Kalle in the rain

Hello again! Its been a busy few weeks, but I have finally finished my lovely new frock and I couldn’t be more pleased. So pleased I braved Auckland drizzle to stand in my incredibly sad looking garden & listen to my husband complain about getting wet. The things I do for a picture…

My dress is the Kalle Shirt-dress,  a recent pattern from Closet Case Patterns.

I’ll be honest, when it first started popping up on my radar I wasn’t fully convinced. The cropped version would do me no favors at all, and the front of the dress seemed to short to be flattering for me. I haven’t made any of their patterns before , and being at the top end of the size range I was wary of sizing.

However after seeing a particularly nice version on my Facebook feed, with comments about how much ease the pattern has,  I decided to be brave & use some gorgeous Merchant & Mills linen from my stash. I know, most sensible people would make a toile in a cheaper fabric. Its something I’ve been thinking about after my recent “very pants pants” disasters! So what did I learn apart from “next time I think about trousers I’ll talk myself down and make another frock instead”? That I have limited sewing time. I work full time, and am married to someone who works even longer hours, if I spent evenings in my sewing room we would never see each other! So weekends it is, and the thought of spending a whole weekend making tester versions of something I cant then wear immediately makes me shudder. Maybe when I grow up and learn some patience….

I’m so pleased I did, I love this dress! It super comfortable without drowning me in fabric, and despite my initial misgivings, I’m really pleased with the scooped hem. This was surprisingly easy to sew, I made bias tape for binding the hem from the same linen, I suspect using a more draped fabric might be slightly trickier but the effect is lovely.

I also really like the back pleat detail. There are two options, a box or inverted pleat, I went inverted and I’m really happy with it.

The sleeves have a flattering “kimono” shape, with a cuff . I was worried they would be too short but they actually hit lower down my arm, I can wear with a sweater underneath for the cold weather but I’d be comfortable wearing this in warmer weather without a cardigan or jacket. (I have a thing about sleeves!)

The pattern goes up to a size 20 (46/39/48) , I made an 18 & its fits really nicely, with plenty of ease. There are various placket options, I made the popover version, there is also a hidden and full button version. Best of all, there is a sewalong, which I found really helpful when I did the collar & placket.

So will I be making more Kalle’s? Definitely, I have plans for a shorter tunic version, I have a pretty red poplin that would look fabulous over jeans . I will be interested to see the effect a more sturdy fabric has.

As you can see, it rains a bit here in Auckland (its pouring as I type this). So I treated myself to a lovely orange Blunt umbrella, to brighten up a grey winter. It’s even been “Wellington” tested, and preformed admirably!*

*For overseas readers, our Capital city is known as Windy Wellington for VERY good reason….

 

Hope you have a lovely week, stay dry folks!

Kristina xxx