Tie Belt Dress

Hellooo!  I'm back and what better place to start than with a new, red dress...

I first decided to make this dress after spying a stunning red tie-belt number in a department store. Lovely as it was, the price tag was over £200 and I convinced myself I could make my own version. Coincidentally Laura from Sew Different had recently contacted me to see if I was interested in reviewing a pattern, and by great good fortune the Tie Belt Dress was very close to the shape and style I was after. Although I did struggle with some aspects of the pattern and instructions, the end result is just what I was hoping for.

Original inspiration dress

My version

The dress is a softly fitting A-line shape, with darts to the back, a waist tie belt for definition and a high/low hem. There are no finished measurements given, so I chose the size closest to my actual measurements - a UK size 12 - which fits me reasonably well. The instructions are quite basic, but that wasn't a problem for me as as the dress is a very simple shape. 

There were one or two parts that did have me scratching my head though. Firstly, the grain line arrows are shown going in two different directions. I checked this with Laura and apparently this is to indicate the weft and the warp, but I still found them confusing. Secondly the cutting layouts show the pattern pieces cut on an unfolded, single layer of fabric, even though all pieces are cut on the fold - bizarre!

Once I'd clarified what was what, I made a few style changes:

- Levelled off the hemline (I'm not a fan of dramatic high/low hems)
- Tapered in the side seams to reduce the A-line shape
- Shortened the dress by 2.5cms

I decided to sew the sleeves as drafted before making a decision on length. As it turned out, they were too long on my short arms with the trim attached. Rather than shorten them, I simply turned the trim to the inside to act as a facing and top stitched it down, easy!

Construction was very straight forward - the only thing I'd say is to keep an eye on the position of the black dots for attaching the tie belt. The dot positions are for guidance only and may need moving up or down to align with your waist (I needed to move mine up). The instructions also have you attach the tie belt quite early in the proceedings, but I'd recommend waiting until the whole dress is constructed before pinning them into place. That way you get a more accurate idea of your natural waistline.

For fabric I went against the recommendations (light denim, needlecord, heavy cotton etc) and chose a luxury crepe from Sew Over It with a nice drape. I think the original shape of the dress in a weightier fabric would have looked too sack-like on me. The drapier fabric worked well and was close to the fabric from the original inspiration dress. At £14 a metre it worked out much cheaper to make my own version too! 

I can always find room in my wardrobe for a red dress, and although this one is a little different to my usual style, it's growing on me. I just need to get used to the dropped shoulders and oversized silhouette. It's a really easy dress to wear and I can see myself wearing it with tights and boots once the weather turns fully autumnal. Have a good day! x

A copy of the Tie Belt Dress pattern was given to me free of charge for review. All opinions my own.