Pauline Alice Sedavi dress for winter

I bought the Sedavi dress pattern from Pauline Alice last summer when it came out. I love the Edwardian feel to it and I made a dress for myself. (No, I haven’t posted it, yet.) Now, my daughter, S, needed a dress that was suitable for a funeral and I decided that I could modify this dress pattern.

Modifying the pattern

Thus far I have made S clothes using sewing patterns made for children. However, when I measured her, I learned that my almost 12-year-old is shorter but otherwise fits the size 34 quite well. It was enough for me to shorten the bodice by about 8 cm. To adjust the skirt, I only left out the ruffle.

Instead of shortening the sleeves, I actually added 2 cm extra length. This is because my daughter wished for voluminous long sleeves with cuffs and the original pattern had 3/4 sleeves with ruffles. I thought it was a good idea which also made the pattern better suitable for winter. She also wanted to have a belt with a big bow at the back. I decided to line the skirt as polyester fabrics tend to gather static electricity and stick to your legs.

Choosing the fabric

I first considered making the dress black as it was for a funeral. Then I realized that my daughter would have much more use for the dress if I made it dark blue instead. Dark blue is somber enough for a funeral but doesn’t look too sad if dressed up with some sparkly jewelry. In my home city, the mayor invites all 6-grades to the Independence Day ball and I could as well kill two birds with the same stone and get started with the ball gown! If necessary, I could always upgrade the dress a bit before the ball.

To add some interest, I decided to use two fabrics in the same shade. I found drapey dark blue polyester in both matte and satin weave and I bought a bit of both. I cut the bodice and the skirt out of the matte polyester and the sleeves, cuffs, and the belt out of the satin. To make the belt long enough, I made a seam at the centre back where it gets hidden inside the bow.

Sewing

Sewing this dress out of polyester was a bit more challenging than when I was using linen last summer. The fabric was heavier and the waistline tends to drag down at the sides. I considered adding a proper waist stay but finally left it out. The belt covers the waistline anyway and I didn’t want to make the waist too tight so that the dress would fit longer.

The finished winter Sedavi dress

I was afraid that the dress would look heavy but finally, it works! My daughter’s suggestion for the sleeves was very good and turned the summer dress into something that is more suitable for the winter. And winter we have! It was snowing lightly when we were taking the photos today and I had to tamp down the path in the snow for S to be able to walk without getting her ankles wet.

I love how the photos turned out! The blue is so nicely contrasted with all that white snow. S also loved the dress so that’s what is the most important thing for me!

I can also recommend the Sedavi dress pattern for everyone. The dress looks good on adults as well and I love how it borrows from the history but still looks fresh and modern. And as I have just demonstrated, it is not only for the summer!

Thank you for reading and see you soon! Happy sewing!

Katja