Cobalt Linen Ruby Dress

I made another Ruby dress… this time in a blue linen from Mood. Ever since I saw Tessuti’s ruffle hack on their blog, I’ve been wanting to make a version just like it. I finally decided to go for it with some springy blue linen. This Ruby is the first time I bound the neck and armhole edges the way specified in the pattern. This bias tape technique has always been too fiddly for me, but I finally took my time and made it work. I think it helps that this fabric was not difficult to work with.

I added side seam pockets, and topstitched them down on the dress front so they don’t flop around inside and make the side seams drag. I have found this also makes it easier to stick my hands in my pockets, so I like to sew them that way when possible. My other iterations of this dress have an issue with the back neck slit facing: it likes to peek out when I put it on, rather than stay put inside the dress. So for this version I topstitched it so it stays put. At this point in my sewing adventure, it almost goes without saying, but I used french seams throughout. For the ruffle, though, I used the entire width of the fabric so I took advantage of the selvage and left their side seams raw. I covered the ruffle raw edge with lace seam binding and it really does make things look better!

Thanks for the fab day, Central Park! And to Jacob for being the most patient photographer. Hes getting quite good at telling me how to pose!