Despite being a curvy sewist, I came to Cashmerette pretty late in the game. That’s not to say I didn’t know about them; in fact, when I first started sewing during lockdown, I bought quite a few of the patterns, being enthused by the discovery of a pattern company whose mission was to create patterns for busty and plus size sewists. However, when it came down to it, I didn’t end up making those patterns; when compared to the style of clothes I’ve been wearing now for the last two decades – vintage inspired silhouettes – Cashmerette’s patterns seemed a bit lacklustre and always ended up being back-benched in favour of something a bit more ‘me’. It was hard to feel motivated by the patterns based on the pattern sleeve samples which always felt a bit too middle-aged and ‘sensible’ to me.
The turning point for me came at the end of 2021 when I was making a dress for New Year’s Eve and I wanted to make a dress from a sparkly gold stretch fabric; thinking a basic construction would show off the fabric the most, I decided upon the Alcott Dress. The rest, as they say, is history. I realised, once I disregarded the sleeve samples which did not inspire me at all, that these were patterns with so much potential when matched with the right fabrics and styled in my own way.
The Roseclair Dress pattern was no different – it really is a canvas upon which to create your own distinctive style. It is, essentially, a classic, well fitted V-neck wrap bodice, made versatile by its skirt and sleeve options (you have a choice between maxi and A-line skirts and 3 sleeve types – cuffed bishop sleeves, short puff sleeves and flutter sleeves).
I saw in View B (with the flutter sleeve, rather than the puff sleeve) the potential of something reminiscent of a 1940’s tea dress – and it did not disappoint.
THE FABRIC
The Bette viscose twill, a Fabric Godmother exclusive vintage floral print, was the perfect fabric to achieve this look. The rich meadow of vibrant, colourful florals on the black background gives this fabric a beautiful vibrancy which pairs well with the simplicity of the design of the Roseclair Dress. The viscose twill is the perfect weight for a wrap dress, and it has a beautiful drape. It was so easy to sew with, responds well to pressing which is really useful for making the bias. This might be trickier with lighter fabrics.
THE PATTERN & INSTRUCTIONS
As is standard for all Cashmerette patterns, the instructions for the Roseclair dress are expertly written; I have never encountered anything difficult in the instructions as they are so clear and concise and are supplemented with good diagrams.
FIT
The fit, as ever, is effortless. The Cashmerette size calculator is generally close. Given the cup sizes, I was lucky not to have to carry out a Full Bust Adjustment on this pattern, even though the calculator told me to do a 1” bust adjustment on my starting point; 16 G/H. After making a toile, I discovered the only adjustment I had to make was to shorten the bodice by 0.75 inches (being 5 foot 1, this is no surprise) and grade out a size at the waist (also standard for me).
SEWING PROCESS
I was amazed at how quickly the dress came together, taking into consideration the fact that you need to make your bias binding and waist ties. There is an option for making the bias invisible at the neckline, which I decided to do as I preferred the clean finish, and to ensure I got it, I stitched it by hand so there would be no visible stitching. The only real time-consuming part of the process was allowing a couple of days for the hem to drop; having made the A-line version, the skirt was cut on the bias and therefore needed levelled before hemming. One thing I did notice was that, once the weight of the skirt was attached (there is a good bit of body to this viscose twill), the bodice did drop a little (meaning I probably should have shortened it by 1.5 inches to compensate). Had the binding, etc. not already been stitched in place, I may have been tempted to take it apart, but it did not affect the final fit too much.
VERDICT
This is a beautiful pattern and one I will undoubtedly make again. It is such a confidence booster to find a wrap dress that does not require an FBA (and all the other little issues that can arise as a result of performing the FBA) and does not gape – what’s more, it holds in place all day long.
The wrap over also feels really secure; as a true wrap dress, it is secured by ties on both sides which protects you from any flashing moments! This is helped by the fact there is a deep wrap on the underneath panel which, I have noticed, also protects you from showing too much leg when you sit down (unless the occasion should call for it, of course).
This dress is exactly what I had hoped it would be – a dress suitable for pretty much any occasion, carefully balancing modern and vintage styles.
Jenny Says:
"I really enjoyed reading Mary-Ellen's review of the beautiful Roseclair. As soon as this pattern was released I was hoping to see a real life version in one of my fabrics and it was worth the wait. Such a beautiful paring of fabric and pattern, I couldn't have chosen better myself and it just goes to show that sometimes we have to look beyond the cover photos on a pattern to make something truly our own, one of the real creative privileges of sewing!"
Inspired to make your own version? Here's what you'll need:
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| Fabric Godmother Bette Viscose Twill |