Hello lovelies ❤️ I’m so happy share this new pattern by Megan Nielsen, the Olive top and dress. This pattern is just my style, relaxed fit and cute little details that make it unique. I loved making this dress but I made some minor changes just so I can wear it now during winter. When I make something, I like to wear it immediately and as much as possible.

The Pattern

Megan Nielsen described Olive as “a relaxed silhouette top or dress with v-insert. Pattern features a drop shoulder, multiple sleeve finishes, dress or top variations, and optional breast patch pocket.” I like that the pattern has no closures (zips or buttons) and is neatly finished with bias binding.

Fabric

To make my dress I used this cotton poplin fabric from my stash. The instructions called for a Light to medium weight fabric with some drape. This poplin was great because it had the drape. I love the mustard colour, it’s perfect for a winter dress.

Sewing

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I wanted to be able to wear this dress now in winter so I added the long sleeves from the top version, because the fabric had a lot of drape the sleeve felt unnaturally loose so I added and elastic to give them structure. My measurements are B: 107, W:90, H:120, I cut a size 14 and graded to a size 16 at the waist and hip. I shortened the bodice by 2cm so it would fall more on the national waist. Lastly I’ve been wanting a tired dress for a while and I had enough fabric so I thought let me create the tiers since I’m already gathering fabric.

Here’s how I calculated the tiers:

The skirt length from the pattern was 60 cm long, this was too long for me since I’m on the short side, I’m 1.60m tall. I figured if I made each tier 30cm in length, I wouldn’t need to add seam allowances. The first tier was 2x my waist measurement and the second tier was 3.5x of my waist measurement. Unfortunately I was running out of fabric, I wanted to make it 4x waist measurements but it still worked out well enough.

Challenges

The pattern was fairly quick and easy to make but the V insert was slightly complicated. The instructions were clear and had plenty of illustrations to help you with installing the insert. It just required a little focus, but it came together well.

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Recommendation

I loved this pattern, I can’t wait to make it again both the dress and the top. I’m saving it for the summer months. It was easy to put together, it took an afternoon to make. The instructions were clear and gave additional tips and ways to hack the pattern. I would recommend the pattern for all skill levels. Thank you for reading!

Blessing Lovelies ❤️