Gemstone Staple Dress

When I learned that Cotton + Steel was going to release a rayon line, I knew I simply had to try it. No surprise, I chose the navy blue and white Gemstone pattern to make myself a dress. After I bought the fabric, I learned that it is supposed to be dry clean only. I don’t do dry clean only, so I was happy to read that several bloggers felt the same way and had machine washed their rayon without any issues. Originally, I had planned to sew a Myrtle Dress, but after whipping up a quick infinity scarf from the same fabric, I decided I needed a simpler pattern for my first rayon garment. Last month, I grabbed my tried and true Staple Dress pattern pieces and that was that.

I’m glad I tried rayon, but it’s not my favorite fabric to work with. It shifted a bunch while I cut it, pinned it, and sewed it. When I used my mock overlock stitch to finish the seams, it pulled in on itself, which I didn’t like. While I was working with it, I didn’t intend to work with it again. Then I tried it on and realized what all the hype was about. It feels really, really nice on. The rayon is smooth, flowy, and lovely for summer.

There’s not much more to say about this dress. As always, I love the pockets. Since I usually wear belts with my Staple Dresses, I omitted the elastic shirring. This dress is easily my new favorite dress. I can’t wait to try my hand at rayon again.