[runing]

Okay–so I’m sewing the Ice Cream Dress for the first time and I’m wondering….is there some reason why none of the pattern pieces are set up to cut out on a fold? I’m a beginning sewist, so I’m not familiar with all justifications for pattern layout. I was just thinking that it would make layout and cutting easier, and allow me to be more economical with the fabric. And I notice that most of the other Oliver + S patterns make use of a fold in layout and cutting. And now I’m just curious….how/why is this pattern different?

[Liesl Gibson]

Apologies for the silence! I’m back from multiple trips (finally) and recovering from a cold, so I’ve been absent more than usual.

Anyway, excellent question! It’s been so long since we released this pattern, I haven’t given it much thought in a while. But I just went back and glanced at the pieces. We released them as full pattern pieces because you can be more economical with the fabric by cutting it flat, particularly for the larger sizes. If you look at the cutting layouts you can see how the pieces fit together more snugly than they would if they were cut on the fold. Does that make sense?

Having said that, however, you can absolutely fold the pieces and cut them on the fold, but it may require more fabric to do so. I hope that helps!

[runing]

Thank you, Liesl!. This makes sense now, and it’s nice to hear the original motivation behind the decision.