Lisa (a member of the Advisors Circle) is back with us today. Some of her previous contributions have been her Chai Tee Dress and Tunic, Striped Breezy Blouse, and Rush Hour Blouse with Piping. She’s here today with her newest creation. Now I’ll hand it over to Lisa.
When I first saw the Gelato Dress I thought it was the perfect summer dress–no mess, no fuss, just throw on and go! It is all that, but it is also a completely blank canvas that you can easily customize to really make your own. Border prints are having a moment right now, and a fun border print is perfect for the Gelato!
Working with a border print isn’t hard. The border print usually runs along the selvedge so you are cutting the pattern out on cross grain (the arrow on the pattern piece will be perpendicular to the selvedge). Double check that you are purchasing enough fabric. Sometimes the border runs along both selvedges, and again may necessitate that you purchase additional fabric. When laying out the pattern pieces, make sure to line them up so the side seams will match.
The Gelato dress has a hem with a slight curve, so placing the pattern pieces so the hem edge will be in the negative space below the print will fool the eye and still allow the hem to have that curve.
Liesl always adds special details and in the case of the Gelato, it is fun welt pockets. I thought this would be the perfect place to add a pop of color.
In order to do this, simply cut pattern piece 10 (the pocket lining) from a contrasting fabric and follow the pattern directions as written.
I wanted to add an additional pop of color and thought that this scalloped edging would be a special detail.
You can find out how to make the edging in this video tutorial. To attach the edging, simply stitch it to the neckline and sleeves with right sides together, matching the raw edges. Then finish the neckline as instructed in the pattern. For the sleeves, since I was adding the edging, I didn’t hem them, but cut an additional bias strip and finished them the same way the pattern instructed for the neckline.
I love my Gelato dress and am sure it is going to get a lot of wear this summer!
Beautiful, and thank you for the tip on how to achieve the pop of color at the pocket. I have been eyeing some lovely border print fabric, and your dress is the inspiration on what to do with it!