Velour Tilly & The Buttons Zadie Dress by Rudy

I find the problem with sewing as a plus size person is that you can never quite tell if the pattern is going to suit you. I hate spending days making a new garment only to find out it looks awful! I was really dubious with the Zadie as I wasn't sure if the pockets and gathers would make my stomach look even bigger, the good news is it didn't! In fact it looks beautiful!
I made my Tilly and the Buttons Zadie from beautiful stretch velvet from Harriet at Sew me Sunshine (obviously). I decided on the cap sleeve version, because I'm never sure on expanding arm widths and thought this would be a good all year round dress with short sleeves. I also decided to omit the contrasting panels as I thought this would draw attention to the bits I don't want attention drawn too!

This fabric is truly decadent, it is so soft, and stretches beautifully! If you have never sewn with velvet though (like me until now..) you'll need your walking foot on and plenty of pins as the 'pile' likes to slide the fabric around whilst putting it through your machine. Don't let this scare you though if you are a beginner because it would be perfect for a pattern with fewer pieces such as a Tilly & The Buttons Coco Top, or just take your time and it will turn out fine!

I struggled most with the pivot points on this fabric. As it was a dark colour my usual trusty friction pens didn't show up. In the end I resorted to good old chalk which did the trick perfectly! So it's worth making sure your markers show up as the pivot points are quite important in the Zadie.
I didn't top stitch the pockets on my Zadie as I was afraid of ruining the pile of the fabric, and I think this give the pockets a lovely slouchy look. Not that this dress is by no means slouchy! The fabric has made it a beautiful party dress which I am going to keep safe until my birthday next month. I'm hoping that my husband is taking me for a fancy afternoon tea! I'm hoping he's booked Fortnum and Mason so a very pretty and posh dress is required, and this is both of those, PLUS plenty of room for all the cake i'm going too consume! 
Whilst making my Zadie, I cursed a lot due to it's millions of pieces and pivot points I couldn't see properly and vowed never to make another, but now it's finished I can see another few of these being make in some beautiful jerseys.

 

1 comment

  • As a plus size sewer I also feel this but that is the prettiest zadie dress I have seen. It will now be going on my wish list to make one in a similar style fabric because this is just perfect!! 👌

    Michelle smith

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