Ariana Dress Pattern Tester Roundup Part 1

The Ariana is all about Floaty Flounce Sleeves – gorgeous Pleats on the Bodice – and a Cascade Front Skirt Flounce to finish off its stunning design.

These elements should be on top of your list of must-have details as the silhouette redefines feminine style.  A flattering contoured waistband has also been added to the style for another point of difference. And for those seeking a little modesty a standard front skirt is also offered.

And a KEY FEATURE about the Ariana is that all the elements of this shape can be mixed with the stunning Brenda Dress released a few weeks back.

Hello, my name is Ally and I live in Utah. I chose scuba crepe fabric for my two Ariana dresses. I bought one of my fabrics from SylishFabric off of etsy, I was impressed with the speed of shipping and the quality of material. I went out of my comfort zone and made one of my dresses with a big bold pattern, when I normally prefer solids.

This was the first time I actually have sewn a kick pleat in a dress and I quickly learned the best way to get it to lay flat and get it straight is to baste your middle back seam all the way to the bottom to hold your fabric still while you finish the kick pleat. And of course course good press with an iron! I was pretty thrilled with the outcome.

I truly loved both the flounce down the front and the straight skirt options. One has the slit and is flirty and playful and the other can be worn in a more formal setting. I love a good versatile pattern. I am planning an anniversary vacatiom later this year and definitely plan on bringing my Ariana  for a date night!

The alterations I made were to bring in the center back seam at the small of my back and bring in the side seams of my bodice to have a better fitting dress. I also did a swayback modification that I have learned is a must for me and fitted dresses so I don’t have any bunching fabric on my back.

I wore my Ariana and everyone loved the sleeves and bodice. It is truly a flattering pattern for any body type. I have a small bust and was initially worried that the bodice would not be as flattering on me as others, but I was surprised at how much I truly liked it!!

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Hi, i am Annet from the Netherlands. n

i love my Ariana dresses very much and i want to wear them. But its a little to cold in the Netherlands at the moment. But summer is coming🤗

I made my dresses with scuba crepe with a print and without print from my favorite dutch fabric webshop Driessen stoffen. I cant stop buy fabrics there🤭 😜

Tips to make the Ariana…. take your time for the sleeves. And take your sizes good. And you have a lovely dress to wear it all summer long💕

Do you want to see more?

follow me on instagram

Thanks for reading this💓

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Hi, this is Brenda from the Netherlands.

For my 2 Ariana‘s I used scuba crepe from www.reuverstoffen.nl and www.driessenstoffen.nl.

For the Ariana take special care with the neckline, make sure you are not stretching it to much or it will go wobbly.

In my Ariana‘s I made my usual adjustments, Lengthen, small broad shoulder, small sway back. I blended the size 2C upperbust with 4 waist and hip.

I already got compliments from 2 neighbors that saw me taking the pictures you saw 🙂. They couldn’t believe I made it myself.

I plan to make the Ariana with the A line skirt from the Brenda.

Curious? Check my Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fabricfairybrenda/

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This is Carmen from Georgia, and I want to share the Ariana dress which my daughter, Ariana, was thrilled to have named after her. I made two final dresses in both options and I chose a pretty floral scuba crepe from Sew Sophisticated.

For the split skirt with front flounce, make sure the right front skirt and left front skirt are right sides up or your flounce will be on the wrong side. Both versions of the dress are stunning and so easy to make. So, since I made two dresses, I had my alterations and hers to make. I shortened her bodice an inch and mine only a half inch. Both skirts were shortened one inch. And we both needed swayback adjustments.

We wore our Arianas to the convenience store and the cashier asked us where we bought the dresses. She was so surprised I made them and said they were very pretty.

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Hi Everyone, I am Genevieve and I live in the UK. I chose to use Scuba to make my Ariana, which I bought from Miss-cloe

When sewing my Ariana, I found it really helpful to cut notches at all my pleat lines because then I can accurately line them up and get my pleats even.

I chose to make the straight skirt, reason being that I love wearing dresses and I wanted to be able to either dress my Ariana up or down. I felt the flounce option would be a bit formal for me.

I made a Size 3C which I graded to a Size 5 at the hip.

I am just waiting for the weather to warm up and I can’t wait to wear my Ariana out.

I am planning to mash Ariana with the Brenda sleeves to make a couple of winter dresses too.

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Hi all!

Here’s José, “the one with the preggo belly” from the Netherlands!

I’ve been sewing this Ariana for myself for the final week of pregnancy with the idea to take it in if necessary afterwards, but i was quite amazed by how cool this looks with a big belly!

I’ve sewn my Ariana with this cobalt leopard crêpe scuba I’ve been crushing on.

I did upsize one size on belly /hips compared to my pre-pregnacy size.

But not too much because this crêpe scuba is so stretchy while maintaining the stability. I bought it at www.driessenstoffen.nl they have lots of plain and printed crêpe scubas, so I might have holed up some stash of this fabrics 😁😬

The wrong side of the fabric is white so I decided to double up the ruffles/sleeves: worked out perfectly.

I would recommend to pick the cupsize on the smaller side if you’re in between because due to the pleated bodice there can be a little more room then necessary.

Sizing is totally spot on of course. And best idea : this dress pattern can be mixed with the Brenda... Woooww the possibilities 💕

I didn’t get to wear my dress very much yet (the baby has claimed her priorities 😆) but I’ll absolutely gonna be wearing it to threads.

I’d love it if you come and visit me at Instagram too! https://www.instagram.com/jose.vernooy

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Hello again, I am Kelly! I currently live in sunny California ☀️

For my Ariana I used a gorgeous printed scuba crepe from the National City Swap Meet here in San Diego.

The Ariana is such a great sew, it’s really very quick once you’ve finished your darts and pleats. I particularly liked using a rolled hem for my sleeves and flounce – easy peasy!

I have made both versions of the Ariana, and they are both just beautiful. I can’t wait to mix and match an Ariana/Brenda custom dress.

Like always with DS patterns, I graded out at my waist and back down for my hips.

Even though I haven’t had a chance to wear my Ariana out anywhere special, I had great compliments from my neighbors when heading out to take photos!

You can find me on Instagram to see more of my DS makes! https://www.instagram.com/kellygonthierart/

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I’m Luana and I live in North Carolina, in the US.

I chose techno scuba for both my versions of the Ariana dress, which I’ve bought last year on FabricMart.

The Ariana is way easier to sew than it looks. My advice would be to pay attention to the seam allowances if you decide to do a rolled hem instead of regular hem.

I made the front split version with flounce and I love it! I didn’t have to make any alterations to it. A straight size 2.

I’ve already worn my Ariana’s during my trip in Mexico and I received a lot of compliments!

I dont know whether I will mix Ariana and Brenda together, but if I will, maybe I’ll try one of the other sleeves from  Brenda (I’m in love with the petal sleeves and they are the only ones I’ve tried so far).

My Instagram https://instagram.com/lmfcrafts

My Blog https://lmfcrafts.com

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hi everybody, here we are again with an amazing dress! Ariana is my new favorite summer dress! It’s flowy, sexy and it is just one big pattern of happiness!

I am Marit, from the Netherlands. I used Scuba crepe for both my dresses, from www.driessenstoffen.nl

I used all my pattern alterations from the Brenda dress, because basically my hipline is lower then the pattern 😉

I went with a bright orange for toile, because hello SUMMER IS COMING!!!! I used a flower fabric for my finals, I love the happy vibe and I can wear to the office.

I am thinking about making an Ariana–Brenda combination with the 3/4 sleeves from Brenda, Ariana top and Brenda skirt… to be continued!

You can see my makes at www.instagram.com/modemamaprins and I wrote a blog about the Brenda alterations on: https://www.prinsenpootjes.nl

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Hi I’m Priscilla S from Illinois USA. I knew from the moment I saw the Line drawing that I will love the Ariana. It’s a fast and easy sew and with options for different cup sizes, the math is already worked out for us. Measure yourself and cut your size and grade accordingly, it will fit you perfectly.

I am very happy with my Ariana made with Athletic knit from Over the Selvage – Custom Fabrics and love the sleeve so much❤. I am only 5’3″ and didn’t make any adjustment to the skirt length (shorter length). I love the length and makes me feel feminine and classy❤❤.

I would love to make the skirt with flounce next and have already planned it out. I love the drama and the little bit of extra it brings to the dress❤ but I might use one of the sleeve from Brenda.

This is a very classy and stylish dress perfect for all those special occasions.

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Hi, I’m Shardee from the Netherlands and I have wear my Ariana‘s several times.

My hubby loves them 😉 if you know what I mean 😜

The scuba crepe fabrics I bought from one of my favorite stores in the Netherlands, driessen stoffen.

My tip for sewing the Ariana, take the time to line up the vertical an horizontal seams 😉

Would you like to see more of my sewing work and a bit of my personal life, follow me on Www.instagram.com/Sdvtje

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hello! My name is Sue G and I live in South Dakota, USA. I have not yet worn my Ariana yet as spring and warm weather have not yet arrived where I live. I ordered my black ponte from fabric.com and I just love how this dress feels in this fabric! I knew the minute I saw the design this would make a lovely black dress to dress up and down depending on the occasion. I have several events this summer that I will be wearing this dress to. I made one small alteration and that was to lengthen the front bodice by 1/2”.

My tips for sewing this dress are simple: take your time to carefully press, stabilize the neckline with either stay stitching or stabilizer tape, and don’t forget to have fun with it! Sewing should be an enjoyable experience.

Since I haven’t worn my dress yet, I’d say my style tip is to keep it classy and sassy! My husband highly approves of this dress so I can’t wait to wear it!

I would love to make a future mashup of Ariana and the Brenda by combining the sleeves of the Brenda with the slit of Ariana.

If you want to see more of my sewing, please catch me at IG: https://Instagram.com/sue_glasparrott/

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Hi, my name is Synthia, I live in Central Ca, where the sun comes out when it wants these days, lol. I really enjoyed sewing up the Ariana with the flounce sleeves. I made mine out of a stretch fabric, contents not sure, and red. Red in color because I had salsa dancing in mind, below the knee in length. One good tip, stay away from too stretchy fabrics for this style, the neck may turn out too loose. I haven’t worn my dress out yet, when I do it will be to a salsa dance. For a future Ariana style, I think I might go 1 size up for straight woven fabric, use the sleeves from the Brenda, and lengthen to a tea length. Looking forward to wearing my new Ariana. Great design Ann.
https://sewsynsewn.blogspot.com

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A very big hello from me, Taryn, from Cape Town South Africa. When my ponte and scuba order had not arrived in time, I headed out to a favourite local fabric store that sells fabric mostly by weight called Fabric Friends. It can be a bit luck of the draw but I always walk away happy whenever I visit (usually with more than what was on my must-get shopping list before I walked in:D). I was holding thumbs that I would find enough meterage in a vibrant colour. I’m sure you can imagine my delight when I found the most beautiful coral hue in a scuba. I finished the edges of my sleeves and skirt flounce with a rolled hem on my serger and would recommend that so that you don’t have a too bulky a hem on either. Be careful when sewing on the neck binding – you don’t want to stretch out the fabric and remember to finish the straight section after the side seam notch as well before attaching sleeve to bodice. I chose the longer length skirt with flounce for my Ariana as I just loved the flounce and slit combo. I did not need to make any alterations for fit. I have not yet had a chance to wear my Ariana but look forward to the perfect occasion for it. As Brenda and Ariana can be mixed together, I am toying with the idea of adding the bishop sleeve from the Brenda to Ariana for a glamourous winter look.
See my Ariana and other DesignerStitch creations at
https://www.instagram.com/creatazzly or
https://www.facebook.com/creatazzly/