I’m not sure there are enough words to describe how much I love this grid Darling Ranges dress!
We started working on this dress at the end of last year – I had seen a lot of people making long sleeved Darling Ranges hacks and I thought it looked like an amazing idea! I wanted us to try it out in the studio so we could write a tutorial. I chose a grid check cotton flannel that I was obsessed with and thought would make a really snuggly warm dress for our coming colder months. But once it was sewn up I realised that this was just the wrong fabric to make a long sleeved Darling Ranges. It just looked all wrong – the grid check print felt very heavy and overwhelming with those sleeves. And to add insult to injury the fabric didn’t drape enough to make them look flattering at all.
So I hacked them off and we hemmed it in the standard pattern length with the usual elastic cuff finish, and then we all fell in love with it! And as sometimes happens this sample mysteriously disappeared into my wardrobe ;) Which was perfect timing because the cooler weather is approaching and I was beyond excited to finally be able to wear it today!
This dress was another reminder for me of how much of an impact fabric choice can have on your final make! It can honestly make it or break it! I still think a long sleeved Darling Ranges dress is an amazing idea and I can’t wait for us to try it again, but now I know that I need to be careful not to choose a print that won’t be overwhelm the garment and to choose a fabric with enough drape that the sleeves hang nicely.
How are all of your isolation making projects going my friends?
