A long-sleeved dress in linen

I made R this long-sleeved elastic-waist dress in a beautiful subtly striped linen. "It's a Laura dress!" R exclaimed excitedly when she saw it. I wasn't convinced - after all, it doesn't have a frilly collar, a full skirt or a high neckline - but then she showed me an episode from the first season of Little House on the Prairie and to my surprise, there was Laura in an almost identical dress. The connection to R's (current) favourite character means the dress has been well-received and will probably be a winter favourite.

The pattern is from one of the A Sunny Spot books and is a wonderfully easy sew. I made two small modifications: I took a couple of centimetres off the centre of both front and back to suit R's build and ensure that the neckline wasn't too wide, and I used a snap at the back rather than a button. The dress has neckline facings that are sewn down, creating a nice stitch-line on the dress.

R was not in a modelling mood on the weekend so I had to settle for a few quick snaps outside the dumpling restaurant that we took my mum to for her 70th birthday/mother's day lunch (AND I had to crop out R's cousin, who arrived just as I was taking the photos - he is gorgeous, but I didn't think he'd appreciate being on my blog!). It was a reasonably mild day, but as the temperature drops I think this linen dress will also look great with tights and a cardigan - or maybe a coat, if I can choose a pattern from the many different ones that are calling me!