Brightening up your Tuesday guys and gals, we get to [virtually] hang out with our favourite Nashville beauty - she sews up a storm, knits like a BOSS and is here to tell us a bit about the making of her Elisalex Dress and why she prefers to sew with indie patterns... It's the one and only Lladybird!

The girl - Lauren Taylor

Her blog - Lladybird (see Lauren's original post here)

The pattern - The Elisalex Dress

Tell us a bit about your choice of fabric... And did your finished dress live up to how you'd imagined it?

My fabric was an awesome gift from Erin, who decided to give me a huge generous yardage after she heard me freaking out over it ;) Apparently, it's Prada - ooh la la! I knew I wanted to sew something special with it, but I couldn't find a good pattern so the fabric sat for a few months, waiting patiently. I really loved using the Elisalex pattern with this fabric; there aren't a lot of seams to break up the overall design, and it works well with a little bit of trim (that I had also been hoarding). My fabric ended up being way too lightweight for the tulip skirt, so I swapped that for a circle skirt with horsehair braid at the bottom, for extra twirly factor. End result: PERFECT. Even better than I was expecting!

Would you make this pattern again? If so, how...?

I would definitely like to try the tulip skirt, provided I find the right fabric! Although, that probably won't happen until next winter since Nashville summer climates don't exactly lend well to heavy fabrics. I think this could be really sweet as a summer dress, though, with the circle skirt. And stripey fabric!

With the current boom in indie pattern companies bringing something new to the cutting table after generations of just the Big Four, how do you think the two compare?

While I wouldn't necessarily eliminate Big Four from the sewing picture entirely, I definitely prefer indie patterns over them 9 times out of 10. Honestly, I just really love working with smaller companies and giving as much support as I can. Bonus that the patterns are generally drafted better - and usually offer more unique styles than the stuff you see in the Big Four.

Thank you so much Lauren! You've done the Elisalex a real justice and we'll be taking you out for some serious drinks when we manage to haul ourselves over to your side of the pond! And is that a mini Elvis figurine busting out some moves there on the shelf next to the yarn...?