Mind the Maker Floral Viscose Poppy Dress

I'd like to introduce you to my two favorite Poppies. Meet Poppy, my beagle (bottom left)—my first favorite Poppy—and my floral Poppy Dress, my second favorite Poppy. This is the second Poppy dress I made after my gingham linen version, and I've got to say, I think I knocked it out of the park.

I sewed this dress at a Laura & Allyson retreat last year. Allyson and I made Poppies together while testing the first draft of instructions before sending them for tech editing. Since I was working outside my usual setup with a fabric that stubbornly refused to hold a press, I ended up having to hand stitch the undersides of the button bands and collar band in place. While hand stitching is one of my least favorite tasks, this fabric made the extra effort worthwhile.

The fabric is Floral Shade from Mind the Maker in the color Rosewood. While I'm not typically drawn to pink clothing, I took it as a sign when I noticed it shares a name with my favorite lip tint—and I'm so glad I did! Made from 100% ECOVERO™ Viscose crepe, this fabric has a beautiful drape and it's heavy enough that it's completely opaque. The way the skirt hangs and moves is just perfect, especially if you enjoy a twirl now and then, and I love how the large-scale print looks with the tiers and gathers.

If you know anything about viscose, you know it probably shouldn’t be put in the dryer—and especially not on high heat. Unfortunately, that's exactly what happened to this dress two months ago, and yes, it shrank. There is a tiny sliver of a silver lining here though. It mostly shrank upward, which means I'll be attempting to salvage it by adding a third tier. In theory, this transformation should work beautifully, so stay tuned and send your best vibes for this Poppy's metamorphosis into a three-tiered dress!