Peppermint Bardon Dress

Hello there! Things have been quiet on my blog recently as I spent the last couple of months making Christmas presents for my family. Now that we're in the new year, I get to sew for myself again - hurrah! The first project I decided to make was the Bardon dress from Peppermint Magazine in collaboration with Elbe Textiles.

The Bardon dress has a sleeveless bodice, two-tiered skirt and pockets. It's intended to be a summer dress, but as you can see I've made it to wear as a pinafore. As far as I'm concerned, any sleeveless dress that's not too fitted is fair game for wearing layered as a pinafore!

The pattern is drafted for bust sizes from 31" to 53" and hip measurements from 34.6" to 56.3". As with all Peppermint patterns, it's a pay what you want pattern.

Sewing the Bardon dress was a nice, straightforward project. The front bodice has bust darts, the pockets are in-seam in the skirt and the skirt tiers are gathered. The bodice neckline and armholes are finished with bias binding so you get a nice clean finish on the inside. 

The instructions are clear and easy to follow. I deviated from them slightly in a few places to do things in the ways I'm more familiar with, but I didn't do anything too far from what they said.

One thing I will mention is that I cut my bias binding pieces slightly wider than the pattern suggests (the pattern calls for 1" pieces, I cut mine to 1.5"). I'd definitely do that again if I make another version of the dress - I think 1" would have just been a bit too narrow for my liking.

In terms of sizing - there is a fair amount of ease built into the pattern. I made the size recommended for my measurements and that works well for layering as a pinafore. If I had been making this as a summer dress as the pattern intends, I'd possibly have considered sizing down or maybe just using a slightly larger seam allowance at the underarms in particular. 

For this version, the only alteration I made was to lengthen the bodice by an inch. Once I'd sewn the dress, I also used a slightly larger hem on the skirt (I think I used an inch instead of half an inch). 

The fabric that I used is a royal blue needlecord from 1st for Fabrics. It's a perfect fabric for this kind of pinafore - it feels lovely, is soft enough to handle being gathered but has enough body to give a bit of warmth, plus it's a beautiful colour!

I wasn't too sure about the pinafore when I first tried it one once I'd finished sewing it - it just felt a bit too tent-like. Having worn it though, it has definitely grown on me. It's really comfortable, the needlecord gives a bit of warmth and the colour is bright and cheerful. If you're looking for a pinafore like this, I'd definite recommend making the Bardon dress!