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5.02.2010

The Darby Dress

This post is part of a month long series called 'Pattern Makeover Month.' I took a simple pattern (The Sweet Dress by Leila and Ben) and 'made-it-over' into many different styles. For more information, go here.



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Headed to the County Fair. . .

Cut the dress top using the dress pattern. Cut several inches below the underarm seam line and add about 1/2 inch to the neckline. For the neck sash, you will need one strip measuring 4.5 inches by 45 inches. For the skirt, you will need LOTS and LOTS of squares. For my ~almost~ two year old, I used 4 inch squares-- 82 of them. For a size 5T I would probably use 6 inch squares (55 total squares). For the in between sizes, you will have to do some math.

Length from couple inches underarm to hem, divide that by 4. Add 1/2 inch for seam allowance. That number will be the square size.

To find the number of squares you need for each tier, use the following:

Tier 1- 40 inches/square size = number of squares needed
Tier 2- 60 inches/square size = number of squares
Tier 3- 90 inches/square size
Tier 4- 120 inches/square size

Whew! That was a lot of math for one tutorial.

Okay, back to the sewing part. To make the sash, iron all four edges in by 1/4 inch. Fold in half, wrong sides together and iron. Topstitch around the sash.

For the top of the dress, sew the two sideseams. Iron the armholes in 1/4 inch and then another 1/4 inch making a rolled hem edge. Iron the neckline down 1/2 inch and then another 1 inch. Stitch your rolled hem edge on the armholes, then stitch at the bottom of your neckline casing.

To make the skirt, begin stitching the squares together. Use the measurements you found in the math portion to make the length of the tiers. (For example, on the 12M/2T size I made, I used 31 squares for the bottom tier, 24, 16 and 11 for the top tier.) Sew them into one long strip for each tier. Finish the bottom edge of the bottom tier with a rolled hem. Then gather the top of the tier to match the bottom of the third tier. Stitch together and finish your seam. Continue adding the tiers up to the top tier. Then stitch the skirt together in a circle, matching your seams as you go. Gather the top of the skirt piece and attach to the top of your dress.


After all that math,
I am in the mood for a corn dog and some cotton candy.
How about you?




Making



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26 comments:

felicia said...

Oh my gosh! How beautiful! I can't imagine how long that took to cut out and make. But the end result is worth it!

BlondieBlueEyes said...

SO INCREDIBLE!!! I love it.

leigh7911 said...

Holy crackers. This is adorable!! Also, however do you get her to leave the bow alone?! My kiddo would have that undone in a flash. :)

* a i s y a h * said...

Wow! A lot of hard work you've put into that! Good Job! ;)

Ange Moore said...

What a stunning dress and that last photo is awesome!

Unknown said...

I love this one! The colors are all amazing together.

Roger said...

Oh so cute and adorable little thing! I love the quilt style!

Jenny said...

this dress is so stinkin' cute!!

Heather said...

Gorgeous! And I love all of the "Katie Jump Rope", I love that line!

The Sewing Dork said...

Oh my goodness, when do you sleep? I absolutely love it!

Jessica said...

I love the patchwork skirt, adorable!

Angela C. said...

Cute! How do you still have ideas?!?

accoupons at gmail dot com

Pattij said...

This is a very cute twirly dress! My granddaughter would just love it!

Natalie said...

Awesome! You are a whirlwind.

Unknown said...

I'm a huge sucker for anything patchwork. swwoooon!

Eve said...

I love this little flower child dress! ESPECIALLY with the KJR prints.

Beautiful.

Janna said...

The MOST gorgeous!!!

Christie said...

Gorgeous dress!

Anna said...

I love this dress and have a 5 year old niece that would be perfect in it!

Garilyn S said...

That is sooo cute! I think I'm going to have to plan this dress or a version of it VERY SOON!

Valerie Miller said...

Oh My Goodness, this is the cutest little hippie dress, I LOVE IT!!

Star @ A Load Of Craft said...

Really cute! And it even looks do-able! Thank you :)

Sylvie - Madame Créative said...

This dress is lovely! Thank you for the tutorial!

Mary Beth @ Live. Laugh. Make Something said...

absolutely delightful! full of charm! Please accept my invitation to drop in at my place when you get a moment. I have become a follower and would be honored if you choose to do the same! until later...

Anonymous said...

so so so sweet! I may get motivated enough to do patchwork for this one!

Megan @ Megity's Handmade said...

LOVE! Do you think I could make this work for a seven year old?? Also, I didn't quite understand how you made the top. Is there a pattern that I need?