Lately I’ve been dabbling more in zero-waste patterns. You can see my first dress here, and since making the one I’m showing you today I have also tried a top and a skirt. The lack of pattern pieces intrigues me; everything is cut out according to instructions and your own measurements.

This time around I used the instructions for the Cris Wood Sews Parasol Dress and Top. She describes it as follows: The Parasol Dress and Top are casual, playful garments that can be made repeatedly in a variety of fabrics. Both the top and the dress can be made with or without sleeves, and feature a low V back and adjustable neck tie. Zero paper waste means there are no paper pattern pieces to print, cut and tape. Simple formulas included in the pattern allow you to grade the pattern to your own personal measurements. Suitable fabrics include light and medium weight woven fabrics – linens, cottons, silks, rayons, viscose blends, gauze.

So first up, I’ll state the obvious: I did not use one of the recommended fabrics for my first attempt at this pattern. Completely inspired by this wool blend version that I’d been fortunate to see in real life, I used grey suiting that has been in my stash for a very long time. Since it was a winter version, I added the sleeves.

This dress layered beautifully over a merino blend long sleeved and tights! Because of the fabric weight and all those gathers it is very voluminous and you can feel the heft of it when wearing – it’s a slow swish!

I’m definitely going to sew this dress again in a lighter weight fabric. And do you get the same strong academic gown vibe when you look at these photos? I didn’t notice it in the mirror, but as soon as I saw the photos all I could think of was the college dining hall and graduation. Not really the look that I was going for – I’ll definitely need to accessorise this carefully!