I am no stranger to the Geranium dress pattern from Made by Rae, in fact there have been several different versions over the years... 1, 2, 3, 4 ,5. It's truly such a versatile pattern and really the perfect little girl dress for every occasion.
That all being said, this past Spring Rae managed to make this pattern even more versatile with the Geranium Expansion Pack which happens to be perfect for the upcoming fall, winter and holiday seasons! And today I'm adding to my list of Geranium dress makes and joining, along with several other amazing bloggers (I'm seriously thrilled to be among these beautiful sewists!), Rae's GXP Fall Tour!
Violet is nine, well more accurately, nine and a half! And, with the move and the start of fourth grade I've really noticed her maturity definitely moving toward those upcoming double digits. Between her humor, her conversations...and her style. By no means does she feel as though she needs to dress a certain way or, in fact, has she tired of mama mades...she is just paying more attention to what she likes and how she wants to wear and style her clothes.
When I told her that I planned to make her a new dress for the tour we sat down to discuss fabric options (as we've been doing for years now in fact) and we perused the coloring sheet (included in the expansion pack) that shows all of the Geranium options. After a small mama interjection (opting for the extended bodice as opposed to the original bodice) we came up with a plan...
From the original pattern we chose the notched neckline (for something a little different), the pleated waist and pockets...because of course pockets! From the expansion pack, as I mentioned I steered us toward the extended bodice (and in the end Violet was thrilled by this decision!), we also chose the long fitted sleeves and the zipper back.
I can't decide which part of the expansion pack I like the best...whether it's the long sleeves...
which make this pattern multi-seasonal, which is always a win as far as I'm concerned!
Or the extended bodice...
Which is so nice to have the option of the lowered waistline. I love the original higher waist but sometimes, especially I think for older girls, it can look a little bit too "little girlish" if that makes sense? Don't get me wrong, there will likely still be a geranium or two made with the original bodice, but I really do love the option!
And, last...but certainly not least, the zipper!
I admit that this isn't necessarily my most perfect invisible zipper ever, but I'm so happy for the zipper addition in the expansion pack! First, zippers are child friendly, much easier to zip up or down your own zipper...or at least most of the way. Second, if I had to choose between a zipper or buttons I'd likely always opt for the zipper! I find buttons so exhausting and my machine isn't fancy and therefore is not the best at buttonholes, plus my kids are always loosing buttons! To me, once you learned how to do an invisible zipper it's so much easier than buttons, but maybe that's just me!
There are loads of other options in the expansion pack too, a collar, a bow, a sash, a hem band and six additional sleeves/lengths in addition to the originals! Wow, that's a ton of awesome options! Rae does a great job helping you to navigate through the steps depending on the options you choose, though I would definitely recommend reading through everything to get an idea of each step before you jump in.
Violet truly loves this new dress and looks perfectly fourth grade in it, I think, too!
We chose some beautiful chambray from Hawthorne threads to make a "denim" dress, in hibiscus and in indigo with a bodice lining of shetland flannel from Imagine Gnats so that it's warm and snuggly for the cooler months ahead.
It's really the perfect fall to winter dress...
We've already got plans for a Halloween version, stay tuned! And I'm thinking a corduroy version might be in order too!
But for now...this is perfect for autumnal frolicking!
You can find the Geranium expansion pack here... and more Geranium XP inspiration all this week and next!
Enjoy!
