Happy release to the Pattern Scout Hana Tank and Dress! I heard such great things about Pattern Scout Studio after Casey released her debut garment pattern, the Fern Top back in June. I was delighted to test her new pattern. The Hana Tank and Dress is such a great wardrobe staple and its boxy, loose fitting shape is very on trend. The pattern comes with so many variations. I had such a great time sewing mine up. It was simple, but still challenged me to practice mindful finishing. I love mine so much and I know I’ll wear it tons this summer.

Pattern

The Version A dress is perfect for beginners. The only difficult bit is the bias binding, but the instructions are helpful and detailed. Versions B and C are slightly more advanced due to the freedom of button spacing (no button markings on pattern pieces). Any option with the curved hem or tie front is trickier especially in slippery fabrics. Because of these differently leveled details, this dress is great for improving sewists who want to invest in intermediate patterns that also include more attainable options. Even the fabric options can customize the ease or difficulty of this project.

Fabric

Usually for a boxy shape, I would choose a fabric with a lot of drape like a viscose or crepe, but this gorgeous green linen has been in my stash staring at me for over two years. It’s also the first ever solid dress that I’ve made and I really love it. I think I need to better prioritize solids when fabric shopping. I bought this linen at the Stoffen Spektakel back in 2016 when I was here visiting the Netherlands. I took it back to the States and then it moved over here with me. At the time it was the most expensive fabric I’d ever bought at €10 per meter.

Since I bought it at the market, I’m not totally sure of the content, so it might be a linen mix. It has a slight stretch to it and it feels rougher than the other linens in my stash, but that could be due to the weave rather than the content. As one would expect from a linen, it sewed up beautifully. It pressed really nicely and was fairly stable, though I did switch to my walking foot when binding the neckline because it was twisting a bit.

Sewing & Fit

My Hana Dress sewed up beautifully and I even added a tie belt! Though I like the boxy shape, I’m still getting used to it in such a structured fabric, so I’m glad I made the waist tie. I had a couple of very minor issues, but they were either easily fixed or simply my fault. Sewing-wise, my bias binding twisted a little, which was easily solved when I switched to my walking foot. Then I got a bit hasty when spacing my buttons and some of them are a bit wonky, but that’s fully on me.

In terms of fitting, I did have a problem with the armhole and shoulder. Despite my measurements lining up perfectly for the size 16C, I have some gaping in the armhole and pulling near the shoulder. It’s a bit odd since the feedback from the other testers was that the armhole was on the tighter side. I wonder if the problem would be alleviated if I made a 14D? If anyone can diagnose this issue, please comment below! I could go through the effort of unpicking the armhole binding and pinching an inch or so out of the armpit area, but I don’t think it bothers me quite enough to go back and fix it.

Make Breakdown

Pattern: Pattern Scout Hana Tank + Dress
Fabric & Notions: 1.6 Meters Linen Mix; 15 13mm buttons
Design Modifications: Added Tie Belt
Fit Alterations: None
Difficulty: Advanced Beginner
Future Plans: Yes! I’m making a tank version this month!

This dress really surprised me. We always hope that we’ll like and wear the items we make, but this one surpassed my expectations. I didn’t realize when I paired this pattern with my fabric and buttons that I was building a dress that my mom had when I was little. It was a similar shape and the fabric was a similar foresty green linen with iridescent buttons. I didn’t see it until I put on the finished dress and was overwhelmed with accidental nostalgia. With all the family turmoil, we’ve faced these last few years, it was oddly comforting to see myself in garment that I’d created that was so close to something that my mom wore when I was young. I wish I had a comparison picture!

Thanks for reading! Stay tuned next week for a round up of July and my sewing plans for August!