The Freja Pinafore Dress

I’m a big fan of dungaree/pinafore dresses, and I’ve nearly always got another one in my head ‘needing’ to be made.  This time I took a break from the Cleo dungaree dress to try out the Freja dress instead, a pattern that came free with Simply Sewing magazine.  The denim I used is Lady McElroy stretch denim and it was a dream to sew with and really comfortable to wear!

Once I began making the dress, I got caught up in a whirlwind of excitement and wanted to get it finished asap.  Unfortunately this meant that I did not have any dungaree clips at the time, so I thought I’d do buttons for the straps instead.  Instead of sewing the straps into the bodice, I wanted more of a traditional pinafore vibe so I sewed the straps separately and then attached them by button at the end, but, shhhh!  The buttons are really only there for effect, as I ended up sewing the straps down!!!

I drafted my own hip pockets, inspired by a Boden pinafore dress I had seen in their catalogue.  I’m pleased with how the pockets turned out, they certainly look the part.  I also drafted my own curved patch pocket for the top bodice.  The more pockets, the better, in my opinion!  I opted for an exposed chunky metal zip at the back, and I really like it.  I could definitely have done with adjusting the fit at the back – as you can see it rides up and creates a big wrinkle.  It does bother me when I think about it (or see it), but most of the time when I’m wearing the dress I forget all about it, and generally I feel pretty awesome in the dress.

I would definitely make another of these dresses, but next time I’d lengthen the straps as they only just fit.  After a few wears, I moved the buttons on the back waistband in slightly more towards the centre, which gave an extra bit of ease in the length of the straps.

The only problem is – and I’m not sure it’s really a ‘problem’ – with this top underneath it I definitely feel like Mario!  I just need a huge moustache! 🙂