Chalk and Notch Farrah blouse and dress

As you all know, I’m a massive fan of Gabriela’s work so when she announced she was working on a new women’s pattern, the gorgeous Farrah blouse/dress I was very excited to test it. I absolutely love being part of her team and being part of the testing process. Seeing all the testing being done behind the scenes gives me a new appreciation for all the hours of work designers go through to perfect their pattern and Gabriela is meticulous about hers so you know you’re buying a worthy pattern.

The Farrah pattern offers two views.
View A: Includes ruffle sleeves
View B: Includes a front ruffle
Both views have a blouse and dress view with side slit and a high-low hem detail.

For the test, I made View A in a dress version in this lovely lightweight polyester crepe like fabric. The fabric has a beautiful feel but boy, it was not easy to sew with being quite delicate (big sigh).I made this in a size 4 (US) or 8 (AUD) and the fit was spot on for me so when choosing your sizing, go by your upper bust and bust measurement to ensure it’s the right fit for you.

The other thing I love about the dress is that it’s a nice straight relaxed fit (so no bulged required) and the elegant ruffled sleeves creates a lovely feminine silhouette which is so on trend at the moment.When sewing the ruffled sleeves, you have the option to line it or roll hem (which is what I did) though upon reflection, I wished I’d lined the sleeves as the fabric is so delicate, the lining would have helped the ruffles from flicking to the wrong side and give a cleaner look.

Now, I couldn’t very well make the dress and not the blouse, so of course I made a blouse in View B with the front ruffle to see how that looks on me and I was so happy with how it turned out. Considering it took me forever to decide on the fabric.

I originally bought a lovely rayon crane print (which I have now decided to use for another top), then I bought a super soft and delicate red cotton silk with a ribbed like texture but also decided against it after a long internal debate to finally settle for this cute cotton Ostrich print voile which I bought from Miss Matatabi to create this fun going out yet casual kind of look.As this is more of a coarse woven cotton volie, it did like to fray a lot so it’s very important to make sure you baste the fabric especially around the curves (like the neckline and gusset) so you don’t lose the shape.

For the front ruffle, what I did differently was babylock the ruffle edge rather than roll hem since the fabric frays so easily, the babylock gives it a nice smooth finish plus it was easier to go around the rounded corners *wink* … hmmm now that I think about it, it would also have been great on the ruffled sleeve too. It would make this an even quicker sew than it already is (smiley face)  Another great feature of this blouse/top is that it has NO closure (yep, you heard right, no closure, just slip it right over your head and away you go, how fabulous is that?) In addition, the blouse/dress features front and back yokes which means you can have fun colour blocking (if you like) along with cute gathering details at the back and don’t forget the high low side slits. 

Like the Waterfall pattern, I will be sewing more of this for me … thinking I need View A in a blouse next. If you would like to sew your own Farrah too, you can get the pattern on sale (till April 17th) over at Chalk and Notch Pattern Shop as well as Upcraft Club and Chalk and Notch Etsy.

For more Farrah inspiration, you can check out Chalk and Notch blog and Chalk and Notch instagram page. Don’t forget to hastag #Chalkandnotch with your #farrahpattern sew!

Happy sewing xx