Bleuet Duet
Ode to my favorite dress pattern: the Deer&Doe Bleuet.
I’ve made four of them, making it the most-used (purchased) pattern in my library, second only to my self-drafted fitted shirt, of which I have 6.
Oh, Bleuet, you gown among dresses, Queen of Princess seams, sweet and sharp, feminine and tailored, how do I love thee?
- flattering shape – Bleuet was the first indie pattern I found in the vast wasteland of tent dresses that offered a fitted, hour-glass shape. It does not disappoint.
- full shirt collar – I love a dress with a full shirt collar. It adds a tailored look, taking this dress to the edge.
- adorable bow – normally I’m not a big ruffles or bows kind of person. The optional bow on the back of Bleuet coupled with that shirt collar adds just the right amount of femininity back into the balance.
All my Bleuets are sleeveless. Don’t get me wrong, the sleeves are aces. They’re just not my style. I have made them, worn them around, and decided they’re not for me. Plus, I wear these dreses with a jacket most of the time, so the sleeves aren’t even visible.
In my first several years of sewing, I avoided hand stitching like the plague. But now, I love finishing hems with a herringbone stitch. It takes considerably more time, but the result is so nice and neat.
Since the Bleuet hem is curved, I also used the steam technique to shrink the inner edge to fit. The effect is much more prominent with the green dress.
As for the fabrics, the grey dress is a Japanese linen blend by Ella Blue fabrics and the green dress is organic cotton “We are All Stars” by Cloud9. The bows are both cotton scraps. They were all purchased from my local fabric shop.
Confession: The grey dress was my last pre-winter project, which I finished just in time for 6 months of snow! The green one is my latest project, finished last week.
I have one more fabric in mind for a triplet Bleuet – black cotton with big, colorful coy fish. I have to evaluate to size of the pattern pieces vs. the size of the fishes to see it they are a good match. Fingers crossed!
Bonus pic…my photo shoot director giving me some notes 😉
Thanks for reading <3
