While I was going through my stash trying to decide what I could bear to part with for my upcoming giveaway, I came across a metre of this interesting, fruity cotton seersucker. I recall buying it a few years ago from Lincraft, mentally earmarking it for a dress for my daughter - but then I forgot. So I decided to make hay while the sun shone - and while a metre was still enough - and whip up a shoulder-friendly 6 year old's dress.
I used a cute little pattern that I assume I must have come across in a second hand store a while back as lately I'm not coming across too many patterns I particularly like. The 70s silhouette doesn't appeal to me for myself (not sure why not - when I see it on other people I like it!) but I love it for kids. The pattern is a size 12 though, so I had to grade it down to a size 6. By "grade" I mean that I placed it against the Burda dress pattern that I recently muslined (see, it was worth it!) and re-drew the pattern so that the shoulders, armholes, chest width etc aligned.
I added side seam pockets, an essential for a play dress, and kept as much length as I could with the constraints of my single metre of fabric. A ruffle on the bottom would have made it better too...
If you come across this pattern and decide to make it, the pattern instructions don't seem fantastic. I followed them to start with, but the steps they describe give an unnecessarily messy finish on the inside (not photographed) - the seams where I was doing what I was told are not concealed between bodice and facing as I think they should be. It's annoying, but then this is just a kids dress that will probably get trashed over summer :).
The shoulder ruffle was very popular in the 70s: I know I used to wear this shape of dress when I was knee high to a grasshopper or thereabouts. Cotton seersucker was pretty popular too. So I think this little dress will be joining a couple of vintage sewing challenges, just like my 1940s dress (TMS and Fall for Cotton).
See you soon
Gabrielle x
