Skip to main content

Made by a Fabricista: Spring Has Sprung

Image
By

Spring is finally here! Yay! Have you had a chance to smell the fresh blooming flowers yet? I encourage you to go outside and see, feel, and touch the beautiful blooming flowers, if you live in an area where you can do so.I find this to be calming, and I feel inspired to get back into my sewing room and make pretty garments. 

Hello friends! My name is Tea and this is my first post as a Fabric Mart Fabricista. Today I’ll be sharing my recent experience sewing the Lenox Shirtdress by Cashmerette that I made with this gorgeous Silk Cotton purple fabric that was sponsored by Fabric Mart. 

Fabric Choice

I chose this beautiful purple fabric because it is perfect for spring time, and it reminds me of lavender fields, which I love!  Also, I am a huge fan of cotton apparel fabrics. So when I saw this beautiful fabric on the Fabric Mart website I was instantly taken by surprise, and immediately thought of making a shirtdress. This fabric is a 55” wide medium weight non-stretch woven with a soft hand and a silky finish. I ordered 3.5 yards of this fabric as the Cashmerette Lenox Shirtdress pattern calls for approximately 3.25 yards to complete.

This fabric was fun to work with because it sewed up well and was easy to manage. However, I would recommend using a serger as this fabric frays quite a bit. In addition, this fabric is dry clean only; therefore, pay special attention to care instructions to maintain the longevity of your garment. 

Although this particular fabric is no longer available on the site, you can purchase similar fabrics that are silk cottons in different colors. Currently, there are four colors of this silk cotton fabric available on the website – Deep Hot Pink, Electric Blue, and Muted Mocha. 

Dress Pattern

I selected the Lenox Shirtdress for this project  because it accommodates the fabric and the style of this pattern reminds me of a spring shirtdress. This pattern consists of two views of a button front  V-neck dress with pockets, midriff, collar, cup sizes, and  princess seams. This is the ultimate shirtdress. The pattern also calls for light to medium weight fabrics such as rayon, voile, lawn, and chambray. This purple silk cotton fabric from Fabric Mart was a perfect match. 

I used 13 buttons that are 5/8”, and I made the short sleeve pleated version of the dress; this dress has 6 pleats in the front and 6 pleats in the back of the dress. The length of the dress is perfectly designed for spring because it is a knee length dress. 

I styled this dress with a pair of red kitten heels and a red lace camisole, although the camisole is barely noticeable in my pictures it makes for an excellent detail. I love the red and purple combo; it’s one of my favorite color combinations. 

Recommendations & Care Instructions

You may notice that my dress have a few wrinkles. Cotton fabrics are prone to wrinkling, and since this fabric is dry clean only you don’t want to press this fabric too much. I recommend using a low heat silk setting and a pressing cloth to reduce wrinkles, and press the fabric or garment while slightly damp. In addition, I would use a needle designed for light to medium weight woven fabrics such as a 70/10 or 8/10 needle. If you must, use a Woollite solution and wash the fabric on a delicate setting or hand wash, and air dry. 


This was a wonderful experience; I loved working with the fabric and the pattern. I think the two compliments one another beautifully, and I’m hoping to get much wear out of this garment. Thank you for stopping by and reading my first blog post as a Fabricista! I look forward to hearing what you think about my finished garment.

Best regards, 

TEAMEAKA | @crumpetsteaandsewing

Unfortunately Fabric Mart Fabrics sell out quickly!
You can find similar fabrics by shopping the following categories: SILK & COTTON.
You can also shop our entire collection of Cashmerette Patterns HERE.

Comments

  1. megsbyteApril 14, 2021 at 8:27 AM

    Great dress! It’s a lovely color on you and that top stitching is gorgeous

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TeaApril 14, 2021 at 10:15 AM

      Thank you so much!

      Delete
    2. Farm girlApril 15, 2021 at 12:46 PM

      Beautiful dress! Tea could you tell us some more about the pattern. Did it require a lot of fitting adjustments? Did you find the full bust options accurate? Was the waistline at an accurate length for a full bust?
      It looks great on you. Just wondering if you had to basically make a LOT of adjustments.

      Delete
    3. TeaApril 18, 2021 at 9:06 PM

      Hi Farm Girl! Thank you so much for your interest in my thoughts and review! Yes! I can tell you more. Firstly, it didn’t not require a lot of fitting adjustments. Although, that is subjective and depend on what you consider a lot. Cashmerette patterns are designed beautifully and I rarely make many adjustments. For this pattern I chose a size 12, which is approx. Bust 42”, waist 33”, Hip 71”. This pattern has cup sizes C-H which shape the bust and decrease issues with fit. I wouldn’t say the full bust options are 100% accurate; however, it’s very close. At least for the size I selected. I had to pinch out excess fabric on the side front under the breast, however. This may be due to the way my body dramatically drop in size from the bust to the waist though. I found the waistline to be accurate and didn’t make any adjustments there, and I’m short waisted. So that was a surprise because the pattern is drafted for 5’6” women. I hope I answered all of your questions and concerns. Please feel free to respond if you have more questions. Thank you so much for supporting me!

      Delete
  2. VickiApril 14, 2021 at 8:35 AM

    What a beautiful dress!! I love red and purple too. 💜 Great job, thank you so much for the details

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TeaApril 14, 2021 at 10:16 AM

      Thank you! I'm excited to know you enjoyed the post.

      Delete
  3. Pat GottshalkApril 14, 2021 at 8:52 AM

    This may be one of my favorite Fabricista makes of the year! Your top stitching and buttonholes are amazing, wonderful skills.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TeaApril 14, 2021 at 10:17 AM

      Oh wow! Thank you for the compliment Pat! Those are inspiring and uplifting words. 😁

      Delete
  4. AnonymousApril 14, 2021 at 11:38 AM

    Just beautiful and perfect for spring Tea. Thank you for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TeaApril 14, 2021 at 2:48 PM

      Thank you E.P. I appreciate you stop by and reading my post! Blessings!

      Delete
  5. barbara woodsApril 14, 2021 at 3:06 PM

    love that dress on you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TeaApril 18, 2021 at 8:53 PM

      Thank you Barbara! I appreciate your comment!

      Delete
  6. barbara woodsApril 14, 2021 at 3:06 PM

    beautiful on you

    ReplyDelete
  7. Crystalsewsandstuff April 14, 2021 at 4:33 PM

    Love your attention to detail with this pattern. This is a gorgeous shade of purple on you. I love it!

    ReplyDelete
  8. SewandSewApril 15, 2021 at 8:00 AM

    Lovely!

    ReplyDelete
  9. grammyApril 15, 2021 at 9:57 AM

    You look amazing in this dress and your sewing is so beautiful- wear it proudly!

    ReplyDelete
  10. UnknownApril 15, 2021 at 10:44 AM

    Beautiful details. I take the risk of washing my dry clean only fabrics before cutting and sewing them in order to avoid dry cleaning. I have hand washed silk blouses labeled dry clean only my whole life.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TeaApril 18, 2021 at 9:14 PM

      There are some fabrics I take the risk with! Some I do not! However, I always tell beginners and novelists to avoid washing such fabrics. I have on numerous occasions washed dry clean only fabrics though.

      Delete
  11. sewer54April 15, 2021 at 11:22 AM

    Great job. Your stitching is so straight. I can only hope to get that good. Really cute style on you - prefect spring color.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TeaApril 19, 2021 at 9:35 AM

      Thank you! 😊 you're compliments inspire me.

      Delete
  12. UnknownApril 15, 2021 at 1:54 PM

    This is beautiful Tea :-) I agree the topstitching and buttonholes are perfect :-)

    ReplyDelete
  13. JDApril 16, 2021 at 2:30 PM

    Beautiful dress and very professional looking details in the construction. This dress looks fabulous on you.

    ReplyDelete
  14. pink poppiesApril 19, 2021 at 10:36 AM

    very lovely dress and so well sewn. the topstitching and the buttonholes are perfection.
    i too like the purple and red together. it makes a striking contrast that looks so nice on
    you. congrats on a job well done.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thanks for leaving a comment! All comments are reviewed before posting to help us eliminate spam. Your comment will be posted within 24 hours.

Popular Posts You Might Like

Made By A Fabricista: Three Bengaline Basics – A Jacket, Skirt and Vest

By
Hello Sewing Friends! It’s Sharon from Sharon Sews excited to share my latest Fabricista makes with you.  When Fabric Mart offered an array of stretch bengaline suiting fabrics , I choose three different fabrics to sew myself a few basics to be worn as the season transitions from winter to spring. The bengaline fabric I used is a woven rayon/nylon/lycra blend fabric with the stretch running vertically (lengthwise on the fabric) instead of horizontally (selvage to selvage).  It lends itself well to fitted and structured garments, such as jackets, pants, skirts and dresses. Because of the vertical stretch, I folded the fabric cross grain to cut out my fabric pieces so the greatest stretch would go around my body.   I used a stretch needle size 75/11 due to the lycra in the fabric. I also eliminated the interfacing as I discovered this fabric did not like fusible interfacing and I did not have any sew-in interfacing on hand.   Now let’s talk about the garments...
6 comments
Continue Reading »

Made By A Fabricista: FROM FABRIC TO FASHION: - The Saguaro Set with Fabric Mart Fabric

By
The weather in Southwest Florida is finally starting to warm up.  With the warm air and bright sunshine, I have been thinking about refreshing my “at home” wardrobe with some fun easy pieces this year.     I have wanted to make The Saguaro Set for some time now.   When I saw the beautiful selection of rayon challis on the Fabric Mart website, I knew now was the perfect time to get it started.   THE FABRIC I researched a lot to see which fabric would work the best for this pattern.   I chose the Deep Amaranth Pink 100% Rayon Twill Challis for my project.    It is a beautiful color that to me looks more coral. The fabric is light to medium weight and has beautiful drape.  The care instructions said gentle wash or hand wash.   I prewashed the fabric in cold water on the delicate cycle.  However, after drying it on the delicate cycle, the fabric had an almost vintage distressed look.   I was a bit co...
15 comments
Continue Reading »

Made By A Fabricista: Revisiting a Pattern After Five Years

By
Have you ever used a sewing pattern and then immediately vowed never to sew it again? Well, I have. It all began in the spring of 2020 at the start of the pandemic lockdown. I tackled sewing projects that were more challenging to help me grow as a seamstress. There was one pattern in particular that almost did me in, the Seamwork Penny shirt dress. The Penny dress pattern has a classic button-up dress shirt style bodice with a gathered skirt and pockets. It is a beautiful take on a shirt dress, and my sister and I loved it. The only downside is that it was recommended for intermediate-level sewists and I was only an adventurous beginner back then.  I think I had only ever made one button-up shirt before attempting this Penny Dress and it didn’t even have a collar! Despite all of this, I thought “Why not try it, what’s the worst that can happen?”  Thankfully the worst didn’t happen, and the dress turned out surprisingly wearable, but I had some intense frustration at the end. I...
8 comments
Continue Reading »