I like to consider myself a boxy dress connoisseur and lover of all shapeless outfits. But as any boxy dress owner knows, there's so much to the perfect shift dress than meets the eye. It's not just "cutting a hole in a square of fabric and calling it good " as my husband so affectionately describes.
That's where the Lou Box Dress 1 from Sew DIY comes in! Yes, it's oversized. And yes, there is minimal shaping. And yes, your husband may say that it reminds him of a burlap sack (in a good way, he added). But it will become your new favorite boxy dress of all time and has the perfect details to make it so much more than a sack. Even Nate admitted he liked it once I had it all sewn up!
The Lou Box Top pattern was an immediate classic when it was released and there have been so many amazing versions of it shared on Instagram. I myself have made...three? four? You know it's good when you've lost count.
So of course, I was literally ecstatic when the Lou Box Dress was released! And obviously it needed to be my first sewn make of 2018. I made View B with the inseam pockets. I sewed mine in some Brussels Washer in Black and it is the perfect drape and weight for this dress. I will be wearing this all. the. time.
Beth from Sew DIY is a genius at paying attention to all of the little details to make a pattern special. The instructions include information about when to finish each seam to make it easier later on in the process or to have a more professional look. They are so straightforward and easy to follow - no questioning what she meant at any step.
But the two details I love the most are the two that take this from oversized dress to something classic and chic. The sleeves and the hem.
The sleeve cuffs have just a little bit of shaping to them so that they almost flare out from the body. It's not something that I have ever paid attention to in past patterns, but it makes such a huge difference. If they didn't have that shaping, I think the dress would look kind of limp and lifeless...but these cuffs add some life and shape to the sleeve. Just that tiniest detail creates an entirely new silhouette.
I also love the curved hem. Unfortunately, none of my pictures manage to really show it off as well as it looks in real life...check out the pattern page for a better idea of what I mean! Having a shorter front hem makes this dress a little more chic and a little less sack or t-shirt dress-like.
I did add about two inches of length to my dress pattern pieces before cutting it out, as I like my dress length a little more modest than most. The length was added to both the front and the back pieces, so that I didn't loose the dramatic curved hemline.
I've loved the Georgia Dress from Elizabeth Suzann for a long time, but haven't been able to justify the price of something that I knew I could make. Now, I'm definitely making one. I'm hoping to find some sandwashed silk for a dressier version and a good double gauze for a summer version! And probably our Hemp Cotton Ticking for another everyday version. Considering I wore this dress for almost three days straight after I finished making it, I think I need to sew some more...
