Description
The French Poetry Pleiades 2 dress is flattering for all body shapes with its gathered empire waist. Thanks to the V-shaped cut (much like its sister the Pleiades 1 dress, or our already famous Lune dress), it does not add any bulk (and won’t create that dreaded fake tummy effect) but just flows around the body! The V-shaped cut also adds a touch of uniqueness. The Pleiades2 dress pattern will follow you all year round: you can choose long or short sleeves, and mix and match collars and skirts to follow your imagination. Check the Instagram feed below to get inspiration from other sewists!
Pleiades 2 is a short dress (above knee) with slit neckline and stand-up collar or button-down front with 3 collar options: stand up collar, shirt collar, pussy bow. 3 sleeve options: short, long, 3/4 cuffed sleeves. 2 skirt options: with or without frill in the bottom. An optional row of covered buttons can be added under the slit neckline. Optional shoulder straps can be added on any version of the dress. Slit neckline dress closes with a back zipper.
Available sizes:
2 to 16
Difficulty:
3/5 – average. You need to be familiar with reading a sewing pattern, to know how to make gathers, insert a zipper, set in sleeves… Tutorials available here.
Fabric choice:
double gauze, crepe, twill, challis, in silk, viscose, polyester, cotton, linen, tencel… You will need more fabric to match prints if any.
Fabric length:
For 60inch wide fabrics, you will need 2.7 yards (2.5 meters) for options without the frill in the bottom of the skirt, and 3.3 yards (3 meters) for options with the frill. With 44inch wide fabrics, you will need 4 yards (3.6 meters) to 4.37 yards (4 meters) depending on the sleeve option you choose (long sleeves need more fabric than cuffed sleeves).
You will need:
A 21,6 inch (55cm) zipper, 5 buttons, scissors, pins, a marking chalk or pencil, the right thread and machine needle for your fabric, and strips of interfacing or silk organza to strengthen bias seams. Make sure to wash and let your fabric dry in the same conditions and temperature you will use for your future garment, to ensure it won’t shrink too much afterwards. Then iron your fabric and fold it in half lengthwise to cut the pattern pieces.
Sizing:
This pattern is offered in sizes 2 to 16 according to the body measurements below.
| Size | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 |
| Bust | 31.5 | 33 | 34.7 | 36 | 37.8 | 39 | 41 | 42.5 |
| Waist | 23.6 | 25 | 26.8 | 28 | 30 | 31 | 33 | 34.6 |
| Hips | 34 | 35.4 | 37 | 38.6 | 40 | 41.7 | 43.3 | 44.9 |
| Length of finished garment | 34.6 | 34.8 | 35 | 35.2 | 35.4 | 35.6 | 35.8 | 36 |
Video sew-along:
Here for the slit neckline version. Find all tutorials on the sewing tutorials page.
Format:
The French Poetry Pleiades 2 pattern is sold in PDF and can be downloaded right after purchase in US letter or A4 (print at home) or A0 (copy shop). Number of pages: 2 in A0, 40 in A4, 45 in US letter. Illustrated sewing instructions are also provided in PDF to guide you in tiling the A4 PDF pieces, cutting the fabric and sewing the pattern. A 0.59” (1.5cm) seam allowance is included. This pattern and its sewing directions are in English. For the French version, please buy from the French website.
