The Helios Dress has been on our make list for a while now, and we've been waiting for the perfect fabric to try it out! Beautiful sky blue silk organdy arrive this week, a delightful pick for late summer. Designed by Solveig Knutsen of Indigo Indigo, the Helios Dress is a zero waste pattern, based on squares, triangles and cords that create shape and volume. Read on for more, kindly modelled by Olivia and Charlotte from our HQ team.
Project Details
We used the Helios Dress pattern from Indigo Indigo, paired with our Sheer Silk Cotton Organdy in the colour Wave. There are loads of colour options in this fabric, check them out online! We used the pattern in View C, which is the dress option, and our fabric was a little narrower than the 150cm wide yield, so we used 2.4m rather than the suggested 1.9m. We chose to sew french seams throughout the dress, to ensure a clean finish in the sheer organdy, and we hemmed the skirt with a 6cm facing rather than a fold back. As our fabric was narrower than the recommended 150cm, we had to change up the lay plan when cutting, and we did end up with some leftover fabric. Cue the cute addition of ruffles, a technique taken from the fab Sewing With Scraps book. We love how the dress turned out! This project would be a nice first-try for a beginner sewist attempting french seams, as all of the pattern pieces have straight lines. The adage of 'Measure Twice, Cut Once' rings true for this pattern, and it requires careful attention to detail when drafting and cutting according to the instructions. We adore the sweet addition of ruffles from the Sewing With Scraps book, definitely something we'll try out again!
You can download the Helios pattern from the Indigo Indigo website here.
What are zero waste patterns?
The essence of zero waste patterns is that they are designed so that every bit of your fabric gets used. No random little bits or unusable strips of fabric left behind. Instead of using typical pattern pieces that have curves for shaping fabric around areas of the body, zero waste pattern designs usually rely on straight lines and simple geometric shapes that fit together like a puzzle. They’re designed to use the full width of your fabric, which means that the layout instructions will sometimes change depending on the width of the fabric you are working with.
In most examples, the pattern designer provides you with a detailed set of instructions on how to make the most out of your fabric using a set of shapes and corresponding measurements. You can create the shapes out of newspaper or card if you wish, then lay the shapes directly onto your fabric, and cut them out with almost no leftovers, and sew them together to form a garment that is both wearable and modern. Zero waste patterns offer customisation – you can change pocket sizes, adjust gathers, hem lengths, sleeve widths, or shift seam lines. It’s a unique way of approaching sewing that many folks find refreshingly creative!
Shop more zero waste patterns online here, and check out other zero waste makes on the blog!
