Starting out sewing or need to whip up a dress in super quick time? Then Bettine is the dress for you!

This is one from my Tilly and the Buttons haul that I got last year and I’ve made a few of them so far. Mostly because it literally takes no time to do and that’s always a good feeling! 

Bettine has a simple silhouette with grown on sleeves with an elasticated waist and a tulip shaped skirt and an option for pockets too. It’s quite a flattering look for most people and has plenty of ease so fitting isn’t really an issue!

I’ve already made two for myself (you can see the original post here) and recently made one for my little sister. (I figured since I never used to wear my clothes photos on my other blog, this (re)blog post would still contain some new material!)

   
   
The first one I made was in a light pink lace fabric. It is totally see through so I’m wearing with a slip underneath… With this pattern the only change I made was to shorten the excess at the waist. I’m not a fan of that lip over the waist even though it does cover the elastic. I’m not a fan of that muffin top look because on me it’s much more flattering to be able to see my waist. It’s my skinniest part!

It’s cute, right!

My second Bettine underwent a bit of a transformation! This is made with a green tartan double knit – it’s not particularly stretchy and has a nice drape. I added more ease into the sleeve and shortened them for a more relaxed feel. I also made the skirt into a wrap front and added a belt. I essentially just kept the same shape and feel of the dress but made it look quite different at the same time. It’s definitely very different from the pink version!

  
This is Jess (and Scout the dog in the background behind her elbow)! Isn’t she cute? I made her a tiny Bettine with an awesome camera print rayon. That’s one of the things I like about the Tilly patterns, they come in small enough sizes that I can make stuff for Jess! I probably shortened the bodice a little too much on this one but it’s something to bear in mind for any future makes. Still looks nice though!

So overall, Bettine is a great beginner pattern. It’s pretty foolproof and Tilly’s instructions are, as always, easy to follow. I’m not sure if it’s very me in terms of style but it’s definitely a nice one to have in my repertoire!