Hannah’s nightgown in pink

S needed a lightweight nightie and I needed an easy procrastination project. So, I dug out my old Olabelhe pattern for Hannah’s nightgown. I love this pattern since it is super romantic and easy to make. It is also a garment that works for years, in fact, S has only recently outgrown her previous Hannah that I made in 2015. However, I didn’t make a proper review of the pattern at that time, so here is the review!

Hannah’s nightgown is a pdf pattern that you can print at home. For once you don’t have to do any taping as the front and back bodice pieces are small enough to fit on a single sheet of paper each. The measurements for the rectangular hem and the ruffle are given in the instructions and there’s no pattern for those.

The nightgown has a lined sleeveless bodice with a lifted waistline. The neckline scoops down in the back and there is a button closure at the centre back. The hem is wide and pleated to the bodice. The hem is finished with a ruffle at the bottom.

The pattern comes in sizes 3 to 8 years. I’d say that the pattern is pretty true to size. As S is almost 9 years old and I wanted a garment that can be worn for a few years, I scaled up for a size which was very easy to do.

My fabric was very fine Italian cotton shirting. I’d say that it very closely resembles Liberty tana lawn in feel. I bought it to make a blouse and then realised that it was too sheer for that. However, it was just perfect for this nightgown.

the instructions are beginner friendly. The only difficult stage is pleating the skirt to the bodice. It looks easy until you realize that you are running out of skirt fabric and you still need to pin several pleats to the bodice. However, after you get the front done, you’ll get the idea of how wide the pleats need to be.

I had to do a bit adjustment and shorten the hem a tiny bit since I had a very limited amount of fabric. I think I had had something close to 2 metres originally, but I had used up a bit for some previous project. Luckily this pattern is long enough that it doesn’t really matter that much. When I was making the ruffle, I remembered a trim that I have had in my storage for years. That was perfect for the hem. Furthermore, I sewed a little bit of narrow lace to the neckline.

S was originally a bit sceptic what came to this nightgown. She said that it looked more of a dress. No wonder, since I had made her this dress that is pretty similar to this nightie! However, she was sold after trying it on. She loves that she can tuck her bare feet under the hem but that the nightgown still is cool enough for her to wear without sweating too much.

S is nowadays pretty busy with school, friends and hobbies, so I was actually a bit surprised when she came to me asking when we were planning to take photos of the nightgown. I had to take advantage of her enthusiasm and start ironing the nightgown that had got a bit wrinkly. Finally, we got so many lovely photos that I don’t know what I’m going to do with all of them!

Anyway, if you love this kind of romantic vintage style for girls I can warmly recommend Hannah’s nightgown pattern!

I hope you enjoyed this blog post and do subscribe if you want to follow me on my sewing journey. Thank you for reading and happy sewing!

Katja