I managed to squeeze in some sewing time in between minding the kids these school holidays.
I wanted to show what you can do with the gorgeous modal knits by Lillestoff.
Not sure what modal is? Modal is a type of rayon, made from the fibres of beech trees. When combined with elastane (or spandex) you get a lovely knitted stretchy fabric that is also very drapey. It is extremely soft too. It is often used for underwear and sleepwear too as it just feels so good on your skin.
The modal jersey fabrics from Lillestoff are lightweight, breathable and divinely soft. It's a fantastic fabric for summer.
So I made the Pony Tank, a pattern by Chalk & Notch. You guessed it, the pattern is actually for a tank, but it comes in a dress version too.
This dress was a quick one to sew and am I delighted with the result! It's so divine to wear!
Normally these loose dresses don't fit my body shape, but with a very drapey fabric like this modal, I think I get away with it.
I made a size 4 (at the bust) but graded it to a size 8 towards the hem. I also added 10cm in length since I'm 1.78m.
It looks quite tight at the top, although it doesn't feel tight, the fabric has quite a bit of stretch to it. But I think next time I'll go up a size and lower the armholes a bit.
It'll be perfect on a hot summer night!
And in case you are wondering about the colour of this fabric... black often tends to look blue in photographs... I believe it is a very very dark blue, but some may argue it's charcoal. It looks nice either way.
In summary:
Fabric: 1.4m of Modal Pfingstrose Kombi by Lillestoff
Pattern: Pony Tank by Chalk and Notch
Size: 4 at bust, graded to size 8 towards bottom hem. 4 inches of length added.