The third item in my Tilly-fest is a Lilou dress from Tilly and the Buttons - Love at first stitch book. It's a cute little dress (the last make in the book, so i'm guess it was the most difficult.)that has a fully lined bodice and gathered skirt (there are instructions to pleat the skirt too). The fastening is an invisible zip in the back (I used a black one and it blended in perfectly).
I had planned to make my first Lilou in the 50's Jug or not fabric, but as this only comes in a narrow width, the full skirt wouldn't fit. Instead I decided to make it up in this crazy squirrel print that I found in Sham Shui Po. Brown is not a colour that I use frequently, but I just couldn't resist the squirrels! At just $20HKD a yard, it was a total bargain too! On reflection, I really like the colour. I think it is going to make a great autumn crossover dress for when the weather is still warm in Hong Kong, but I feel like wearing wintery colours (November is probably the start of that weather). The dress is quite spacious, so I could even put a long sleeved top underneath and make it into a winter dress! Although the thickness (or should I say thinness?!) of the fabric might prevent this.
Hats off to Tilly for another brilliant pattern. My only adjustments were to take about 4cm off the back seam to stop the dress from bagging. I think this is a combination of choosing a best fit when selecting the size and also the nature of the lightweight fabric. I think a lightweight invisible zip would have made this process less necessary. I think I would make this pattern again and maybe consider using a heavier fabric to make it more wearable in winter. I imagine a lovely tartan would make up perfectly!
This is my last Tilly and the Buttons make for a while now, i've got several other garments that are on my WIP pile. This includes an item of menswear! This will be my first adventure into this, so fingers crossed i'm happy enough with the garment to blog about it!
