Cut long. Dyed here.
Long dresses, abayas, wide trousers, tunics and scarves in five sizes and three lengths, made in small runs in our Croydon workroom.
Press a length of crepe into the indigo, and watch it spread.
A length of crepe, dipped across the indigo.
Drag the cloth down to press it into the dye.Draw it back up when the colour has spread far enough.Arrow keys press and lift it. D changes the dye, F the cloth.
Length, ease, and what shows through
Length.
Everything is cut long, to the ankle as standard, in three lengths for every size. Hems are turned deep, so they can be taken up or let down later.
Ease.
We cut in room: through the shoulder, across the back, down the sleeve. Nothing is drawn in close, so nothing pulls when you reach, sit or climb the stairs. There are pockets in the side seams of every dress and pair of trousers.
What shows through.
We choose cloth at the workroom window. If you can see the shape of a hand through it at arm’s length, it’s lined, or it isn’t used.
This season
Choose a garment from the rail, and the page hangs at its lengths.
Long dress
An A-line from a shallow yoke, sleeves to the wrist with a plain cuff. To the ankle, in three lengths. In crepe, jersey and linen; the undyed linen is lined to the hem.
Abaya
Cut straight and wide from the shoulder, closing down the front with covered snaps; sleeves wide enough to push back. In crepe, and a heavier georgette lined to the knee.
Wide trousers
Flat front, soft back waist, a wide straight leg in three lengths: the shortest clears the shoe by a finger’s width, the longest sits on it. In crepe, linen and jersey.
Tunic
To below the knee, with side vents 16 cm deep, cut to wear over the wide trousers. In crepe and linen.
In small runs. This season’s cuts, in this season’s cloths. When a run is gone, it’s gone until we cut it again next season.
Sized, not fitted. Five sizes and three lengths, the same in every run, so the size you have now is the size you order next time. Scarves come in one size.
Hold it to the window
Before a cloth comes into the workroom, we hang it in the window and let it drop.
Each cloth hangs in front of its name, as sheer or as solid as it really is. Lift one to the light to read the name behind it.
Crepe
In fine folds that break close together and settle quickly. It swings when you walk and hangs straight when you stop.
Opaque in indigo and walnut. The undyed is lined to the knee.
Lay it across the troughJersey
Heavy and round, close to the line of the garment. Nothing to press.
Opaque in every colour; unlined.
Lay it across the troughLinen
Crisper, in straighter breaks that soften after a few washes.
Light shows through the undyed, so it’s lined to the hem.
Lay it across the troughGeorgette
The lightest we use; it lifts at the hem in any breeze.
Always lined, in a crepe of the same colour.
Cotton voile
Soft and dry; it holds a loose fold.
Scarves only.
Tacked, then sewn
Drawn.
Each piece starts as a paper pattern at the cutting table, with the ease written on it, graded out to five sizes and three lengths.
Chosen.
Cloth comes in as a short length first. We wash it, hang it in the window and watch how it drops before we buy the roll.
Cut.
We cut single layer, not stacked, so the grain runs true on every piece. Every hem is cut deep, so it can be let down later.
Sewn.
Seams are finished inside so they don’t catch or shadow through the lighter cloths. Hems on the dresses and abayas are turned twice and slip-stitched by hand.
Pressed.
Everything is pressed on the reverse and hung overnight, so the hem settles where it will stay.
All of it happens in our Croydon workroom.
Five sizes, three lengths
Sizes run 1 to 5, and every size is cut with the same room through the shoulder, back and sleeve. If you’re between two, the smaller one will still sit loose.
Lengths are measured on the garment, from the shoulder seam to the hem (the trousers from the waistband). Every hem is turned 6 cm deep, so it can be let down later.
| Garment | Short | Regular | Long |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long dress | 132 | 140 | 148 |
| Abaya | 134 | 142 | 150 |
| Wide trousers | 98 | 104 | 110 |
| Tunic | 100 | 106 | 112 |
Sleeves come to the wrist in every size.
Scarves, dipped here
Each scarf is dipped by hand in indigo, madder or walnut, so no two edges are the same.
- Georgette180 × 70 cmIt slips, so pin it.
- Cotton voile200 × 90 cmIt holds a soft fold.
- Jersey170 × 60 cmIt grips and stays without a pin.
Washing and pressing
Wash cool, at 30 °C, inside out. Wash indigo on its own the first few times: it gives a little colour at first, then settles.
Dry on a line in the shade, not in full sun. Lay jersey flat to dry, so it keeps its length.
Press on the reverse, through a cloth. Keep the iron low for crepe; linen takes it hotter, while it is still a little damp.
Linen softens and loses its crispness over a few washes, which is the point.
Ask the workroom
Tell us what you’re after, in which size, length and colour, and we’ll tell you what’s in this season’s run. If you’d like to hold the cloth first, come to the workroom in Croydon; we’ll tell you which days we’re in when we reply.
Cut long in Croydon.
Hemfall · Croydon, South Australia