Olya Shirt + Dress

Olya Shirt/Shirt Dress by Paper Theory

Olya comes in two variations - a shirt and a dress, and we decided to make up both! The patterns feature all the details of a traditional Oxford Shirt, with a two-piece stand and collar, front button placket, back yoke with a box pleat and a barrel cuff with a tailored placket and double pleat at the wrist. The dress version also comes with an optional waist tie for styling!

We made up the size 8 dress pattern for Ella and used 2.45m of our Liberty Tana Lawn - Karter D. This yield was slightly more than the recommended 2.33m, as we wanted to ensure our print direction matched across all pieces. The shirt fits Ella perfectly and required no alterations. For Zosia, we made up the shirt version in size 14 in Classic Cotton Shirting - Blue, and used the recommended yield of 1.63m. Again, the fit was great and didn't require any adjustments. In our experience, Paper Theory patterns are always very well-drafted and come with excellent instructions, and the Olya is no exception!

Another fantastic thing about this pattern is the photographic sew-along that Tara has made up on her website! This isn't a typical shirt pattern though and does require some careful thinking about how the sleeve and armhole pieces sew together. We think Olya would be best for an intermediate level sewist or with the help of the tutorial, an adventurous beginner.

This set of patterns is available as a PDF download from the Paper Theory website here.

Liberty of London Tana Lawn - Karter + Classic Cotton Shirting - Blue

Paper Theory recommend using a midweight fabric such as cotton or linen, a lightweight fabric like silk crepe de chine or georgette, or even a heavier fabric with rigidity, like a cotton drill. We absolutely love how these two shirts look and feel in lightweight cottons, the perfect balance of weight and softness! We think the shirt would work equally well in one of our new Vintage Finish Linens.

Check out our suggestions below from top to bottom - Mini Stripe Stretch Cotton Shirting - Red/White, Vintage Finish Linen - Duck Egg, Liberty of London Tana Lawn - Oxford C and Vintage Finish Linen - Red Clay