
Suomi-neito (Maiden of Finland) dress and leggings
I have been seriously considering making sewing patterns from scratch for a while. I already have enough sewing experience and I have basic patterns for children that can be used as basis for measurements. After I found this Nuppu print company’s Lumipallo cotton I immediately saw it transformed as a dress for S.
I wanted something traditional with some modern elements. I decided to make an A line dress and a high-low hem with a wide ruffle to be worn with matching leggings. I played with some different sleeve and collar options and finally left the dress sleeves with a simple white Peter Pan collar. The back fastening was initially a keyhole opening with a ruleau-loop buttonhole and a button, but it made sewing the facings a bit tricky, so I changed it to a concealed zipper.
I’m super happy with the result and S seems to love it. I made a pair of leggings using a ready pattern from Ottobre design 1/16. However I changed the very basic pattern by shortening them to a calf length and adding a rounded cuff with a little flower cut-out from the (interfaced) dress fabric.
From the back dress looks like this:
S said that the dress has the colours of Finland, blue and white, so I decided to take a hing an named the dress the Maiden of Finland dress to honour my country that is turning 100 years old this year. About a 100 years ago the idea of the Maiden of Finland was something like this from this postcard (from Wikipedia).
Would anyone be interested in getting this pattern for the dress? I have made this in the size of 116 cm and I believe I could size it up and down for a few sizes, even if I’m not a professional designer.


6 Comments
MAY ROSE SEWING
First off: super cute dress! I love this. It’s the best when the kids want to wear our homemade outfits.
Secondly, I had no idea Finland was turning 100. Thanks for that history lesson 😊
kk
You are welcome! My daughter made me a letter with a picture of two hearts and a text: “IT IS NICE THAT YOU MAKE MI CLOTES” (Free translation!) <3 I am publishing the pattern for this on my blog soon, after it has been tested.
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Sew Sarah Smith
This is gorgeous! You should absolutely consider releasing it as a PDF pattern if you feel confident enough to do that!
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