So, to what I sewed at Sewjourn!  When Colette patterns released the Moneta, I was actually quite sceptical.  I though that there were loads of patterns around for knit dresses with set in sleeves and full-ish skirts.  And I really didn’t think that it was a shape that would work on my body.  But surprise surprise, eventually I jumped onto the bandwagon and gave it a go.  Nothing like a bit of peer pressure.

Well hooley dooley, I really really like it! Who’d have thought! This is view 3, with the sleeves obviously. After all, it is May! My first dilemma was in regard to sizing. For the record, my current measurements are bust 39 inches, wait 35.5 inches, hips 39 inches. This corresponded with a Large for the bust, XL for the waist and Medium for the hips. This is a typical situation for me when I’m sewing. So I cut out the pattern accordingly at a Large, grading up to XL around the waist. The end product has a waist with a slight amount of positive ease, which I think is quite flattering to my shape, and the bust and shoulders still fitting nicely too. I didn’t make any other adjustments.

Hems were all turned, secured in place with Vliesofix tape, then twin needled. You could easily add a band to the neckline if preferred. The skirt is both gently flared and gently gathered, and the combination is very easy to wear. I actually followed the suggested technique of gathering the waist with elastic before attaching it to the bodice, and I’m really happy with the result. I didn’t use clear elastic but used another soft elastic that I had in stash. It made the gathering faster than my usual two rows of stitching drawn up by hand, and also provides support at the waistline. Speaking of waistlines, I am quite short through the body and this dress pretty much sits at my “natural” waistline. There are handy “lengthen or shorten” lines on the pattern piece, so others might want to use those depending on where they would like the waist seam to hit them.

The fabric is a lovely crushed knit from Darn Cheap Fabrics. I cut it so that the darkest stripe was around my middle (waist paranoia there maybe?) but failed to realise that would put the light grey stripe closest to my face. And light grey against my face is not my most attractive option. So I actually wore it with a chartresuse crocheted scarf, and added a darker grey cardigan when I was out for added warmth.

So despite my initial skepticism, I think that this is a terrific pattern. I’m going to make another with wrist length sleeves for winter. There is lots of opportunity to play around with this dress in terms of length, sleeves, neckline and collar options, and it satisfies my basic dress requirement of comfort as well. Recommended!