Knit Princess Seams Pattern Reviews

When you get this beautiful fabric from Minerva and want to do a matching set with the daughter, you also try some new patterns. And to make it extra special, you try patterns with princess seams. 

I’ve realized I’m a tried and true pattern person but trying out new patterns is fun too. And to make it even more interesting, I used new to me pattern companies too! 

A different kind of challenge, with figuring out my adjustments in this new pattern block.. And how things fit on my body.

PRINCESS SEAMS EVERYWHERe!

Princess seams are a favorite of mine .. 

I spent a month and 4 muslins on my first one back in 2018 when I made my first anarkali (an Indian dress like garment) – results were amazing!

And used Love Notions Margot/Maggie for the first time my daughter and I matched 

More recently princess seams were a must when I made my sister’s bridal lehenga.

the pattern – Clementine

This time I wanted a more fitted look but in knit fabrics. And found Forget-Me-Not Patterns Clementine top and dress fit the bill.

It has a top and dress option with cowl neck or crew neck views.

the review – CELMENTINE

Initially, setting out to make a dress, but then deciding I had enough dresses and would get more wear out of a top – I ended up making a cowl neck top. 

What is great about this pattern is that there aren’t different pattern pieces for the top and dress view.

Instead, it has top pattern pieces and skirt pieces – with a line of where to join the skirt to make the dress length. 

For a person who dislikes taping pages, I was super grateful for this!!

Clementine is more fitted than what I’m used to making. I made a couple sizes larger than my measurements (especially at the hips) and I think next time, will go up another size. 

The pattern instructions are very well written with line drawings depicting the steps. I find line drawings are more useful than showing the steps  with fabric because it is easier to see when printed. Plus, you don’t have to guess which side is the wrong side or right side.

With princess seams, you have to ease in the side pieces to the center ones and depending on the pattern, this can be a struggle. Not the case with Clementine. The pieces came together perfectly!

I was worried about the cowl neck and its construction – but it actually integrated into the pattern piece and sits beautifully.

would i make clementine again?

Yes! Like I mentioned, I want to try it again, with a larger size and maybe without the cowl neck next time.

the pattern – penelope

On to the next pattern – it was pretty hard to find a princess seam dress for girls and only found Made 4 Mermaids Penelope.

The Penelope has two different dress lengths and many different sleeve options.

the review – penelope

I like the options and especially like the puff sleeves. 

However, I struggled with putting the pieces together – I had to really stretch it to make it all fit. Even having to redo a seam because it got stretched in the wrong spot.

If you have a child that is sensitive to the seams – I would recommend not using this pattern or sizing up considerably. Usually, my kiddo doesn’t complain about seams but she did with this one. 

It was pretty tight on my daughter even though I made it according to her size. And maybe that was the reason for the complaints against the seams. 

I don’t like writing negative reviews – but I would have appreciated knowing these things beforehand so I’m passing it forward.  

would i make penelope again?

I’m going to attempt it one more time. So I’ll give it one more chance in a larger size and see how it goes. I will of course share the results with you when I do.

The fabric

The fabric is a cotton jersey and was a dream to work with. I got it in the colorway: orche. It has little tiny stars everywhere but almost looks like a solid. I love prints like this. You can get it from Minerva.

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