This is absolutely one of my favorite makes recently – after sewing it I couldn’t wait to wear it and now ant to wear it all the time. Why haven’t I made this pattern more, I will never know…But, today I’m so excited to share my Dove Blouse in this beautiful bubble crepe from Alyssa May Designs. PS if you scroll all the way down you might find a discount code!
The Pattern and The Blouse
I’ve actually made the Dove Blouse before (what seems like a million years ago but it was actually only a year ago!) and my sewing has come SO far since then it was kinda fun to look back. The Dove Blouse features three different sleeve options – a straight elbow length sleeve, a flared sleeve and a bell sleeve. It also has a beautiful v-neck, hem facing and french darts. I am so in love with this pattern – I want to make so many different versions.
Similar to last time, I sewed up the small which was in line with my measurements. I didn’t eliminate the center seam and did my best at pattern matching. Because of the flowers, the seam is noticeable, but I think that the center seam makes the v-neck so much easier.
Two “learning lessons” from this top – I didn’t stay stitch the neckline, which is basically always a mistake. So it got a little stretched out. Also, I used bias tape to finish the neck facing because I was nervous that you would be able to see the serger stitches. In actuality, you would not have been able to see that, but you can see my bias binding. But if those are the only two mistakes, I’ll take it!
The Fabric
Alyssa from Alyssa May Design reached out to me a couple weeks ago and sent along a few yards of her bubble crepe fabric for me to try. Immediately when I saw it, I knew it needed to be something drapey and flowy. I was between the Primrose Peplum and the Dove Blouse and ultimately chose the dove blouse.
I actually had never heard of bubble crepe until I was chatting with Alyssa and received the fabric. I think it’s kind of similar to a rayon crepe. It has a slight texture to it but it’s much easier to work with than a rayon. It also doesn’t wrinkle like a normal rayon. I found this article on the Indie Sew website that describes crepe and it pretty accurately describes the polyester bubble crepe that Alyssa stocks.
Her shop is beautiful! It has so many florals and beautiful patterns – which we know is my favorite – and also has solid bubble crepe as well. Some of my favorites are this ivory and mauve floral, this black and ivory damask, and this navy and blush floral print. I can’t wait to place an order for some more – now to decide which ones to choose!
As an added bonus, Alyssa is offering all of you 15% off your first purchase through Sunday, March 19th! Use code MARCH15 for the discount!
Have you sewn with bubble crepe? What’s your favorite drapey blouse pattern?
Alyssa May Design kindly sent me the fabric used in my Dove Blouse free of charge, but as always, all opinions are my own.
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Your Dove is so so pretty! I hadn’t heard of rayon crepe, nor the fabric store – of to check it out!