It’s getting cold; it’s hard to get out of bed to undress, and dress again.
What if I could get up, wrap a dress around me like a gown, and go about my day?
This was what inspired me to sew a dress out of a queen-size polar fleece blanket from Kmart ($10).
The blueprint (pattern)
Being a sewing-without-a-pattern project, the shapes were drawn directly onto the fleece fabric using a ruler and a posca pen.
The diagram below outlines the gist of how the pattern was cut from a queen-size blanket.
Process & outcome
I had only started sewing a month ago, and had never sewed a dress before. But a step-by-step guide from Yan Sewing showed me the way:
I made a few changes though. I:
- Added in-seam pockets (for convenience)
- Replaced the skirt gather with soft pleats (to look less bulky)
- Made the sleeves full length with elasticated ruffle cuffs (for practicality and cuteness)
I was a lil nervous to make a collar facing, as it looked complicated for a beginner sewer like me, but it worked out really well, and am no longer scared of sewing collar facings. 🙂
…And I am loving it! I even walk down to the shops in it 😁
It’s so comfy and roomy I can wear it over the top of my pj’s, jumper, or skivvy. Yet it looks like a dress.
An alternate pattern
I loved my wrap dress so much, I made a second one for rotation with slight differences:
- Slimmer at the waist;
- Shallower and straighter collar;
- Flared skirt front;
- Thicker bow ribbon and waist mark;
I’m a fan of wrap dresses now; not pulling clothing over my head is great!
I might take the average of the two designs and sew one from a patterned flanelette bed sheet for early spring 😊
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