Good day, all!
I was recently contacted by Amanda from Kitschy Coo, to see if I'd be interested in joining her Skater Dress Pattern Tour. Um, YES!
It came as a welcome break in what has been months of work on my own pattern making. I was more than willing to come up for air and sew for funzies for a bit!
That dress! That smirk! :D
When I got my serger a few years back, I went on a hunt for knits that were different and unique. So I feel like I owe everyone an apology when I tell you that this fabric is from eBay and I know nothing about its origins. Ack, I'm sorry!
I do know that it's a rayon knit, and it's delicious. And it's covered in the most ultra-specific array of flora and fauna from the high desert of the American South West. Lol. It was decided over on Instagram that the smaller purple fellow is the elusive javelina. Unique, indeed.
The Skater Dress is the perfect style dress to show off a fabric that you love. So perfect, that I finally pulled this fabric off the shelf after 3 years!
The skirt has a great shape - it's got a good twirl factor, but it's not in-your-face girly - which I definitely prefer for Emmy. One exception - her 3rd birthday dress. Doesn't get too much girlier than that.
Emmy is a beanpole. Her circumference has hardly changed since since she was born - she's just gotten taller (#iexaggerate). So knowing that, I decided to make her the 18-24mo size. She just turned THREE last week. Crazy, I know, but since this pattern is sized to fit over a 2 year span (um, awesome), I knew the 3t/4t would be too big on her right now, and I require instant gratification in order to get anything done in life. The 18-24mo is perfect! It likely won't fit her next summer, but that's ok - I have no objection to churning out heaps of these.
For the arm and neck bindings I used another rayon knit in a coordinating gold color that I couldn't believe I had, let alone matched as well as it does. I didn't go out to buy ANYTHING for these dresses - super bonus stash buster.
I also added an eensy sliver of the gold fabric along the waist seam. LOVE it. To do that, I cut two strips about an inch wide, and as long as the front and back bodice pieces, folded them in half lengthwise and serged them into the seam. Easy peasy!
Emmy loves, LOVES her Skater Dress!
And I'm telling you, this pattern is a breeze to sew. The instructions are great, especially if you're newer to sewing with knits. There are tips and helpful hints throughout. Amanda is a fountain of knit-knowledge.
So after this dress came together so quickly, I knew I ought to make Em another right away. She is really lacking in the dress department, and this pattern is just the perfect summer wardrobe builder. Throw-on-and-go is definitely our speed.
Here's a couple shots of the second dress:
This rooster print seemed like the obvious next choice, right? Haha :D
This is the sleeveless variation in another eBay knit from years ago (gah!#%#@!), with an emerald green rib knit binding. The rooster print is tissue weight - so thin, so soft - it'll be fantastic on sweltering hot days.
The rib knit I chose was a little too diesel for this lightweight print, and that made the armbands kind of stand up on their own! I love how that looks though, actually!
I again added the trim at the waistline, only this time I gave myself a smidge more width to work with, so the effect is a little bolder.
So there you have it - Skater Dresses of the Great Outdoors! :D
BLOOPER REEL!
That bottom left pic makes me laugh out loud EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. I look at it.
She looks like she's peddling some cheap wares in a back alley. So shady, Em.
Thank you so much, Amanda, for having me on the Tour!
And peeps, don't miss the previous and upcoming stops on the Skater Dress Tour:
There's LOADS of talent in this group!
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Have a great day, all! I hope Spring has finally sprung wherever you are!
