GUEST Post ~ Wild Flowers and Whimsy ~ PLAY DATE DRESS ~

When I posted THIS POST, asking for help, and then sent an email to my bloggy friends, I never expected so many people to respond.I am blessed with wonderful friends, and I had a ton of ladies, who were more than willing to keep you all entertained while I get better, or get some sleep, or paint my garage, whatever, he he. The point is, I am SUPER LUCKY, super THANKFUL, and SUPER excited to introduce you all to April from 

April has been one busy mama, have you guys heard of the SPRING FLING, just a 14 day giveaway, that is wrapping up tomorrow actually!!! Yup, April put that baby together. She also puts together the CUTEST little girl dresses, and has tons of patterns she loves to share on her blog. Naturally she also has an ETSY shop, that sells pretty cool stuff too, so check that out asap. Her blog is FULL of great crafts, tutorials, linky parties, GIVEAWAYS, and more, so make sure to go say hi. Oh, and just so you all know, how awesome she is, her power was out, for a while, and she was stressed trying to get me the code for this post, she asked a friend to get in touch with me, and we kind  of communicated like this for a day or two, and she still managed to get me the code. That's determination, I love it. She surely puts me to shame, I'd just as easily said sorry babe, powers out, can I do it later, he he. JK, I would never do that, lol.

SO my dear APRIL, please take it away, and show us what you got!!

Hi!  I'm April from Wildflowers & Whimsy!   I am super excited to be guest posting here today!

What I want to share with you today is my Play Date Dress.  It is super simple to make...it's basically a glorified pillowcase dress and you will be able to make both the pink and blue versions using this tutorial.

What you'll need

About 1 yd of fabric

1/4" elastic

Cording or Ribbon (optional)

These measurements will fit roughly a 3t and are to make the blue dress.  If you need a different size or want to make the pink version here's how to figure out your measurements:

For the width multiply the chest measurement by 1.75

For the length of the dress measure from the nape of the neck down to the length you want then add 2.5" for the pink option or 4.75" for the blue option.

Cut

2 - 20" x 26.75" (front & back of dress)

2 - 20" x 5" (front & back collar)

2 - 20" x  2" (belt casing)

2 - 30" x 1" (belt)

Use a shirt or pattern piece you already have to cut a "J" shape for the armholes or you can just wing it....it should be about 2" x 5"

Finish sides of front & back of dress(zig zag, over cast, or serge)  Pin the dress front and back together at the sides with RS facing; stitch; press seam open.

Finish the arm holes and fold them.   Fold them over and press...using starch makes it waaaay easier....stitch down.  I prefer to use bias tape to finish the armholes but I didn't have enough fabric to make any and I didn't think the packaged ones would look good with this fabric.

Stitch the short sides of the front and back collar pieces together with RS facing to form a tube.  Then, press the seams open and press the bottom up 1/2".

Fold the dress and collar in half and finger press a crease at the centers.  Then, line up the creases with the RS of the collar facing the WS of the dress; stitch all the way around the collar using a 1/2" seam allowance.

Open out the collar and press the seam up.

Fold the collar down, so that it just covers the stitching; press and pin in place as you go.

Edge stitch at the bottom of the collar,  leaving about a 2" opening.  Then stitch, 1/2" above that to form a casing.

Note:  If you want to make the pink version skip down until the insert elastic step...

With RS facing, stitch the short ends of the belt casing together.  Press the seams open.  Finish both the long raw edges.  Fold them over to meet in the center; press.

Mark the center front of the belt casing and make two 1/2" button holes  1/2" to the left & right of the of the center of the belt casing. 

Measure from the bottom of the collar down 11" and draw a line across the front and back of the dress at that point.  (If you are doing a different size measure the back-waist length..from nape to waist...and add 2"...give or take depending on the size you are making)

Lining up the seams, pin the belt casing to the dress with the top edge just below the line you drew

Edge stitch the top and bottom of the casing to the dress.

Stitch the short sides of the belt together.  Press the seam open.  Then, fold it in half with WS facing and press.  Zig zag, overcast, or serge the raw edges together.  Then, insert the belt into the belt casing using a safety pin.

Cut a 12" piece of elastic (for different sizes I would measure the neck with the measuring tape coming out onto the collar bone and use that measurement to cut the elastic) and insert it into the casing in the collar.  Stitch the ends together.  Then, edge stitch the opening closed.

Turn up the hem 1/2"; press.  Turn it up another 1.5" and press and stitch.

Done!  I hope you liked it!  I would love see your version if you make one.  Drop by and link it up to my Sew Crafty Saturday Party!

THANKS SO MUCH APRIL, that was the cutest dress.
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