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Hi,

I am making my friend’s daughter’s matching fairy tale dresses (view B) to wear to their brother’s first communion. My friend picked out a beautiful Liberty Tawna Lawn fabric. I am thinking of underling the dress as well as lining it to give it a little more body. Any advice would be appreciated, I have only underlined fabric before when I…[Read more]

The Upton would be great!

Hello there Heidi😄

Thanks for the reply. Yes I think they might’ve felt a little overdressed last year judging from the comments in the newsletter. We didn’t purposefully go looking for dresses over the summer holidays but as we were walking through Myer she made the comment of “I like that one!” To a black and red fit and flare on the mannequin.…[Read more]

A fit and flare dress is silk would beautiful and appropriate for the situation. If you already have a pattern she likes (and optimistically fits) that is quite casual making it out of silk will bring a simple design into appropriate for 14 year old “cocktail” style.
I suspect the “cocktail” specification is to prevent some girls turning up in…[Read more]

What about using the Building Block Dress book to draft a collar of your own to fit the cape? A fur Peter Pan collar would be adorable!

Jane H, I’m not sure if I can help you. I made an unlined wool version. (It was a gift that I sent and requested but never received a pic, so I don’t have one.) It looked very much like this, though:

http://www.tessuti-shop.com/products/black-wool-binding

…which I was pleased with, but it isn’t really what you’re going for, right(?) But if…[Read more]

The Little Things To Sew Cape has a good already and is probably closer to the swingy shape of your inspiration image.
Or, if it’s a fur/fake fur collar you’re wanting, then how about a removable faux collar. Makes it easier to wash the Cape if needed.
You could use a collar shape from the Building Block Dress Book and have it tie at the back, and…[Read more]

Hmmmm link doesn’t show up. I wonder why?
I guess I did it wrong above. Here is the link.
Jane H.

Hi,
I saw this photo on Pinterest and would love to make your cape and add the collar. Any ideas on how to do that?

I tried coping the link and pasting it in Google search and it worked for me. I hope it works for you!!
Thanks.
Jane H

Hi Martha,

You can use the bodice hem of the basic Building Block Dress pattern as an estimated waist, but you’ll want to check it when doing a fitting with the muslin to be sure it’s accurate. Everyone is different, so it’s helpful to check and adjust as necessary.

Cheers,
Liesl

I think the smallest size of these that I’ve made has been the 18-24 mo size, but I can definitely confirm what Todd mentioned above – I made a pair for a costume in some cheap, thin jersey with minimal stretch and they were like sausage casings compared to the same-size pairs I’d made out of nice interlock for PJs.

The pattern should be correct. There’s a good deal of negative ease here to account for a knit fabric with at least 25% stretch. They should fit to that body measurement fine. Did you use a knit with at least 25% stretch? That could be part of the issue.

Did you check your seam allowance?

I just finished the leggings in size 12-18 months, and the waist is only 16″ on the finished garment. However, the back of the pattern envelope says 20 1/2 ” for body measurement. These are way too tight. I’m not sure what I did wrong.

True story! They were super helpful over the phone, sent me big enough swatches to judge the hand, held my yardage for 24hours while I talked to the bride. It wasn’t my first time doing business with them but certainly my first being so needy!