I was very excited when Tilly released the Coco pattern a couple of weeks ago so that weekend I dashed straight to Barry’s Fabrics to buy me some ponte knit. I’m not especially familiar with sewing with knits so had to ask one of the ladies in Barry’s to point me to the right fabric, as I wasn’t entirely sure what I was looking for… Barry’s had a number of suitable solid color fabrics but as soon as I saw this floral print the solids had no chance. I might go back for a solid color and make a second Coco with pockets, as I thought this dress was busy enough without any pockets being added. I did however add cuffs for a bit of interest (it would have felt like cheating if I didn’t add one of the embellishment options). Everyone in Barry’s was taking about the Great British Sewing Bee so I felt right at home, I’ve already watched the current episodes this series more than once.
Anyway, about the dress. It’s a lovely little pattern & dress. Only four core pieces (front, back and two sleeves), with lots of options for extras. It took me longer to make than it should have as I’m really busy with work at the moment – and subsequently more tired than normal – but it really is a quick make. I think I spent more time attaching ribbon to stabilise the shoulders and neckline than anything else. I didn’t have any hemming tape but that is definitely going to be the next addition to my sewing supplies kit. The loose shape of the dress and the ponte fabric are so comfy. I have a similar RTW dress that I always wear when I’m flying (which is all the time for work at the moment, I’m actually off again tomorrow morning) so I might make up a few Cocos for being comfy on plane journeys.
I have a confession about the photos here. I got a few photos of my Coco in the garden, below. We were supposed to be heading out so I threw the dress over my head quickly and dashed into the garden. It was only when I got back in the house that I noticed I had the dress on backwards… (now that you know you’ll see that the pattern in the pictures below isn’t quite the same…). Of course by that point it was pouring with rain so I had to make do with photos in the living room to get some shots of the dress actually the right way around. Whoops!
