The Sew and Tell Project

A few weeks ago, I got to be a stop on the beautiful Here Comes the Fun Fabrics blog tour. I’ve been obsessed with the Sew Caroline fabric lines for quite awhile, but have only recently started sewing through some of her beautiful pattern collection.

Right after I made my first Sew Caroline pattern, I saw Caroline’s sneak of The Coffee Shop Dress on Instagram and just had to make one!

I haven’t been able to button my jeans since 8 weeks, so I guess it’s time to #freethebump 🤰🏻🤷🏻‍♀️ #herecomesthefunfabrics #coffeeshopdress #herecomesbabyhulse2

A post shared by sew caroline || caroline hulse (@sewcaroline) on Feb 7, 2017 at 4:22pm PST

The Coffee Shop Dress is a beginner-friendly knit dress pattern with short and elbow sleeve lengths and an optional patch pocket. The finished dress hits right above the knees for a flirty, length. I am on the taller end (5’10”) so I added 2″ length at the waistline.

While the Instagram sneak I linked to shows Caroline modeling it with an itty-bitty baby bump, the Coffee Shop has the perfect amount of ease built in. As the mother of four children, I am very self-conscious about anything that highlights my less-than-flat tummy. I avoid the swingy and overly-relaxed dresses that have been in style for so long. I like a closer-fitting silhouette that doesn’t remind me of the maternity clothes I have worn for a good chunk of my adult life. However, most days, I don’t want to be constricted by a sheath dress. The Coffee Shop has the perfect silhouette for my busy life that takes me from home, to the park, to our school co-op, and to a night out with my husband or friends.

There are a lot of suitable knits that will work with this pattern. The most important factor in choosing a knit for this dress is stretch recovery. You want awesome recovery so your fabulous dress doesn’t stretch out of shape while you’re wearing it. For my Coffee Shop, I used a knit basic yarn-dyed cotton Lycra stripe available here. For some reason, I always feel like yarn-dyed knits drape a little better than printed. I wanted something thick enough to not need a slip, but drapey enough to flow over my curves.

Want the Coffee Shop Dress for free? Hop on over to Sew Caroline’s blog to see how you can get a free copy!