The Knot Front Dress has definitely been one of my favourites of the Trend Patterns recent pattern releases. The simple style with the quirky open back totally floats my boat!

I picked this PDF pattern up in the sales last year and finally got round to printing it off and putting it together. (I also bought the 70s frill dress from Trend but I’m kind of scared to print it off because I know it’ll take me forever to cut and stick all the pages together! 😂)

The knot front dress is a wonderfully simple sew. I whipped mine up in an evening. The only tricky part for me was the zip in the back. I put in an exposed metal zip instead of the invisible zip the pattern called for. I definitely made it harder for myself!

Fitting wise I made a size 10 and graded to a 12 at the hip. I could’ve probably gotten away with a straight 10 as there’s plenty of ease though but I just didn’t want it too fitted. I also shortened the bodice piece by 1 inch. I’d recommend doing that if you’re petite or have a short waist just to make sure those ties don’t sit too low down.

I used a grey herringbone knit fabric for this make which I got it from Discovery Knitting a couple of months ago on a whim. (If it’s only been in my stash for 2 months, does this count as a destash?). This is not one of the recommended fabrics for this dress but I had a feeling it would still totally work.

It’s a reversible fabric – in other words it looks different but good on both sides so you could use either for the “right” side. I couldn’t decide which one I wanted so I put it to a vote on instagram! Two thirds of you guys voted for the darker grey side and I followed through and used that side.

And I’m glad I did! It turned out beautifully!

I think this’ll be a great dress to wear from spring/ summer-time onwards… I hadn’t realised how drafty that open back could be! I got a little chilly just taking the photos! 😂

I really do love it though. It creates quite a smart appearance from the front with the flattering waist tie. But the back shows of a little more skin and looks quite edgy. It gives the appearance of a two piece from behind.

It’ll be perfect matched with a denim jacket and sneakers for summer!