triangles

Before I start this post I just need say, that this is not my life...  In some of my last few posts I realise I have a drink in my hand (sorry Mom), and I might be giving the impression that its normal for me to saunter around from event to event swigging free drinks and canapés.  

Ha, if only!

The truth is that a recent and lucky last-minute substitute invite saved me from spending an evening organising my sock drawer, and when one of these comes up the real draw for me is that it's a great excuse to make a new frock!  (although the canapés were very, very good...)

Except, if there is one thing more unnerving than wearing your own design in front of highly critical architects its turning up at an event full of renowned designers at the Royal Academy of Arts in a few pieces of fabric you stitched together at your kitchen table.  Maybe you can sense my panic as the invitation sat staring at me from my mantle piece.

I also needed a quick turnaround and as luck would have it, I had recently bought 1 metre of this drapey poly chirimen geometric print from Textile Express Fabrics and was just able to eke a full dress from it using my waterlilies dress pattern.

I used the wrong side of the fabric so that it reads more blue/green instead of black-navy/green and lined the whole thing with a breezy lightweight bright blue lining from Truro Fabrics which arrived in the nick of time.

 At £9.60 a metre the lining cost more than the £6.50 dress fabric, but was worth the investment because I don't think I could have preserved the feather light feeling otherwise.

It was a really fun to see how this wild geometric print changed the feel of the dress pattern entirely, and blending in with the surrounding geometric pavilion was clearly an added bonus.

 With just 1 metre of fabric I didn't have enough wiggle room to line the prints perfectly.  But maybe sometimes a little chaos in sewing and in art is not so bad.

Do you have a go-to pattern that you use different fabrics/prints with to achieve different looks?

Happy 4th to everyone celebrating and happy sewing! x