You’ve already had quite a few glimpses of Clare’s Christmas Day dress, vintage Style 3300, view 2.

I am inordinately pleased with how this dress has turned out. The pattern is copyright 1981, and when my mother saw it she was quite certain that she had once made me a dress from the same pattern (I’d have been around 13 or 14). I thought so too – that was what had initially attracted me to the pattern! But despite our best efforts, we couldn’t find any old photos of me wearing it.

There are some delightful details in this pattern. The little tie at the front neck, with the same little ties on the short sleeves. The four gored flared skirt, and elasticised waistline. The high back neckline, and gentle gathers into the front and back yokes.

Even with all these details, this dress didn’t take terribly long to make. All the pieces went together beautifully. The facings for the ties worked well, and the grainline running down each skirt gore makes it hang in graceful folds.

This dress was mostly constructed on the sewing machine, with seams finished on the overlocker. I used my machine’s blind hem stitch to finish the hem. Clare rummaged around in her drawer and found a belt that matched the dress colours, so we didn’t need to go hunting for one at the shops and I didn’t need to make one.

The fabric is voile from Anna Maria Horner’s Innocent Crush range. The print is called First Impression, in the Blush colourway. I think that the modern print and the thirty year old pattern have worked together extremely well!

Today is the last day of my big girl being nine years old – tomorrow she turns ten! Those ten years have passed faster than I could have ever imagined. She is growing up so quickly! I’d better get sewing if I’m going to get her birthday dress completed before tomorrow. Is that a familiar refrain? Nothing like a deadline!