Although I have 3 girls fairly spread out in ages( 6, 4, 2) the hand – me -downs don’t always work out and at the moment we have a bit of a stockpile going on in Tillie’s wardrobe as she’s quite thin compared to keira and elodie so the clothes aren’t moving out that fast. I went through my fabric stash which is now colour co-ordinated but currently living in my spare kitchen and pulled out a few fabrics to make a few things. And fill out elodie’s wardrobe.
I love this pattern. Simplicity 5695. There are a few options so you can make it a tiered dress if you prefer.
It’s super easy and this took me under 2 hours from start to finish which is always a winner in my books. The big kids were running around with the hose outside and daddy supervising and I worked quickly to get this done.
Unfortunately my little model was having a real case of fighting the afternoon nap and refused to put this on. So I’ll leave it till tomorrow morning and grab a few pictures before church.
Oh and because I know someone will ask me, the fabric was bought last year at Spotlight in the quilting section. I know I’ve talked before about the fabric I use for sewing. I prefer to use quilting cottons for my girls dresses because the quality is so good. In the early days I would use poly/cotton from spotlight or lincraft but those dresses really didn’t last the distance. I find these feel beautiful and last forever.
This year I really want to use up more of my stash and all the gorgeous pattern books and patterns I have here before everyone grows up and doesn’t want to wear my clothes anymore……………..
oh and you know why else I love sewing? Because I can brag to retro daddy that this little stunner cost me less than $10!
That’s a cute dress! I have 2 girls 19 months apart and the oldest is very tall and thin and takes forever to grow out of anything (except the length) and my youngest (at least until October when No. 3 is due!) is the same. I really want to make them some dresses, but have to wait until they grow out of some because they have so many!
Beautiful dress! That fabric is gorgeous Corrie. I look forward to seeing a picture of Elodie in it
Cute dress – that’s my aim for the year, use all the good Japanese books and patterns I have hoarded, my twins are nearly too big for most of them.
Corrie, the little dress is so gorgeous: now Elodie is running around it will be perfect.
Gorgeous, exactly what I love in a little girls dress.
So pretty and not overly girly. My two girls are 19 months apart and the eldest is tall and thin but wears clothes three sizes up so there is a big gap between her hand-me-downs and my other daughters’ size who isn’t as tall.
I must use up my stash too this year ..
So pretty, Corrie. Although my girls were 2 years apart, they were a similar size by 4 and 2, so nothing got passed between them, although we often inherited from friends. It was lovely last week, sorting through my fabric stash, to find printed cottons I’d used for DD1 as a baby – and she’s 33 now!! LOL!
..got to be apply with that ! The fabric is gorgeous !
Such a sweet little dress! I have been using a similar style pattern to make dresses for http://dressagirlaustralia.blogspot.com.au/. It was my intention to bust my stash but now I find my buying girly fabric just to make dresses! I just can’t seem to help myself.
Absolutely beautiful Corrie! You are one talented Mama, Elodie will look adorable in this one. LOVE the colours and pattern of the fabric. Under $10 is incredible value for something so lovely. Can’t wait to see more of your creations xo
sweet. I just remembered my sis has this pattern. I have been wanting a peasant dress pattern in my stash – and I already do (since my sister and I share all our resources!) She has made up the tiered version and it looks really cute. Suz
Lovely cute dress, I agree with you about the fabric, use it for bags and boxers and always washes much better than polycotton etc. Looking forward to seeing the pics of Elodie wearing this dress.
Corrie you amaze me. With five little ones you still find the time to sew and cook beautiful things for your family? That’s dedication and determination for sure!
Brilliant! I like the idea of using patchworking fabric – they always seem to have the prettier designs anyway. I’m feeling inspired to clear off my tiny sewing table and make some dresses – and to actually finish them before my daughters grow out of that size!
I just want to say I love your blog! Recently discovered it, but love it…and wish I had little girls to sew for. My son LOVES LOVES LOVES his quilts though!
This is a lovely dress Corrie and I really love the fabric. I agree that quilting cotton is the best. So many beautiful designs to choose from too. My girls are pink obsessed now but occasionally I can convince them to wear another colour. Usually by using reverse psychology
Thanks for posting this and the pattern number. I looked forever last year for a pattern like this and couldn’t find one online so ended up making it up. It worked out okay but I would still rather have a pattern, it will make it easier to make it again in a different size. I’ll be buying this pattern for sure!!
And a question – do you (or any readers) have a special foot on your sewing machine for doing gathering? I saw one for sale for my Janome machine but it’s quite expensive. Just wondering if they work beautifully and thus save a lot of time, or if they are fiddly or hit and miss to use?
Elodie’s dress is so lovely, love the monochrome fabric… I see so many gorgeous bright colours amongst the quilting fabrics! I had a lot of fun sewing for my DD, who is now 32 and showing no sign of having children so no sewing for littlies for me for now!
PS… just after I wrote the last post, I read Wendy Yates’ post and am now looking at her link to dressagirlaustralia. Woohoo, lots of little girls to sew for!
This is a little stunner of a dress! Love it and the material too
Well done you! This is amazing! Hoping I have a little girl at some point so I can copy you. Mind you I haven’t seen a sewing machine since my mum stitched on my Girl Guides badges (I make that 21 years ago!) x
I’ve used this pattern and love how quick and adaptable it is. A tip for you though: as she grows, watch the underarms on this dress like a hawk!! It doesn’t take long til it becomes too tight. When that happened, I turned it into a skirt
Howdy just wanted to give you a quick heads up and let you know a few of the pictures aren’t loading correctly. I’m
not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different web browsers and both show the same results.
This dress looks gorgeous – lovel the fabric. Just thought I would mention that I too have a little girl that grows taller but is slimmer so doesn’t grow out of her clothes very quickly. I have made this same dress in a variety of fabrics but without the bottom frill, so now that she is too tall to wear it as a dress she can now wear them as a top!