Rosys Patterns Romantic Empire Dress (Chloe) for Lidia

 A new to me pattern company, Rosys Patterns

After the disastrous Milkmaid dress from Etsy I was a little nervous sewing one up and then after perusing the internet and ending up on Reddit there was a number of people stating they were AI. 

However I had already purchased a 'buy 6, pay for 2' deal....

Romantic Empire dress

In for a penny in for a pound.

Lidia's measurements put her in a size Medium bust and X-large hips, so I drafted those two sizes, blending just below the waist. Then I made a muslin.

If in doubt, make a muslin, it won't take too long, I promise!

The fit was pretty good, I just pinched a little out of centre back above her derriere. 

The pattern comes with good instructions, not too wordy but I found them fine. They are described as beginner which I am not sure I agree with however Rosy promotes her WhatsApp group in which you can ask for help. I sewed the lining to the invisible zipper by machine for the first time ever. I always hand sew as I couldn't get my head around the machine sew method but her diagrams clicked with me!

Lidia choose a colour combination that was very similar to the pattern cover. The micro check Winter weight cotton was from my late Mums stash and I made Lidia an Empire line blouse from it. The sleeves are the gorgeous organdie that I also sewed up for Lidia in my most  favourite sew ever

This fabric came from an Australian designer called Dollscake . I purchased six huge boxes of her samples (and her samples are generous cuts) so I have some beautiful, unusual fabrics to use.

The pattern instructions are to shirr the sleeve cuff but I chose to use bias binding and run  elastic through. I have not had much success with shirring, it's one of those techniques I need to master.

I am not fond of invisible zips. No matter how much care I take I get some 'gaping'. I have found greater success using The Kenneth King application. This gave me a good result but I think if I was making this dress super fitted I would use a traditional zipper.

I did bind the arm sleeve (which the pattern instructions suggest) as it give such a nice finish when you have lined the dress. 

This style of dress really suit Lidia.

Its so sweet and twee!

I didn't fit the dress quite as close as the designers as Lidia wanted to be comfortable.

I added length to the dress when I cut it out but I ended up hemming that away. That said, a nice deep hem does make a short dress sit nicely.

As always, I make Lids little  shorts (fully lined) to wear under her short dresses.

They are not visible with normal wear.

But make her feel more comfortable.

We went with a cotton broderie lace at the neck, with a satin bow and two little velvet buttons.

In conclusion, I am very pleased with my first Rosy Sews pattern.

They are not cheap at $44 AUD however she offers lots of specials which half the price. I see a lot of YouTubers making very quick variations which they can sew one night and wear the next day. I spent a bit more time on mine but that was my choice. Why can't sewing be accessible and fun?

Rosy also offer lots of video support via her You Tube channel and the few times I have reached out for her support (IT stuff) she has answered me promptly.

Rosy also offers a complete shop package and if my girls like enough of her patterns I will seriously consider buying it. It gives you every pattern in the shop plus automatically any of her new releases.

Thank you for reading and stay well xx Nicole