When it comes to favorite fabrics, double gauze is always on my list. I’ve gushed about it before and I’ll continue to gush about it now. It’s a fabric that I first discovered it in baby blankets and I’m very pleased to see it used more and more for garments. Most recently, I’m even finding it used in ready to wear garments. It’s the perfect fabric for warm weather makes and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on more for a summer dress.

*This post was sponsored, however, all views and opinions are always my own.

Fabric

I knew I had to have this rust colored double gauze from Raspberry Creek Fabrics the second I saw it and it doesn’t disappoint in person. It fit the color expectation I had in my head and I love the bubbly texture of the double gauze. It’s the perfect fabric for summer makes because it’s so comfortable and breathable. It’s also opaque which is another bonus. Because the double gauze can bubble and make cutting/sewing a bit more difficult, I worried this would be a pain to work with, but I was pleasantly surprised to not have too many problems. Having the iron handy helped a lot in smoothing it out and it was pretty easy to sew with once it was all ironed and cut out. I would highly recommend checking out all the colors available from Raspberry Creek Fabrics and would definitely choose to sew with it again.

Pattern

After finding the perfect fabric, I knew I wanted to finally make the Bardon Dress from Peppermint Magazine x Elbe Textiles. It’s one of the many free patterns in Peppermint Magazine’s online sewing school section. I’ve been wanting to make as many of their freebies as I can, but kept holding off on this pattern even though I’ve been saving gorgeous versions of it for awhile now on Instagram. It’s definitely a pattern I didn’t think I needed, considering all the patterns I already have, but I’m glad I finally tried it. It’s a fun, simple make that definitely fits my style and I can’t wait to wear this dress all summer long.

My overall impressions of this pattern are great. The instructions are very well illustrated and written, it’s a great pattern for all levels, and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in this style. The pattern itself is conscious of reducing fabric waste which is always nice and I liked that I was able to get a dress out of 2 yards while making the bias binding from the scraps. The gathering ratios weren’t too high which I appreciated so I didn’t find myself spending forever getting the gathering just right.

The only critique I have for this pattern would be the fit. Per usual, I knew I’d have to make a bunch of shortening modifications right away and I did what I thought would be good without making a muslin first. After my usual mods, I ended up needing a bit more and would actually plan to do somethings differently for my next version.

Sizing and Modifications

I made size C based off my high bust measurement. I fall in between a B and a C, but wanted to make sure I had more room versus too little and sized up. I definitely could size down next time. I made a SBA which I’m glad I did, because the ease of this dress was plenty without the need for darts. The pattern is drafted for 5’7″ height so I took out 3″ spread across each pattern piece right off the bat, but found that I needed to shorten the straps another inch as well. It’s more shortening than I thought I would need and I may go back and shorten it more next time around.

Here are all the modifications I made:

• SBA: I made a 1″ small bust adjustment which eliminated the darts completely.
• Shortened the bodice by 1″
• Shortened each skirt tier by 1″
• Shortened the straps by 1″
• Pieced together the back bodice instead of on the fold (my error in laying out my pattern)

For my next version, I would like to size down (there’s plenty of ease), shorten the straps (possibly 1.5-2″) and shorten the bodice more (maybe 2″ or so since I prefer a higher waist on myself).

For this make, I added my Made in 2021 cotton label as I attached the bias binding at the back of the bodice. (There isn’t normally a seam there, but I accidentally messed up and couldn’t cut the fabric on the fold like the pattern intended.) I think it’s the perfect label to document this make with and I love that it isn’t scratchy.

Have you made the Bardon Dress yet? What are your favorite patterns to use with double gauze?