I am someone that loves to hack my sewing patterns and use them to create lots of different styles. So in this blog post, I’m sharing my tips for hacking my easy blouse sewing pattern into a dress you can wear all year round. This dress falls above the knee and has a more a-line shape that moves beautifully.
The Pattern
The Faye blouse pattern is a size inclusive sewing pattern that comes in sizes 6-32. It’s a woven top pattern that has a relaxed silhouette that’s not too oversized or too restricting. This pattern includes three neckline options, four sleeve options, side bust darts and gentle puff sleeves, creating an effortlessly stylish top you will wear on repeat. You can find the easy blouse pattern here.
Things To Consider
I knew I wanted to hack the pattern into a above the knee dress, but if you want to make it shorter or longer make sure to take a measuring tape and see where you want the dress to hit you. If you’ve made the pattern before, you can try the top on and measure from the centre front neckline down to where you want the dress to finish. I also would recommend checking how the hem of the top fits across your stomach and high hip. If you find you’ll probably want it to be looser at the hips then you can adjust how much extra ease you’ll add in this area.
The Adjustments
I’ve drawn two diagram here of what adjustments I did to the pattern pieces but let me explain them further. First of all we’re going to want to add length to our front bodice piece. I first drew a line from the side seam hem straight across and then I added 12” to the height to make a box. Then, from the new side seam hem I also marked 2” away from this to help me create a more a-line shape. Blend the lines to create a smooth pattern piece and repeat the same for the back bodice.
We also will want to adjust our front facing piece because we’ve made the top longer into a dress, so whatever number you used (for me I added 12”) you’ll want to add this to the bottom of the front facing to match.
You can also make belt loops and a fabric belt to help cinch you in at the waist and create a more hourglass effect. For this I draft my belt pattern piece to be 2.5” high and 62” wide. You can sew this belt like you would a tote bag handle or spaghetti strap, just make sure to finish the ends so they’re nice and neat.
The belt loops I drafted were each 1.5” high and 2” wide. I sewed these like spaghetti straps and turned them to the right side. I like to place my belt loops 15” down from the tip of my shoulder, but you can always adjust these to the height you want.
The Final Result
The hacked dress looks so cute and I love how it moves. You can always adjust the length of the dress to be longer or shorter, just make sure you have enough room at your hips. If you’ve never tried hacking a pattern before, I recommend making a toile in cheap fabric so you’re confident when sewing the final garment. If you’d like to get the Faye Blouse Sewing Pattern click here. I hope you enjoyed this quick tutorial on how to hack this top into a dress, make sure to tag me on Instagram @tammy.handmade if you try this out!
