Hi Everyone,
Lockdown sewing continues, and although the restrictions in our part of the world are being lifted somewhat, life has still not returned to normal. I have had this dress idea for Kezia (11) for some time now, and as I am trying not to sew too many fancy things for myself, why not fill my desire to sew pretty things by making something for my only child, hmm?
The embroidered tulle was purchased quite some time ago from one of my favourite eBay sellers, The Textile Centre. It was a 2 metre piece, which was enough to cut this dress. I essentially treated the fabric as a directional border print, and cut the bottom of the skirt and the front bodice at the selvedge were the embroidery was more predominant, and placed the rest of the pieces towards the middle of the fabric where the embroidery was less. Overall, I am happy with the placement. You will notice that I have left the edges raw and I used a three thread overlock finish on the seams. French seams would have been pretty for sure, but I don’t have the patience to do those for a growing child 🙂
The bodice of the dress is made using Peppermint Magazine’s ruffle sleeve top, which I have made once before for myself (see here). I modified the bodice as follows:
- I cut a size A
- I raised the dart by 1.5 inches
- I cut the pattern off at the waist
- I changed the front neckline from a V to a round neck
- I added a centre back seam to the back piece
- I omitted the half lining and finished the neckline with bias binding
- I took a wedge out from the centre back (1″), tapering to 0.5″ at the side seams and to nothing at the front bodice
- I did a simple turn and stitch in the back to create a slit opening, closed with a thread loop and button. The fit is easy enough to pull the dress on and off
The skirt is a simple rectangle, gathered, and attached at the waist.
For some reason, that little red button makes me happy 🙂 Even though with all that hair no one will probably ever see it!
The slip dress that you can just about make out underneath is the True Bias Ogden Cami, which I have blogged about for myself (see here), and which I have made for Kezia before (but not blogged). From memory, I think this is the smallest adult size with no real modifications. For the slip dress I simply added 27 cm of length to the cami at the lengthen/ shorten lines.
The fabric for the slip is a silk/ acetate blend that I found on Fabworks. I did sample first and got lucky with the colour match. 1 metre of fabric was just enough to make this work!
I am so happy with how this turned out. Kezia also loves it. Now we just need some occasion for her to wear it!
Stay safe.
sewmanju 
What a gorgeous daughter, Manju!
Yes, and the dress you’ve made for her is magical. 🦄
Well done on all fronts! 😉 ❤️❤️
As ever, thanks Del.
So Beautiful. The dress and your lovely daughter.
Great choices of fabric and patterns. Maybe a family tea party in your own garden!
Thank you Pat!
LOVE this! Wonderful use of this fabric and so beautiful on your daughter!
Thank you Andrea.
Beautiful dress!
Thanks Joan.
Absolutely gorgeous. Your daughter must be chuffed to bits with it.
Thanks Beth. She loves it but she hasn’t yet had a chance to wear it. Soon I hope!
So beautiful! Your daughter is lucky to have such a sewista mama!
Thanks Cheri.
So gorgeous. Amazing!
Thank you Kay.
Lovely, lovely dress! Your daughter looks wonderful in this garment!
Thank you Terry.
Stunningly beautiful dress. I wish my daughter would entertain designs like these, but it’s all t shirts and leggings at the moment.
Thanks. My daughter is quite the fashionista in the making. But every child is so different!
Absolutely gorgeous
Thank you Aileen.
Manju, this is ABSOLUTE GORGEOUSNESS!!! 😍😍😍😍😍 An outfit like this might have actually gotten me to wear a dress at that age. Love it.
Thanks Abbey!
Beautiful! I would wear that in a heartbeat! I love the colours and it looks so beautiful on Kezia. Life is an occasion so wear it anywhere I say.
Thank you so much.
The prettiest dress I have seen in ages!
No wonder Kesha likes it..
Sorry Kezia…..not Kesha!
Thank you Margaret.
Oh,my gosh! She is a delight on the eyes in your magical dress! Probably the nicest thing I’ll see today.
Thanks so much Barbara.
Such a beautiful dress and a sweet girl. A lovely make.
Thank you Christine.
Beautiful daughter and outstanding dress!!! Kezia is a very lucky girl with a talented mom like you!
Thank you Jackie.
Beautifully made with the lace over and the under dress! Perfection!
Thanks Linda!
Gorgeous! You are so talented. Your daughter is very lucky to have such a talented and loving mother.
Thank you. She is the apple of my eye 😉
This is so pretty! I am amazed and inspired by every post I read. I love how you customize every pattern, too. I never really did that when I sewed.
I recently got out my sewing machine and made a bunch of masks and found a pattern I had cut the fabric, still pinned to the pattern, but never sewn.
I’m looking forward to finishing that project. I don’t even remember starting it! Love your blog, thank you for sharing your projects.
Thank you Lisa. Glad you enjoy reading my blog.
Oh my goodness, this is absolutely gorgeous!! Hope your daughter enjoys wearing it.
Thanks Lynne. She hasn’t had a chance to wear it yet! I hope she gets one soon!
What a work! The embroidery is so balanced in colors and motifs. The dress is exceptionnal. Good job!
Thank you Nolwenn.
Beautiful!
Thank you!
Oh wow, how utterly gorgeous! You did a beautiful job of making two already lovely fabrics more than the sum of their parts.
Thank you so much!