Pattern Reviews
Estella Dress
13—January 2022
We kick off a new year of makes with the Estella Dress by Papercut Patterns!
With summertime in full swing here in the Southern Hemisphere, we're loving all things linen! A handful of our most popular Vintage Finish Linen colours are now back in stock including classic Navy and White, perfect timing for high summer makes. Papercut's new patterns have been on rotation with the TFS team since their release in December last year, including the fabulous Estella Dress. Read on for our full pattern review, very kindly modelled by Sarah from our HQ team.
Papercut Patterns — Estella Dress
With its reversible nature and multi-functional ties, our friends over at Papercut Patterns describe the Estella Dress pattern as one to wear all year round. This dress is a pretty simple silhouette and the pattern is packed with options, including the ever-popular puff sleeves, a frilly hem, elasticated waist detail, and pockets. We made up the 'dress with long skirt' option in size 3 for Sarah, using our back-in-stock Navy Vintage Finish Linen. Sarah mentioned the elasticated waistband was a great touch, lending a comfortable and secure feel to the otherwise open/wrap feature. On that note, a little reminder that this dress is reversible, meaning you can wear it back to front and front to back. Handy! This would be a super easy pattern to hack too; you could leave out the elastic in the sleeve hem for a drapey fluted sleeve, or perhaps leave out the frill on the hem for a more minimal finish.
We did feel the finished neckline was sitting a little bit close for comfort to the edge of Sarah's shoulders. Whether or not this is an issue would just depend on the width of your shoulders and your personal preference. As always, we would recommend making a toile where possible, so you can adjust areas like this if you need, before cutting into your final fabric.
The instruction manual for this pattern was clear and concise, making for a straightforward sew. There's a surprising amount of detail in the Estella Dress and it's definitely not a beginner project; we'd agree with Papercut's intermediate sewing level.
Estella comes in two size ranges, Papercut's original size range 1-8 here and their 'curve' sizing here.
Our Navy Vintage Finish Linen has recently come back into stock and we knew it would be perfect for the Estella. Breathable, light linen pieces are essential in the heat and you can't beat navy for classic summer chic! We could see this dress in an array of Vintage Finish Linen colours or picnic-ready Gingham Linen, an ultra-glam silk, crisp cotton, or even a light wool suiting in winter.
See below for some options from our Online Store: Vintage Blush Bold Gingham Linen, Twill Cotton / Wool Check Suiting - Camel / Red, Fudge Plainweave Linen and Awning Plaid Cotton / Linen - Copper / Maroon
We think the Estella would be the perfect option for weddings, seasonal soirées, beachside picnics and coffee runs in-between! It has a lovely silhouette and with options galore, you can't go wrong. Share your makes with us over on Instagram @wearethefabricstore using #TheFabricStore
