I was really excited when I saw this gorgeous Viscose Challis fabric from Minerva’s Exclusive Collection called Caveprint Connections as it was exactly what I had in mind for an upcoming event. I was envisioning a dress that could be dressed up with a jacket, or dressed down with a cardigan and then could just be worn on its own when the weather improves.
I absolutely adore the look of maxi dresses, but they are usually very full which means they get caught in my wheels and so they have been off limits since I started using a wheelchair. That was until I found the Montana Dress from Style Arc (which is officially a midi dress), but I thought I might be able to get away with it as the skirt isn’t too full. Imagine my surprise when I came to hem the dress and finally tried it on, it looked exactly like a maxi dress and what’s more if I took 4 inches off the length it didn’t catch in my wheels!
Fabric
I’m a huge fan of Minerva’s Viscose Challis base cloth from their exclusive collection, I’ve worked with it a lot now (in an array of beautiful designs) and it never fails to impress. It’s always lovely and soft with a beautiful drape and holds its colour well through numerous washes. Being viscose it’s also breathable.
The beautiful Caveprint Connection has a black background and then a design of dashes, dots and ropes in white, grey and beige which really stand out against the dark background. I was very kindly gifted this fabric as part of their Ambassador programme.
Pattern
The Montana dress from Style Arc is a pull on midi dress with slight gathers that fall from a high waist. It’s available in an impressive size range of 4-30 which covers bust sizes from 35 to 63 inches.
There is an expansion pack available (which I used) that offers an additional 4 bodice options and a further 3 sleeve options. I chose bodice A which has a boat neck and a plain bodice and sleeve option 1 which is 3/4 length with an elastic casing.
Style Arc patterns come with very simple instructions but there are tutorials available with the pattern and lots of sew alongs online, Izzy from Minerva has done a great video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKaa8qCgiGM
Preparation
I first laundered the fabric at 30 degrees and rack dried it before using. (You could wash at 40 degrees but 30 is my personal preference ). I never tumble dry my homemade clothes but if you want to do this, the advice is the same regardless – test a sample of fabric after your initial wash to check for shrinkage and then check for changes to the structure and appearance.
When tissue fitting the pattern I made a full bust adjustment and then was able to grade between sizes for the waist and hips. My husband very kindly cut the pattern out for me using a rotary cutter and pattern weights.
Construction
I sewed the dress using a standard sewing machine fitted with a microtex size 70/10 needle and finished the edges on my overlocker but you could easily just use a zig zag stitch on a normal machine. I’m used to sewing Viscose Challis but if you are a beginner you may want to try a walking foot to keep both layers moving at the same rate through the machine.
Wheelchair Considerations
1 I love that there aren’t any fastenings with this dress and it easily pulls on over your head.
2) The high neckline of bodice A makes it especially suitable for being viewed from above.
3) The fact that there are no seams in the centre back on either the skirt or bodice make this a really comfortable dress to wear. Also there is lots of room around the tummy.
4) I chose to omit the side pockets as I wouldn’t be able to reach them and I didn’t want any gape in the sides.
5) By reducing the overall length by 4 inches I was able to achieve a length that looked like a full length maxi but didn’t get in the way of my wheels.
I’m so happy with how this dress has turned out. Not least because it has created the effect of a maxi dress without any of the complications. It’s incredibly comfy to wear and I think it really shows off the beautiful fabric.
I will definitely be making a lot more of this pattern in the future and will be able to play around with the length and sleeve options to adapt it to the various seasons.
(Image description: there are six images taken from different angles, showing Yvonne, sat in her wheelchair in her garden wearing a long black dress with a white, beige and grey pattern on it.)
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