Our first Crafty Bloggers Club post is from Rhiannon, you can find more of her makes on Instagram @RhiannonBrum and on her blog www.morebluefabric.co.uk

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I was really excited when Freya and Sarah asked me to be a part of the Crafty Sew and So bloggers team, and couldn’t wait to get started. The big question for me though was where to start; there are so many gorgeous fabrics in their store and on their website that I felt like a child in a sweet shop, wondering what to use my precious pocket money on.

Handily, I had a little bit of an idea in my head, as By Hand London had launched their most recent pattern – the Eloise dress – that very week. The ruffles were calling out to me, and I knew I needed something soft and drapey to do them justice.

After a bit of back and forth, I chose this wonderful floral viscose, and I am so pleased I did. It’s got a big print (a must for me) but it’s not too over-powering and this lets the dress really shine. It’s also  super soft, which is fabulous for an autumn item; at this time of year, as the days are still warm but the nights are chillier, having something that can work well for bot his a definite bonus.

When it came to constructing the dress, I made a few alterations to the pattern, but they were all very straightforward and easy to replicate. The first was that I wanted the ruffle to start at the elbow, not the cuffs, as I wanted something that would give me day-time glamour without trailing in my lunch. For similar reasons, rather than a full length maxi, I wanted the hem of the dress to hit just below the knee.

With that in mind, I made a very simple toile (so simple it only had one sleeve…). To get the sleeve length I literally drew a line on my arm to mark where my elbow was, and then matched the mark on to the pattern piece and drew a line. The hem length was a combination of measuring the length of the ruffle piece, knowing I wanted a c.60cm skirt, figuring out where from my waist this would make the seam, marking it and cutting again. Like I say, this was not complicated!

Once I’d made my alterations, the dress was really easy and really fast to construct; I knew I wanted to make the dress to wear out for a Friday date night eating raclette (another reason for those shorter sleeves!), and that happened even though I wasn’t able to start sewing until the Thursday. I’m a big fan of patterns that are no fuss, and Eloise is definitely going to find its way on to that list. I’ve already got a couple of plans in my head for future makes, which may or may not include a rather glamorous Vampire Wife inspired dress for The Dressmaker’s Ball (but you’ll have to come along to see if it becomes a reality!).

I hope you’ve enjoyed my first make for the blog team, and I can’t wait to see what the next project holds in store; I hope you’ll join me!

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The Crafty Bloggers Club team are provided with an allowance for fabric and patterns in exchange for honest reviews of our products.  

Shop the Fabric here

Shop the By Hand London Pattern Here

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“Crafty Bloggers Club Contributors are given products and materials to test from Crafty Sew&So. We hope you enjoy their honest and impartial reviews of the products. All opinions are their own.”