I was sent down a Russian pattern company rabbit hole a few weeks ago by one of my YouTube followers. I’ve made a Vikisews pattern before and one commenter mentioned Grasser as another brand to try out.

Well before I knew it, three hours had gone by and I’d bought half a dozen patterns… 🤦🏻‍♀️

I decided to try out this dress pattern first!

I loved the pin tuck detailing and all the ruffles on the 672 dress which is apparently a rip off of a Sézane dress – Russian companies clearly have no qualms about saying who they’re copying!

Like the Vikisews patterns you buy one size of the pattern, with a wide size and height range. The Russian sizing they used is a bit off putting in that they look much bigger than normal! Apparently their dress sizes are numbered by taking half your bust measurement which meant I needed a 48!

The instructions for this pattern are pretty good actually but bear in mind not all instructions from Grasser have the same amount of detail. They’re got decent photos and best of all, they do an English translation! I wasn’t a fan of some of the finishes (personal preference!) so I had a brief look through the instructions and then did my own thing.

The only adjustment I made to my pattern before starting was to do a big bicep adjustment. I just don’t have the skinny arms these Russian girls have apparently! 😂. Apart from that I sewed it up as is and the fit was pretty spot on. I tried to spend time sew it right first time (but also without having to to a toile) because I loved this fabric so much!

I used a woven viscose for this project from my last stash from Stoff and Stil. The orange fish/ flower print is just too cute!

I’ve just worn a normal belt for this as I was slightly short on fabric! I’d bought the fabric before the pattern and I was about half a metre short! I managed to do some pattern Tetris to get the pieces on and even cobbled together a panel in the back but there was no way to eke out a fabric belt too!

As much as I love how it turned out I’m just not sure if it’s a bit too country/ western to suit my wardrobe! There’s just something about the pintuck – ruffle combo that just makes me was to wear a cowboy hat and boots…