Tropical Bird Laurel

Hello!

This fabulous print had sat unused in my stash until April’s “Put a Bird on It” challenge spurred me in to action. The fabric is a cotton print by Michael Miller called “Flock”. I bought it ages ago from Fabric Rehab with some vouchers I won. In all honesty it was a bit of an impulsive choice I might not have made had I been paying with “real money”!

The pattern is Laurel by Colette – a simple shift dress. With such a crazy pattern I figured I needed to go as simple as possible on the shape, so this worked well. It’s also not a shape I normally wear, so it pushed me outside my comfort zone a little bit.

I didn’t make any major changes. I narrowed the shoulders on the pattern before starting, by comparing it to another pattern that fits well. I also took in the side seams to make it a little more fitted. I used bias tape on the neck and skirt hem, but finished the sleeves with a normal double fold.

I have to say I was worried until the last minute that it was going to look too crazy/primary school, but now that it’s done I love it. Something about the bold colours and the 60s shape just feels right 🙂

I recently moved out to Kigali, Rwanda (hence the beautiful garden) and this dress is perfect for the warmer weather. I’ll be writing periodically about my overseas sewing adventures over on my blog. Feel free to stop by and say hi!

Siobhan xx