Cleo Pinafore – Tilly wins again

A review of Tilly and the Buttons Cleo Pinafore and Dungaree Dress

Reviewed by Jannisews on 26th January, 2020

I really fancied a trans-seasonal garment to add to my wardrobe. The shape of the Cleo pinafore looked like it might suit my tubular figure and my previous experience of Tilly and the Buttons patterns  (I have only made a Coco dress so far) suggested the fit and instructions would be good. I was looking for a pattern suitable to teach a class.
This lovely stretch needle cord was washed and ready to go in my pile so I cut a size 5 and graded out to a size 6 at the waist. That really wasn’t necessary as the first try on with basted side seams looked most unflattering, so I went back to the original pattern shaping. There is plenty of waist ease allowed.
The fit of the straps from the back is good on me. I have had problems with straps coming from shaped back pieces on dungarees before, but these sit flat in my back and don’t fall off my shoulders.
I think the front pinafore bib is slightly too wide for my liking, it sits wider than my bust – which has ample sufficiency!  Next time I would cut at size 4 bib graded to a 5 waist, which would also mean altering the front facings.

The Bib and Brace set I got included a strap holder, it didn’t register when I bought it but it’s a useful addition as it holds the end of the strap in place without having to commit to stitching it down. The only real difficulty I had was deciding where to position the buckles, and I note  from looking at all these reviews that people choose different places for the waist to sit

The knee length is good for me, I am 5’6” tall. I fancy a mini length one in cotton canvas for the summer. I also like the thought of adding a button fastening at the sides as an extra detail.

I would recommend this pattern as good beginner friendly one.  I don’t think the ‘variations’ – altering  the length and swapping clips for buttons really count as pattern variations, and if I was not making a front split I would cut the front piece on the fold (omitting the seam allowance)