Lekala 4094 is actually a pre-Sewjourn make!  As seems to almost permanently be the case at the moment, I am way way behind with blogging what I have sewn.  Shall I blame Instagram or perhaps just life in general?  But because my blog is my record of what I have sewn, things will eventually be documented here.  So, back to Lekala 4094.  First, the line drawing.

This one really was an impulse buy for me.  While mindlessly scrolling through the Lekala catalogue one day, I spotted the drape, the side ruching, and realised that it was for knits.  I had some wildly patterned midweight ponte from Darn Cheap Fabrics that was crying out to be turned into something, and I’d tried to find the pattern that was just right for it many times.  Suddenly I realised that this pattern was the one!  Before I knew it I had ordered, the pattern arrived into my in-box, and I was busy in the sewing room.

Woo hoo! I love it! Fits well, and super comfortable. But it wasn’t without its challenges. As you probably know by now, Lekala’s instructions can sometimes be difficult to decipher. With good sewing knowledge and attention paid to the line drawing of the finished garment, it’s not usually too difficult to figure out what to do when. But I did manage to stuff this one up when attaching the drape – and didn’t even realise just what I’d done until it was time to sew up the side seams.

See all that lovely gathering down one side? As it turned out, I hadn’t paid enough attention to just how much it was meant to be gathered, and what markings to match up where. I had to unpick multiple passes of overlocking in order to fix it – which meant that it took me around double the predicted time to finish the dress. Luckily it was quite saveable.

And that print – yes, it’s busy! I’m still trying to work out exactly what it is – to me it is like a cross between the scales on a snake or a butterfly’s wing, all digitally manipulated to swirl around. I wonder if I am right?

Construction was shared between the overlocker and the machine, with seams finished on the overlocker and hems turned, secured and finished with a twin needle. I think that this pattern would look great on lots of different shapes, and has the potential to do interesting things with the side panels – in a contrasting fabric perhaps?  So my verdict – definitely a success!