A few weeks ago, I was asked to help promote the new collection by Willow & Co patterns. Picking one of the four patterns was easy: the beautiful Antalya dress stole my heart when I saw the first sneak peeks on Olga‘s Instagram account. I love the simple yet special shape of dress, and the fact that it’s ideal to combine different fabrics.

I picked fabrics for this dress on my bloggers’ trip to Paris. When we were visiting Atelier Brunette, I decided to combine a mustard fabric called Golden Moon from their second collection, with and a blue-greyish one called Chalk Charcoal from their third collection. I bought the mustard one at Atelier Brunette – many thanks again to Bernina for generously sponsoring our little shopping spree! I decided to wait with the charcoal fabric until I got home, so I could buy it at my lovely sponsor, Petite Couture (all Wendy’s Atelier Brunette fabrics are here). I showed the combination to Norah together with a few other options, but she firmly went for Golden Moon + Charcoal. Girl’s got taste!

But let’s talk more about the pattern. The Antalya comes with a buttons and an exposed zipper option in the back, and the neckline is finished with bias ribbon. I have mixed feelings about exposed zippers, and I wanted to save time, so I decided to go use a hidden zipper, and draw a facing to replace the bias. Of course, I forgot to add seam allowance to the neck line for the neck facing, so that option was out. I knew that it would be difficult to combine bias in the neck with a hidden zipper in the back, so the hidden zipper option was out too. Good work, An. Instead, I went for a closure with ribbons which extend from the bias in the next.

Sewing the Antalya was not difficult. The instructions are clear, with digitally drawn illustrations instead of pictures. The information is detailed and complete, including a table with finished garment measurements (an absolute requirement for me), and cutting diagrams. And the pattern comes with layers so that you can print just the size you want. I made the size 4 for my 5.5 year old, and there’s plenty of room for growth. This means that the sizing is perfect, as Norah is very skinny.

But, even more importantly: the finished result is stunning. I love the gathers in the front, the drop waist, and the shape of the side panels. Norah also loves wearing her dress. Thank you, Olga, for designing a beautiful dress, and for having me on the tour!