Ginger Dress in Tartan Plaid Sweater Knit

Plaid. Art thou surprised?

Me + plaid + sweater knit is like shooting fish in a barrel. So it’s little wonder that, when I saw the cover photo for the Ginger Dress, I thought I must make a version of my own.

So I did.

About the Fabric

Main: 2 yards City Plaid Sweater Knit from Boho Fabrics

Weight: 10 oz
Horizontal Stretch: 75%
Vertical Stretch: 50%
Contents: Poly/Rayon/Spandex

I adore plaid, and I adore this tartan pattern. I was a little disappointed that the light areas are more yellowish than white, but a little disappointment with plaid is better than disappointment with any other fabric. It’s also not a very soft sweater knit; I would almost describe it as scratchy, but not to the point of discomfort while wearing. It actually feels a little flimsier than the trim fabric I used, even though it’s supposedly a heavier weight.

Bunching fabric

It was relatively well-behaved while sewing if you discount the weird bunching behind the presser foot, reminiscent of my plaid Nyoka and Whistler Pullover. I have no idea why some fabrics do this; it seems some kind of fine fiber gets hung up on any sort of rough surface—including the callouses on my fingers from playing guitar. It can be really annoying having to constantly tug on the fabric after it feeds through the presser foot.

Trim/Lining: 1 yard “Shades of Noir” Sweater Knit from Boho Fabrics

Weight: 7.5 oz
Horizontal Stretch: 125%
Vertical Stretch: 20%
Contents: 49% Cotton, 45% Poly, 6% Rayon

The listing noted that “fabric may be off-grain”, but it didn’t seem to be when it arrived. Very soft with beautiful heathering, but the cut edges rolled fierce. There’s nothing that irritates me more about a fabric than rolling edges. Thankfully, the weird cling of the plaid helped the trim lay flat while I was pinning, so it wasn’t too terrible to deal with.

About the Pattern

This is my first time making the Ginger Dress, and I was thrilled as always with George + Ginger’s pattern instructions. So concise and clear; this sew is incredibly simple. The trim (attaching it and hemming it) is the most time consuming thing just for the volume of fabric since the garment flares out so dramatically at the bottom.

About This Make

Size 4
Dress
Long sleeves with cuffs

What I Did Differently

The instructions say to cut long sleeves 4 inches shorter when using cuffs. I cut only 2 inches shorter because I always add 2 inches to all my long sleeves.
I drastically altered the neckband. The pattern comes with a standard round neckline with band, which is my least favorite kind of neckline. So I thought, what if I just lengthened the band into a type of cowl? So that’s what I did. I kept the width of the pattern piece, and increased the height to 10.5″ to make a 10″ cowl. I was short on fabric, so I used the trim fabric for the lining, and had to cut 4 pieces total to stitch together (versus 2 pieces, each cut on the fold.) I was a little iffy on how the thing was going to turn out since my approach to altering it was less than scientific, but once I constructed the cowl, I slid it on by itself and liked how it looked and felt, which left me confident enough to attach it and roll with it.
I finally included one of my tag labels from Wunderlabel—only because I was having a difficult time distinguishing the front from the back. So rather than gauging the length of the front neckline vs. the back neckline every time I put it on, enter custom label.

The Cowl Neck

I love how the cowl turned out. With the different fabric for the lining and the extra length, I can style it so many different ways: slouchy with lining visible, folded out with lining visible, folded in with plaid visible, or slouchy with lining hidden.

Final Thoughts / Notes for Next Time

I always know when something is going to be a new favorite when I have trouble picking my favorite photo. They all turned out so well and there’s so much I love about this garment, from the handkerchief skirt to the flowy, flared silhouette, the plaid print, the cowl neck, the generously long sleeves with cuffs, and the ultimate comfort. It is literally like wearing a blanket, but I feel so put-together in it.

If I make another, I might size up to a 6. I think I could get away with just a little more ease around the shoulders and bust.
I think I’d like to add pockets to the side seams. Might be a challenge to find them in the folds of all that fabric, but I’m not sure I even care. I had the thought, and I must make it come to life.