I have seen so many beautiful versions of Know Me 2016 on Instagram, and I was itching to try out a version of my own. I had been gifted 3 metres of some truly stunning silk crêpe for a #MinervaMake and I really couldn’t imagine a better combination! Head over to Minerva to read my blog post or scroll down for more details and photos.
This silk crêpe is really special and feels luxurious and smooth to the touch. There is a certain amount of weight to it; it is not as wafty and as delicate as a silk crêpe de chine, but it doesn’t feel heavy when wearing and it moves and drapes beautifully. The good news is that this weightiness made cutting out a lot less shifty than I usually find silk to be, but to be on the safe side, I still cut out on a single layer! I treated it very gently by prewashing at a low temperature and pressing on a low heat with an organza pressing cloth. I used silk pins and a size 70 microtex needle to avoid snagging this fabric (although there are a handful of snags from where my kitten Amelie tried to play with this dress 😅) and when gathering the sleeves and the skirt portions, I made gathering threads only within the seam allowances to alleviate any unsightly needle marks. The colours of this print are so vibrant, and the painterly look of the blooming flowers and leaves is truly darling. Minerva has many other silk crêpes in exclusive prints, so be sure to check them out.
Know Me 2016 has a fitted, lined bodice with a jewel neckline, with two different skirt lengths and dramatic puff sleeves that are shaped with sleeve heads. The waistline curves up to sit as an empire line under the bust on the front bodice and the bottom tier of the skirt has a similar curved design. Shout out especially to the really roomy slant pockets! Know Me 2016 recommends using lighter-weight fabrics, such as cottons, linens, ponte and taffeta, but I could also imagine a much more structured fabric such as brocade would make a knockout version of this dress.
For my version, I used the sleeve length from View A and the skirt length of View B, as I only had 3 metres of my fabric and it was only 136cm wide. I pretty much only had the tiniest scraps left over, so I lined the bodice and made the sleeve heads with a scrap of plain white cotton lawn. There is plenty of ease at the waistline based on the finished garment measurements, but some comments online said the bodice comes up small across the bust, so I sized up to a 14 and made a toile. I ended up pinching out 1″ excess from the high bust and also made a minor shoulder adjustment, as the shoulder seam line was sitting forward. I used French seams throughout this dress, as that is my preferred method for finishing the seam allowances when sewing with silk; it does take longer to sew but the finish is impeccable. I also chose to add fusible stay tape to the pocket openings and to the centre back seam, to stabilise the insertion of the zip in the delicate silk. This worked an absolute treat and I am really proud of how neat my invisible zip looks.
I enjoyed constructing this dress immensely, especially as the steps for assembling the curved skirt tiers and the slant pockets were pretty unique — I could probably make a gathered skirt with side seam pockets in my sleep at this point, but this pattern certainly kept me on my toes. A few people have pointed out a few mistakes in the pattern instructions, for which I was grateful to avoid tripping up when I was sewing; for step 28, the Lower Side Front and Skirt Lower Front seam is missing in the instruction diagram, so you need to match this seam with the dot on the lower edge of the Skirt Upper Front, which is the dot farthest from the centre front. You can also skip the instructed gathering along the curved section of the lower skirt tier — I found it wasn’t really necessary and could ease the two curved sections together without much difficulty.
This dress is such a lovely finished garment and feels so luxurious to wear. I think next time I make this pattern, I will make the sleeve heads with silk organza to add the necessary volume without adding too much bulk to the top of the armscye. I also may do an FBA, to give myself another 1″ or so across the fullest part of my bust to maintain the floaty, oversized silhouette. I can imagine my next version of this dress in a ditsy floral cotton lawn with contrast piping to highlight the curved seam lines or perhaps in a seafoam green sheer organza with a coordinating slip underneath — let me know your thoughts!
Know Me 2016
Size 8 – 26
Full Bust: 31½″-48″
Waist: 24″-41″
Hips: 33½″-50″
