TL; DR – Sometimes you just want a simple party dress! And other times, you end up swearing at “velvet” fabric.

I was so pleased to be able to test the new Mariko dress by Notch. There are about 75 different ways to make the dress/top, and I chose the long version with a gathered side and a crossover pattern in the front. I wanted to make a more “formal” dress so I chose this black velvet jersey fabric I’ve had for a while.

The pattern itself is simple and straightforward; the hardest part was trying to figure out which pieces and how many of each pieces I needed to cut. But once I got that sorted, it was a breeze. I initially messed up where I anchored the piece that is wrapped under, which made the neckline weird, but somehow I managed to unstitch it, reposition it, and now it’s perfect!

I will definitely make it again, but probably never out of this velvet jersey again!