A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to meet the super cute and very talented April Rhodes, creator of The Staple Dress pattern. The dress pattern recently made its debut in the sewing community, and there was a Staple Dress craze (check out #thestapledress over on instagram)! I was super excited when April asked if I would be interested in teaching The Staple Dress classes at Sew to Speak. Of course I said yes, I am so excited!
A few words about this awesome dress…. as soon as I saw pictures of The Staple Dress, I knew I had to make it. It looked so comfy, and seemed like it would be a quick, fun dress to whip up. It’s exactly that! Some of my favorite features are… the shirring at the waistline which gives the dress cute shape… I’m in love with the french seams used throughout the dress… and there are no sleeves to inset, whoop whoop!
The pattern is very easy to customize, and April gives several suggestions for added detail- a high/low hemline, keyhole opening, shortening it to a tunic, etc.
For my fabric, I used 2 coordinating prints from Indian Summer by Sarah Watson for Art Gallery Fabrics. I love how the pockets add contrast- they definitely add to the comfort and casualness of the dress.
I wanted to include the coordinating accent fabric on the sleeves somehow, so I sewed on some little tabs.
I also used my Staple Dress pattern to make a shirt… which I LOVE! I actually wish I would have made it about 3 inches longer, so I guess that means I need to make a couple more 🙂
I didn’t do the shirring all the way around like I would for the dress. I added just a few rows at the back of the shirt to give it some shape.
I got this Leopard Interlock Knit from Nick of Time Textiles. It is just $5.25 a yard. It’s so lightweight and silky, with just right amount of stretch. Mmmm!
So if you’ve been thinking about making The Staple Dress, I would highly recommend it! It is such a versatile pattern, and renders a very comfy dress or shirt. And, wish me luck teaching the class… I’ll be sharing a few behind-the-scenes pictures over on instagram for anyone wanting to follow along!
