Since S, our muse, is growing up and growing out of our Oliver + S patterns, we thought it was time to try something new this season. So we’re really pleased to introduce our first style specifically for tweens and teens, the Girl on the Go Dress + Top pattern!
This is a simple pattern designed specifically for knits. It includes both a dress/tunic and a top, and it’s an easy enough pattern that your beloved teen or tween can probably sew it herself (with a little help), too! Mother-daughter weekend project? Yes, please! And it comes sized for ages 8-18, so it will fit a lot of different tweens and teens. And maybe a few small women, as well?
Let’s start with the top, shall we? This style is actually very similar to our Liesl + Co. Maritime Knit Top pattern for women, with an internal neck facing that gets topstitched into place for a nice, stable neckline with an elegant finish. It also has a dropped shoulder and the two sleeve options are interchangeable so you can choose short or long sleeves. Obviously this pattern works really well with stripes, but it can also be cute with solids, florals, geometrics, etc.
These two girls have been almost-twins since the day they met 2 1/2 years ago, so they were thrilled when, at last, they could dress alike, too! They went to school like this one day recently. (They’re in different classes, so I don’t think anyone even noticed since the shirts were under their winter coats. They’ll have to try again this spring.)
And here is the dress. Truthfully, this is the style I’m most excited about, and I think they are too. The top makes a terrific wardrobe basic, but the dress is just so much fun. I made them wear ballet flats for this photo because I think it’s cute like this, but you’ll see below that they preferred to pair their dresses with leggings and booties.
This design has a tie at the lower waist which allows the girls to cinch it up a bit. I think they have been particularly pleased with this style because it gives them a little shape (rather than just hanging loose) but it’s also relaxed and casual. S wears hers as a tunic with jeans, leggings, or as a dress with tights and sneakers. I know she’ll wear it a lot this summer, too, probably with her beloved Salt Water Sandals.
I’ve learned that you still have to keep an eye on them, even at this age….
No models were hurt in the making of these photos, I promise.
Goodness, she’s grown up quickly.
I hope you’ll have half as much fun with this pattern as we did photographing it!
So which one are you going to sew first? We’ll be back soon with several fun ideas for you–including some fabric suggestions. In the meantime, be sure to tag your photos #oliverands and #osgirlonthego!
The Girl on the Go Dress + Top will be available in both paper and digital format next Monday morning, March 5, starting at 9:00 AM Eastern Time. You can visit the product pages now to see all the detail on the pattern so you can get your knit fabric all lined up. And while you’re there, you can leave your email address. If you do, we’ll email you a reminder the moment the pattern becomes available.
Such sweet friends! I love this design and size range! My daughter loves it too! Congratulations!
I’m glad you like it, Emily!
Oh yay! Saw it when Todd posted on the Flickr group. The mom-daughter sewing weekend is a great idea! Off to pick out some fabric…
Can’t wait to see what you do with it, Reeni!
Thank you Liesl for starting the teens line. Having a tween its so hard to find options other than butt hugging shorts and skin tight leggings. I often have to buy her shorts in the boys section so they pass the school dress code! I would suggest for longevity in clothes you continue to consider shirt that can be made into tunics. I find the get more wear out of tunic styles because I first make them as dresses and then after a year or so they still look great as a top with jeans.
We do that too, Ava. Now that she’s getting older S has less interest in doing this, but when she was little it worked great!
I noticed that I can probably fit in the upper teen sizes! I’m very excited about a mommy-and-me dress set, in addition to a mommy-and-me weekend project! It really looks great on S and her friend.
That will be cute, Erica!
This is a darling pattern! I love the wider waist ties. My oldest is a few years away from this but I’m so happy we’ll have some options from you as she keeps growing!
I hope she’ll like it, Michelle!
Thank you for this pattern! I have tween/teenage granddaughters and have not been able to sew for them for a couple of years now. This pattern is close enough to the store clothes they likeso they will be happy, but with all those added details that make sewing for them worthwhile.
Glad you like it, Glenda! I hope they will, too.
Thank you so much for venturing into tween/teen patterns — I have been looking for months and there are just so few options out there. I hope this is the first of many!
If it sells well enough to justify making more we absolutely will!
I love the fabrics you used. That blue with the birds is fantastic. What a great dress. Sigh…..I have a boy.
I’ll tell you more about the fabrics I chose in tomorrow’s post (actually today, since I’m writing this tomorrow…)!
Love it! Can’t help but notice that despite the name, the top *MIGHT* work just as well for boys as a casual Breton-style pullover … hmmmmm!
Oh, you absolutely could! Might want to straighten the side seams a little bit, or even taper them, but that would be an easy change.
I am so excited! Thank you SO MUCH for beginning to offer tween and teen styles. My girls are currently in Oliver + S sizes 10 and 12, respectively; they are growing like weeds, and I didn’t know where I would turn next for larger sewing patterns! (I have been sewing dresses for them with your patterns literally since they were babies. I am so glad I can now stick with Oliver + S, as your patterns are unmatched in the industry; I love the designs and the well-written instructions, and the fit is always impeccable.) I can’t wait to try this new pattern out soon and I sincerely hope you will continue to offer more new styles for older girls. Thank you again!
Thanks, Emily. I’m glad you’re so pleased, and thanks for the kind words.
I am so getting this for my 10 year old daughter! She lives in t-shirts/tunics and leggings but I think she’d like the dress too. And I’m so pleased that the sizes start at 8! She’s a tiny thing with tween tastes. I can’t tell you how happy I am that you’ve started making patterns for older kids.
Fantastic, Raphaelle!
Perfect!
Thank you so much.
Thanks, Nicole! xo
I have been fretting about my granddaughters (11 and 10) out-growing the Oliver and S patterns! I have made so many over the last few years, and the girls have loved them. I am thrilled to see this perfect pattern for the tweens. Can’t wait to try both versions. Thanks very much – hopefully there are more in the pipeline.
Thanks, Cathy. I hope so, too!
Oh my goodness – I am so thrilled about this new pattern! I am a very small teenager and love to sew for myself, so this pattern is perfect, both in sizing and style. It also looks like a great pattern for learning to sew with knits. I can’t wait to try it this summer. Thank you for making a pattern for teens!
That’s fantastic, Maggie! We’ll have a post about kids sewing this pattern soon. I’d love to see what you do with it!
Yeah! Bigger clothes for our growing kids! Can’t wait!
I’m glad you’re happy, Sharron!
I am super excited about the new size scale. One of my girls wears a 14 now and misses OLIVER & S style.
Good timing then, Kim! Glad you’re happy.
Oh happy day – I was hoping so very much that you would venture into teen/tween sizes as S grows out of the Oliver+S size range herself! The timing is spot on for me – my younger daughters are 10 and 13 years old, and the big ones (16 and 20) wear adult sizes already. Please go on, Liesl!
Thanks, Susanne!
I am thrilled that you are creating tween-sized patterns. I stumbled upon the Roller Skate Dress early in my sewing journey, and it was the first garment that felt well-made, thanks to your thorough instructions. I have had the same experience with many of the other patterns, and was unhappy when I realized that my daughters had grown too big for Oliver & S patterns. They have already put in a request for a Girl on the Go dress, and I am looking forward to making one. Thank you!
I’m glad you’re excited, Janice! I hope you’ll enjoy sewing it.
Great that you’re addressing this gap in the market, and I’m especially interested as it looks like the size 18 might work for me! Could you tell us a bit about the difference in cut between the biggest teen sizes and your smallest women’s sizes? Looks like it might be just that the teen hips are smaller??
Nina, the women’s and teen’s size ranges are completely unrelated. For the teens size range I start with a girls 10 or 12 as the base size, while for the women’s I start with a 6 or 8. I would suggest checking the finished measurements to see how the sizes compare to your own measurements or clothing. I hope that helps!
I’m so happy to see this! Both the top and the dress are darling! My daughter currently wears a size 6, so she still fits comfortably in most girls’ patterns, but that no-mans-land of tween sizes is getting uncomfortably close. (It’s amazing to think that the first Oliver + S pattern I sewed for her was the Tea Party dress in a size 3-6 mos…) Ottobre has a decent selection of cute tween patterns, but outside of that, there isn’t much else out there currently.
Oh dear, I do love this. Mine is a size 5 in width and 8 in length, so I will buy it and put it in my drop box for future use. She’s a narrow girl in both shoulders and hips.
But I love, love, love this. I can’t wait until she’s big enough for it.