pattern tester roundup

Beth Dress Pattern Tester Roundup Part 1

Posted on by Ann Grose

Good morning to you all my lovelies. And I hope that you are all travelling well, are happy and safe.

Today we are showcasing our ever-fabulous pattern testers – Part One – for our new Beth Dress.

And I sure that you will agree that she is a fabulous design – and I know many of you are so pleased that a style like this has been released for your sewing pleasure.

As you all know our Beth Dress has been greatly influenced by the design and style of the character Beth Dutton over on the massive hit tv series Yellowstone.

I have absolutely loved watching the show and how the character of Beth has developed and evolved. And of course, her styling and fashion repertoire is not to be missed either. 

And who better to showcase this wonderful design than our fabulous pattern testers – lovingly known as our Roadies. 

Each of our testers have bought their own interpretation and styling influence to their Beth Dress make – and each have done an amazing job.

The Beth Dress works in a wide variety of printed fabric along with solid colours. The dress offers 2 lengths – each length offers a differing vibe for the dress.

And now without further ado my lovely sew’ist friends please give a resounding WOO HOO for all of our Beth Dress roadies. Prepare to be wow’ed as is usual for our roundups.

They would like to share with you the following. 

1. Your name and where you live ?
2. What fabric combinations did you choose and where did you purchase.
3. What sewing tips can you share when sewing the Beth Dress ?
4. What was your style choice for the Beth Dress ?
5. What fit alterations did you have to make to the Beth Dress ?
6. Have you worn your Beth Dress- and if not what plans do you have for your Beth Dress ?
7. Any plans for future combinations of the Beth Dress?
 
And the finer details; (AU/UK) 6 – 30 (US) 2 – 26 (EU) 34 – 58
Cup Sizes – A, B, C, D and DD (E)
On Sale for a limited time only – $9.95(US)
 
Very Confident Advanced Beginner and Above Sewing level.
Teri L – Houston, Texas
1. Sewed short sleeve, knee length
2. Adjustments: sway back and slightly lengthened sleeve. Higher front slit
3. Size 5 A cup bust
4. Fabric: JoAnns – Navy floral chiffon
It turned cold again, so I haven’t had a chance to wear it yet. I do plan to wear it soon with the cowboy boots
https://fastlanesewing.com/
https://instagram.com/teri9672?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
 
1 Amanda. California
2 Poly cotton by Robert Kaufman. Thrift store purchase.
3. Align the waist seams first when putting in the invisible zipper.
4 Short sleeves, long dress.
5. Brought in top of back shoulders at zipper an inch.
6. Yes for my birthday. All were amazed I made it.
7. Going to Disneyland with my little. Perfect base for a princess lookalike dress.
 
Hello I’m Ashley R a sewist from Central London, England, UK.
I made 2 different length Beth dresses, my knee length is made in a floral crepe and the long style with elbow sleeves in made in a crepe as well both fabrics from Jo-Ro Rags Group
My tips would be to read the measurements chat to make sure your making the right size but also make a trial run in old fabric but same weight as your good fabric. I went for heels to style my Beth dresses both perfect for summer.
I had to shorten the bodice by 1/2 inch and do a little swayback to get the perfect fit of my dress. I also had to take 2″ off the length to sit at knee length as I’m only 5 foot. I have a party coming up and plan to wear my Beth then and show it off. I can see myself making many more for the summer.
 
Hi, I am Camelia ( aka Calcedonia Sewing).
I made the Beth dress 3 times, two times using the Minerva Exclusive Challis, the perfect fabric for this style, with beautiful drape and gorgeous prints.
My best tips for sewing the perfect Beth dress will start with choosing the right size. Check the instructions on choosing your size, read them all as that will set you on the right pad to be successful! And, if you are in between sizes, trace in between don´t just round up or down.
I made two with elbow sleeves and one with short sleeves. Of course, the star of the sleeves is the shirring. For one of the dresses I used shirring elastic, and that is a great choice when your machine won’t shirr, I used the 5 cm wide one and sewn on every other row on it, it looks exactly as the other ones shirred with the elastic thread.
On my YouTube channel, you can see this method https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXNwQFbFf2A&t=381s
I made my usual changes for Designer Stitch patterns, narrow shoulder adjustment, raised the point of the bust dart, and a swayback adjustment. I also took in the back a bit from the neck, blending to nothing at the waist, and just a personal preference, I moved the zipper from the center back to the left side seam.
The neckline of this dress is just gorgeous and in combination with the beautiful sleeves I could make 100 !! I am thinking that the bodice would pair perfectly with the pants part of the Monique jumpsuit from Designer Stitch, I love a good jumpsuit!
For more Designer Stitch makes and tutorials you can follow me on
 
Hello, this is Julia from Baltimore! I made my Beth dress from a designer deadstock rayon challis that I purchased from my local fabric store, Domesticity (@createdomesticity)
My tips for sewing the Beth are to make a test garment so that you can get the bodice fit on point. I also found a YouTube video showing how to do the shirring in one continuous pass, going back and forth in sort of an “S” shape, which eliminates all the cut elastic ends on either side. Also, don’t forget to only cut ONE EACH of your front skirt pieces! I wasted fabric because I accidentally cut both on the double. I made the shortest skirt length and the short sleeves.
My standard alterations are 3/4” petite adjustment across the front and back bodice/sleeve head for a short upper torso, and 1” between waist and hip. I grade from the 7dd bodice to 11 waist/hip. After making my toile. I took a wedge of 2.5” at the back neck edge tapering to nothing at the waist. I also lowered my front waist seam by 1” tapering to nothing at the sides. This sounds like a lot, but the projector files make alterations easy to do digitally.
I wore my Beth dress for Easter, and I felt so pretty in it. I hardly ever wear such soft colors, and my mother especially loved the dress.
I think the long skirt and bishop sleeves will be gorgeous in a dark floral for winter/fall.
 
My name is Elise and I live in Queensland, Australia. I love this dress pattern, it really is something special. I love how the skirt skims your hips, it is really flattering. I made my Beth using cotton sateen from Nerida Hansen Fabrics and it is so beautiful. I wanted something light with a little bit of structure for the neckline. I was a little worried about the shirring when I first saw the pattern, my biggest tip is if you can’t figure out shirring google instructions for your particular sewing machine. I have worn my test Beth a couple of time and have received so many compliments. I am saving my final Beth for something special, maybe a date night. We are coming into winter in Australia so I am thinking of pairing with nude stocking and heels, keeping it simple because the dress is such a knock out.
https://www.instagram.com/seweliseium/
 
Hi, I am Luana and I live in Raleigh, NC in the US.
For my Beth dresses I used a crepe (solid version) and a rayon challis (floral version). I’ve got the crepe at Fine Fabrics, right outside Atlanta, GA and the rayon challis is from Sincerely Rylee Fabrics. I’ve got it few years ago and I was saving for the right project.
While sewing Beth I had to try shirring for the first time. I thought it was going to be difficult, but it was actually very easy, at least it was on my sewing machine that has a removable bobbin holder that get inserted from the front, then I tried on my other sewing machine that has a drop in bobbin and I couldn’t make it work until I found the trick: the bobbin needs to be inserted counterclockwise!
For both my Beth dresses I opted for the shortest version of the skirt with short sleeves. I had to remove some fabric from the top of the center back and do a swayback adjustment, and I also opened the slit 3 inches more.
It’s still a bit cold here to wear the dresses, but I can’t wait for warmer weather to show them off! For now I’ve only got compliments from my boyfriend who was taking the pictures.
In the future I might make a longer Beth with high slit, it’d look so cute!
 
Hi everyone, I’m Beck from Melbourne, Australia. I used a lightweight cotton lawn from my stash. Lawn is lovely to work with and cool and comfortable to wear.
Take your time sewing this pattern and enjoy the process. All the details make this dress so pretty!
I sewed the below the knee length with elbow sleeves. I used a DD cup bodice and graded out to my waist and back to my hips. I also used a larger armscye and sleeve size to accommodate my upper arm size.
I’m planning to lengthen the skirt and make a short sleeved maxi dress once it warms up here.
 
Hello, here is Marieke from the Netherlands. Well, I don’t have much to say except for: get this pattern and have fun!
Okay, a little more detailed then What a lovely, lovely dress! It has some awesome details and it’s a much quicker sew then you expected when looking at it. The only thing I can recommend is to measure correctly and make a fit. Especially when you aren’t familiair with DS patterns or their woven patterns. Once you know your size it is a breeze to sew up this- or any other DS pattern.
I used for my dress a viscose chiffon fabric. You can look through it when you hold the fabric up, but when it’s on your skin not anymore. The result from this fabric is the most lightweight dress I ever had.
The dress is form fitting without being tight. And when you play with the length and slit- or leave it out totally- you can give it your own personal style.
I made the longest length and raised the slit with 10cm. I love it!
It’s an easy dress to pair with any of your favorite shoes, pumps or boots. It looks nice with any.
The fabric I bought at Textielstad . nl, the place I buy half of my fabric.
Well, that was pretty much it. As said at the beginning, enjoy the sewing!
You can always have a look at my Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/jongdesign
 
Hi! I’m Stephanie from the central southern US. I made two Beth’s, because why not when you have a cute pattern? My floral Beth is a silky poly and my green is a cotton voile both from LA Finch Fabrics. We’re warming up and the shorter length with the elbow and short sleeve lengths seemed perfectly fit to carry me into summer. For my body, I did a 1” swayback adjustment and added bra keepers. I’m not a slit person most of the time, but when I saw the sample I thought it was just daring enough to be classic and trendy, and you can always change the length for your own preference. I’ve been wearing my Beth’s around a lot since this style seems to be popping up everywhere and I feel very chic. We’ll see where the fall puts me and maybe I’ll just need to make the long sleeve version as well.
Check out my Beth’s and other designer stitch sews at instagram.com/scrapsandscissortails
 
this is Brenda from The Netherlands and for my Beth I picked the shortest length with short sleeves. I made the slith a couple of cm longer.
I used a light cotton from driessenstoffen.nl for my dress and I couldn’t be happier with it.
As for the shirring, I had not done that before, but I followed the instructions and it went like a breeze.
Weather here still sucks, so I did not wear it yet in the wild, but I will once it’s summer.
Check https://www.instagram.com/fabricfairybrenda/ for more sewing content.
 
Hello everyone I’m Tina and I’m from Southern California. For my beautiful Beth dress I used this blue floral Rayon Challis I purchased from Etsy. I definitely recommend making a toile first before cutting into your final fabric. You’ll most likely have to make a few adjustments to get your perfect fit! I shorten my sleeves and had to make a sway back adjustments to fit. This made for a beautiful Easter dress and many compliments. I definitely plan on more for summer in the shorter sleeve lenghts and higher slit. https://instagram.com/lilysminime

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