A very spring-y Rival Dress (George and Ginger sewing pattern review)

*I got the pattern for free for testing it, see end of post

Showing a dress with flower bulbs on it is only suitable in spring, right? Therefore, by waiting the rest of 2019 I actually can now post this dress at the correct season (well, for everyone north the equator at least). Yay!

How's that isolation thing going for you guys? It's been 3,5 weeks in Austria and we now must wear face masks when grocery shopping, soon we actually may have to wear them always when outside on public ground. Obviously in order to save the masks for those who need them I too sewed my own. And tell you what, since all that started I learned to really despise that stupid face mask discussion. There is just so unbelievably much lack of knowledge out there, so many assumptions, everybody has an opinion and everybody needs to throw their unwanted opinion at everyone else. Urgh.

On the lucky side I don't feel the restrictions much. I'm very good at staying at home. So besides when I need to go out and get shocked about all the stupid people, everything is fine for me. Rant over.

Moving forward to todays topic, the Rival Dress!
Let's talk about the (main) fabric. Sometimes I don't really understand why I buy a certain fabric. I mean, yes, I know, I have been a big fan of nature all my life. That's probably why I bought it - I just love plants as much as I love animals and rocks, sand and soil. But honestly, flower prints are just not what I want my style to be. So I really need to work on that, buying only certain fabrics.
The fabric is 'Snowdrop' from Lillestoff, an organic cotton/spandex summersweat. It's comfortable as hell and the quality of Lillestoff fabrics never disappoints.

It has pockets!

For sizing I chose according to my measurements as usual, size 4 for the bust and waist, size 6 for the hips. I made short sleeves and basic neckline, although the hood sounded great as well. But I like to use my hoods and I don't really need them on garments with short sleeves. I had an RTW top like that years ago and I never wore it. Okay, that top was ugly, but still.

The Rival Dress was my first pattern from George And Ginger and I'm really glad I used the opportunity to test it. I'm not sure if I had bought it otherwise, but it showed me that G+G's drafting works great on my body. The instructions are detailed, with many tips and everything you need. For explaining construction I always prefer (simplified) line drawings over (messy) photos - so extra points here.
As I gain more and more experience I don't really need such detailed instructions anymore, but I still like to check wether they are suited for beginners or not.

Detail view of the side and pocket

Now the most important questions: Do I wear it? Is it sewstainable?
Actually, yes. Despite it being not really the style I want to have, I do wear it. Like at home or on occasions I feel more comfortable with casual clothes.
Yes, the fabric could be better - but it's fine the way it is. I am thinking about making another one, this time with a hood and maybe bell sleeves or bishop sleeves. I imagine big sleeves would be a nice contrast to the tight fit of the body.

Just this week I read a newspaper post about textile sustainability - or rather on how bad the whole fashion industry is. It said that the average European buys 15kg of new clothes every year (acc. to this study). This is a shockingly high number! And it keeps getting higher! WTF people, what is wrong with you? Oh and by the way, it is not better at all if you don't buy fast fashion, but have tons of fabrics at home instead, more than you can ever use. It's not a beloved hobby, it's a mess. Sometimes I get the feeling that while everyone adores Marie Kondo no one actually listens to her. And no, I'm not a fan. You should not even buy all that stuff you have to throw away later to become happy, like wtf.
Sorry not sorry for the second rant. Let's finish this post with another photo...:

*I got this pattern for free as part of testing it. About a year ago Kristi from George And Ginger had several tests of her older patterns, where everyone in the G+G fb-group was free to participate in testing. I was among those who did. Since then I bought more G+G patterns, as the Rival Dress showed me Kristi's awesome designing - so as always you'll find my honest opinion here.