes I wish I was nearer a large city which provided such entertainments etc. Shall have to continue to enjoy such thing vicariously through blogs, so that you for posting!
I love that print and the way you placed it on the dress, I’m sure I would have ended up with erupting bouquet issues!!
Your dress is gorge!! Offsetting the print from the butt is something I’d totally FORGET to do. Dude, I had The. Most. Fun. tearing around the metropolis with you, we have to do it again soon! I am starting my dress for Sewcietea SOON. Gonna do that bias strip one from the book I’m thinking, thankyou again!!
…I can’t work out, where were they hiding the Viktor & Rolf and Ralph Rucci? We totally asked that guy if there was more fashions we missed!
Thanks-I did too. And you’re welcome and I can’t wait to see the dress (best way ever of using up nice fabric that’s in funny shapes or what have you). I think the other stuff was on the other side of the platform because the site lists it and has pics of it displayed (we walked in the opposite direction-to the tea room) XD Let me know when you’re free to meet up again and we’ll catch up. It’ll prob. have to be in the evening or something..
That dress is so cute! So glad to see a version of it!
Lovely dress beautiful colour lovely on you
I’m totally going to give this a try! Lovely dress!
This dress is really beautiful! Congratulations! I love this dress is just top for summer!