New Pattern Release by Deer and Doe

Well hello there my lovely friends! I have some exciting news to share with you today! Deer and Doe Patterns just released their Fall/Winter collection for 2022, and there are some good patterns to choose for the upcoming seasons. Today, I’ll introduce you to the Deer and Doe Circee Dress, since I was a tester for this pattern, and give you a fabric and pattern review for this project.

Fabric Selection

The fabric is a 100% cotton calico print that features a black, white, and grey floral pattern, and is 45 inches in width. I purchased this fabric years ago from Joann Fabrics and Crafts, so I doubt it would be available. Like most cottons, this fabric have a soft hand and slightly stiff drape. Most suitable for button up tops and shirt dresses.

Let me begin the fabric review by saying, I didn’t like my fabric choice. Although the pattern recommends cotton and linen type fabrics, I would not sew with these types of fabrics for the Circee Dress pattern. I found that my cotton choice was too stiff for the pattern. I would definitely use a cotton blend like a rayon cotton in the future.

The pattern features wide sleeves with an open vent designed to drape softly and hang open. Since most 100% cotton fabrics are too stiff to get a fluid drape, a silky rayon, charmeuse, or viscose would work best for this project, especially for the sleeves.

Mostly, the fabric I chose would work best for making a structured button up shirt, shirtdress, or skirt. Since this fabric’s drape is stiff, my final dress is too structured for this design.

Pattern Features/Details

Now, let’s talk about the pattern’s features! The Deer and Doe Circee pattern have several variations within it. View A consists of a dress pattern designed for intermediate sewists, that have two skirt length options – maxi and knee length – with princess seams at the front and back bodice, and long sleeves with a vent. The front bodice is a faux wrap with a V neckline, and the dress have a midriff that is attached to the bodice and skirt. The dress is a fully wrap dress with a single button and buttonhole on the midriff band for the closure. Finally, the dress have ties that are sewn in the side seam of the midriff to complete the look. I didn’t sew the tie pattern for this dress because of the fabric’s stiff nature.

The second variation, View B features a skirt with two length options and a front and back waistband. This option have two buttons and buttonholes as the closure. I have not made this version yet, but I look forward to making it soon.

The fabric suggestions for this pattern includes light-medium weight cotton, rayon linen, rayon, and silky type fabrics. As stated above I chose a 100% cotton fabric, which wasn’t the best choice. Although the dress looks great, it is stiffer than I like, and I wouldn’t recommend 100% cotton for this project, a cotton blend would work best because it would offer a more fluid drape.

Instructions:

There’s a wealth of information contained in this pattern’s instructions. Here you’ll find fabric and cutting layout recommendations, info on finished measurements, step by step instructions on how to complete the project, and wonderful illustrations to clarify instructions.

Alterations and Adjustments:

As a tester for this project I made view A2, the knee length wrap dress version, and I made the size 44. I didn’t want to make any modifications because I wanted to present the dress as it was originally designed. However, I made my standard adjustments to accommodate my body type. Fortunately, I didn’t have many adjustments to make. I only made one adjustment, which was a 3/8 inch sloping shoulder adjustment.

I alter the neckline a tad to give me more coverage for my bust. I added a half an inch to the fullest part of the bust on the flat pattern. Although this alteration didn’t give me the full coverage I was hoping for, it did help. As you can see, I’m wearing a black camisole under my dress, without it a great deal of my cleavage shows. Again, this could be a result of my fabric selection.

Recommendations:

In hindsight, I wouldn’t use a 100% cotton fabric for this project. The cotton fabric was great for the midriff and skirt; however, it’s too stiff for the front cover and sleeves. I think this pattern is designed to have a fluid drape for the sleeves, and a soft drape for the bust and neckline. Choosing a softer fabric such as a rayon, charmeuse, or viscose will drape nicely around the neckline and bust and the fabric will relax more giving you more coverage at the fullest part of the bust.

A few of my favorite Deer and Doe dress patterns are the Myosotis and Magnolia dresses. I absolutely love these two dress patterns and I think they would be great options to mashup with this Circee Dress. In the future I would like to make the Circee Dress with the Magnolia flutter sleeve or the Myosotis ruffle sleeve patterns. I think the two would be beautiful together.

Final Thoughts:

Although this project didn’t turn out  how I expected, due to my poor fabric selection, I like the final dress and hope to wear it soon.

I paired this dress with a pair of black braided sandal heels, and now I’m ready for Fall. Let me know what you think about this new memade! Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog post. Have a happy sewing week!

Tea