On November 12, I will complete one more trip around the sun. I come from a family where birthdays are a big deal (especially for my mom, with whom I share my birthday). Since I haven’t been back home for a birthday since I left, our celebrations were done over the phone, and now over Zoom. Here, my husband and I usually go out for some of my favorite food, and sometimes (well, hardly ever, but worth mentioning) we meet some friends and hit the goth club.
I was in the middle of sewing a brand new dress for this year‘s birthday when I remembered that I never blogged about last year’s birthday dress—a beautiful Aubépine in black fabric covered in moons and stars. It never got too much blog love, which is very, very unfair. So I am giving it proper recognition with its own blog post.
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Pattern
The Aubépine by Deer & Doe is a flowy dress with an empire waist fitted with a drawstring. It features two sleeve variations, short and ¾”. The knee-length skirt has 8 inverted box pleats.
Size
Just like their predecessors, this version is a size 48—no adjustments necessary. I used the finished bust measurement as a guide (my bust measurement is 44 inches).
Fabric
I have some leftover of this black rayon with white moons and stars that I bought back home a couple years ago. I used it to sew my Willow Dress. It was enough fabric to get this Aubepine done. This version is fully lined with some very lightweight blak rayon.
Construction
This dress is very easy to sew. It does not require a zipper or buttons, and the pockets are optional. It gets its shape from a drawstring fed through a channel (if you follow the instructions). In its simplest expression—no tucks, no pockets, short sleeves—the Aubepine is the easiest garment you can sew for the greatest wow factor.
This version does not have bodice pintucks. The fabric is quite busy, and adding the tucks would break the continuity of the print, AND the tucks would get lost anyway. I used the lining bodice pattern pieces for both the fashion fabric and the lining. I kept the pintucks for the sleeves because I think they are cute.
This time, I lined the bodice and the skirt. I wanted a little more protection from the elements (before you laugh, consider: Los Angeles winter is very mild+I am always overheating+I am never outdoors=this is the perfect amount of lining I need in combination with tights and a sweater).
The only modifications I made had to do with personal preference. I raised the neckline for a less revealing cleavage. I also replaced the drawstring with ties that I sewed to the side seams, right where the bodice and skirt meet.
This is a very straightforward construction. I basically sewed two dresses, the fashion fabric one and the lining one. Then, I slid the lining into the dress, right sides facing each other, and sewed both pieces at the neckline. From there, I serged the sleeve opening together and set in the sleeves. The last step was hemming both dresses. Done!
Aubepine Dress, Birthday Edition
I love this dress. I love it so much that I think it deserves to be my 2022 birthday dress. I have no plans, but wherever I go, I know I will feel great in my Aubepine. This pattern is definitely a contender for 2022 holiday season.
Do you sew birthday garments? What have you sewn yourself for your birthday?
Great dress! I like how you simplified the pattern. Have you ever sewn the bodice pintucks and/or drawstring rather than ties? If so, was it difficult? I agree that the tucks would be lost with your fabric! (Can we go rayon shopping together in Brazil? ;=) )
Happy November birthdays to you and your mom. At my house we have March Madness: my husband, granddaughter, myself and my son (he was born 8 hours too late to share my birthday). My birthday is also my cousin’s, and my grandfather was either my son’s or mine. (No birth certificate.) We don’t understand how granddaughter #2 was born in May!
Author
I sewed a version with the pintucks. I love it! We are six in the family but only three birthday celebrations: my mom and I were born on the same day; my dad and my brother were born on the same day; my sisters are twins. I always joked that my parents have saved a pretty penny by combining birthday celebrations.
Let’s go shopping for rayon in Rio! That sounds so fun.