I was one of the lucky ladies to be asked to do some pattern testing for by Hand London’s new Flora dress. Somehow this is the first pattern that I have sewn of theirs, and I have certainly been missing out. I love the feminine silhouettes of their designs. They all feel young and on trend with just the slightest touch of retro inspiration. I have plans to make up their Charlotte skirt really soon too.
The flora dress is a fun party dress with a box pleated waistline. One thing that I love about the cut of this dress is that it is a cross between a circle skirt and a pleated skirt so it’s much more flatterning – and less boxy or full around the waistline – than a normal pleated skirt. It hugs the hips perfectly and swishes when you walk – all of things you want in a good party dress. I chose to do the higher neckline version although I also think that the wrap top option is pretty great too.
I did make a couple of changes. Due to some pattern cutting error on my part, I ended up needing to scrap the back length. So in the end I just made the entire skirt knee length – I had to lengthen the front by a couple of inches too. I also added pockets. I love pockets in a dress, but I am wondering if I should have left them out. It does add a little bit of bulk to the hips which are otherwise very flat.
This beautiful fabric is from Mood NYC. I first spotted this fabric on a friend’s instagram and couldn’t get it out of my mind. It’s very different than anything that I normally sew with so I had a few freak out moments about whether or not I had chosen wrong, but in the end I love it. It’s a gorgeous soft linen with a beautiful drape. It’s much more colorful than what I normally wear, but I love the color combo and the large scale of the print. I just feel so feminine when I wear this dress. It’s so fun.
There have been so many amazing versions of this dress popping up around the internet. Check out By Hand London’s pinterest account to keep track of them all. I am always amazed to see so many completely different versions of the same pattern.
p.s. It was 40 degrees when I did this photoshoot and I also had to change clothes on a balcony, in a side alley, crossing my fingers that none of my neighbors were watching. I get a good laugh just thinking about it.
33 Comments
Really great dress, I love the bold floral print. I just found By Hand London, its nice to see what other’s are doing with their designs.
Gorgeous! Love the print and the style.
This is really cute! I just ordered this pattern today from pattern review.
Gorgeous! I haven’t made up any of the BHL patterns either, but I think this will be the first one…
So cute!
Stat is such a pretty dress. Lovely fabric choice.
SO PREEEEETTYYYYYYY! i looove this gorgeous print on you. and that balcony story is hilarious. the things we do for a blog shoot.
Holy cow, this is adorable! I LOVE the print- it’s fantastic! I love the great lengths you went to for your photo shoot- the things a gal’s gotta do in this town for a shot! (Well, not that I do them, which is why my photos taken on my block always look like I’m in a prison… stupid chain-link fences everywhere!)
Oh Kelli, this is so stunning! By far my favourite of all the Floras I’ve seen so far. Gorgeous!
Beautiful version of this dress, Kelli! The print is killer, so glad you took the leap! And I love the even hem just as much as the asymmetric hem. This will be such a fun summer dress!
Kelli, this is gorgeous! The print looks absolutely fabulous on you and works really well with this pattern. I may even be calling Mood today, looking for this fabric. So lovely!
Mary you should! They have a teal version too that is awesome. It’s in the linen section – 3rd floor – bottom row. It’s been over a month since I’ve been there, but hopefully they still have it.
Kelli, this is stunning! I’m a sucker for bold colors. I’ve already got this dress on my sewing wish list. 🙂
Erica, I feel like this dress would be perfect on you.
I absolutely love this Kelli! That linen is perfect and I love the square neckline. And I think I prefer the straight hem. Gorgeous.
Kelli this dress is beautiful!! You have to make the other patterns too, they are all gorgeous dresses 🙂
What a gorgeous dress – the print is awesome and looks amazing on you, and I love the single length hem and higher neckline.
Amazing, beautiful, lovely! You should totally go out of you comfort zone more often. The print and colours are fabulous on you.
I can relate to pulling crazy stunts for a good photo op! Reading that it was 40 degrees makes me shiver! Glad you did because this dress is stunning. Spring is coming!
LOVELY dress, the style, the floral print, the colours, the fit and flare, it makes me smile 🙂
This beautiful fabric is from Mood NYC. I first spotted this fabric on a friend’s instagram and couldn’t get it out of my mind. It’s very different than anything that I normally sew with so I had a few freak out moments about whether or not I had chosen wrong, but in the end I love it. It’s a gorgeous soft linen with a beautiful drape. It’s much more colorful but beautiful. these also purchase online through cheap amazon products
This really is a Flora dress. Super adorable and with a dress like that the spring can’t get here fast enough 🙂
Ahhh gorgeous!! That fabric is amazing. Such a pretty dress 🙂
This is the perfect fabric for this dress! It looks lovely on you and I love how you changed the pattern up to make it more you!
This is my favourite Flora so far! What a gorgeous fabric, feels so Spring-like.
Gorgeous! I’m really loving the large scale print you used. The colors are so lively. You look great!
Wild print used to great effect! It works.
It’s a vision of spring. Beautiful
Love the fabric and dress shape!!
[…] planned to use this gorgeous fabric to make a really special dress (check out Kelli’s dress made with a different colorway of the same fabric!), but after I thought about it for a bit, I just […]
[…] planned to use this gorgeous fabric to make a really special dress (check out Kelli’s dress made with a different colorway of the same fabric!), but after I thought about it for a bit, I just […]
Really love the dress, the colors, and your hair!! I have been searching for a dress to make, it will be my first dress adventure, and this one really caught my eye.
Great fabric choice!
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