Today I’m super excited to share a Lou Box Dress mashup with you. (If you follow me on Instagram, then you might recognize it from a couple of sneaky posts last week.) In case you’re not familiar with these patterns, the Lou Box Dress 1 and Lou Box Dress 2 are both based on the Lou Box Top (pretty obvs right?). The coolest part is that now that the dresses have had the sizing updated, all the pattern pieces can be mixed and matched for endless variations. I have been thinking about trying to calculate how many variations are possible but decided that would take away too much sewing time. ;)
If you’re new to pattern hacking, the Lou Box series of patterns is a great entryway into getting creative with a pattern and making your own designs. You won’t have to worry about the pattern pieces fitting together and get to just have fun mixing it up. It’s kind of a choose your own adventure book but for a sewing pattern. These patterns are extra versatile because they all include instructions for making them in woven and knit fabrics.
Today’s mashup takes the body of the Lou Box Dress 2, with the ballet neckline, gathered waist and scoop front pockets and adds on the short cuff sleeves from the Lou Box Dress 1. The LBD2 comes with elbow length and full length tapered sleeves but I also really love it with these cuffs.
The LBD2 features an elasticized waist that is super comfy and creates a slightly fitted silhouette. (Next week, I’ll be sharing a video showing you how to sew the waistband casing.) If you need extra help right away though, there is a photo tutorial in the sewalong. These cuffs are probably the trickiest of all the sleeve options so this Thursday, I’ll be sharing a video on YouTube packed with tips for attaching these cuffs to the body of the dress without any wrinkles or puckers.
When I redrafted the Lou Box series of patterns to add more sizes, I also redrafted for a height of 5’10”. (I wrote a kinda personal post on #sewingtall yesterday on IG. If you haven’t already and you’re interested, I’d love for you to go read it and let me know why you love to sew.) The Lou Box Top was lengthened by 2” and the dresses by 4”. The patterns are fairly easy to lengthen and shorten and all come with lengthen/shorten guidelines. If you ever have questions about selecting your size or how to shorten/lengthen, feel free to contact us and we’ll do our best to help. For this dress, I shortened the skirt a little bit to save on fabric but otherwise made no changes. This is a size 12, my upper bust is 35.5”, bust is 38.5”, waist 28.5”, hips 39.5” and I’m 5’11”. If you think you might need a full bust adjustment, I recommend checking out this post.
If you were following the blog closely last week, then you might also recognize this fabric. This is a rayon crepe that is now available in the shop. We have a small collection of fabric that was specially selected to go with the Lou Box series of patterns. I know that selecting fabric can be one of the most challenging parts of sewing so I’m delighted to be able to offer these fabrics to you along with recommended patterns. This rayon crepe is a beautiful coral, orange/pink color with nice drape and a slight texture (meaning it will be an easier fabric to sew with). The color of the fabric was challenging to capture in these photos but the photos on the product page are more accurate. You can read more about the collection here or head directly to the shop to check it out.
I really love this dress mashup (especially in this fabric!) and I’m excited to add it to my collection of Lou Box garments. These patterns are total wardrobe workhorses and I love seeing how you use them over and over again. There are already complete photo sewalongs for the Lou Box Top and dresses but stay tuned because I’ll be adding a few more videos and posts over the coming weeks. If you share on Instagram, make sure to tag your garment #louboxdress1, #louboxdress2 or #louboxtop whichever one applies best. Happy sewing!
