Hi! Rhelynn again. I’ve had my eye out for this pattern in a size 4 for about three months. I decided it probably wasn’t going to happen anytime soon – so I bought it in a size 6, and then went looking for a ‘close enough’ pattern to alter it from. I took the girl in the center for a fabric suggestion, and used what I had in my stash trying to get the look. She has been needing a longer torso length in her dresses, as well.
This is what I ended up with:
We have had numerous wonderful comments in public, and she likes it, too.
this was one attempt at capturing a photo of the back
for being detailed, this dress performs ‘in action’ better than expected
Just before Christmas I found this pattern in the right size! I was on my way.
All of the main pieces came from this pattern.
I did skip the gathered stay sleeves, which were a large part of the ‘vintage’ in the pattern. I knew they would be extremely impractical on my three year old — so I used the same cap of the sleeve in the pattern but made it longer using a ‘standard’ pattern piece I keep for sleeves. I used the original pattern to discern how large and how to attach the waist panel all around. In retrospect I should have used a much longer zipper as it was a tad difficult to get on even with the longest one I had in my stash. I like everything I make for her to easy enough getting it on, decent to wash in a regular clothes washer and to not constrict her natural movement. Those are my goals learning how to make clothes 🙂
I’ve got more in mind for this pattern — see more on this project and new attempts at KnitOwl blog.
Your daughter is adorable! You did a great job with the dress.
Darling! Tell your daughter thanks for modeling for us…
I love vintage children's clothing, especially anything that reminds me of things I wore as a child. And I'm quite sure that I had a dress like the second 8714 pattern, with the 3/4 length sleeves gathered at the bottom. For all I know, my mother made it from this same pattern! Fun…thanks!
Sarsaparilla: Thanks for the comment on the sleeves — there is still a chance I'll make one with them in the future. Did they get in the way during normal activity?