Ok friends, now that we have gone over all the main construction of the Olive dress and blouse, I thought I would share a few hack ideas with you. To start today, I have a simple one – ties on the back waistline of the dress version. The gathered waist dress version of Olive is pull-over style, loose and flowy. But if you want to define your waist, adding ties in the back is an easier option than adding darts and a zip closure. I actually took this idea straight from Darling Ranges, so if you’ve ever made that dress, you may have done this before! You simple add ties to the back waistline, and then when you pull them in to tie them, it cinches in the waist.

Wanna see? Let me show you…

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Well folks, we made it. We’re on the last, and easiest, step of the Olive construction – the hem. Seriously, its only a couple of simple steps. And its the same for any version you make – I’ll show you on a blouse, but the same goes for the dress hem, as well. And the long sleeve hem, too!

Ready to finish up?

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Who here is making the dress version of the Olive pattern? Well today is all about you, because we are going to go over how to sew in the pockets and attach the skirt! A simple gathered skirt with anchored inseam pockets – easy peasy. You got this!

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There is one more sleeve option left for the Olive dress and blouse – the long sleeve option. So that’s what we will do today! It’s the only sleeve option with an actual sleeve attached. So instead, we will sew it in flat instead of in the round.

Are you ready?

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Today we will go over the second option for short sleeves on the Olive dress or blouse – the sleeve band option. This is a great version if you are playing with different pattern placements or contrasting colors. This is actually my favorite sleeve finish! Let’s just keep this short and get right to it…

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