Tuesday, April 10, 2012

How To Tuesday: Bunny's Birthday Dress Tutorial

Last week, I made Bunny a dress for her little birthday party.
I looked at several patterns and tutorials, and ended up making up my own.


You will need:
1/4 yard of fabric for the top
1/2 yard of fabric for the skirt
Aprox. 14 inches of 1/2 inch to 1 inch ribbon in cordinating color
Coordinating thread
Lighter or matches
Sewing machine
Scissors
Pins


Loosely measure around your child's chest.
(Bunny's is 23")
Add two inches to the measurement and cut your top fabric that length.
(I cut 25") 


Set your sewing machine to the largest straight stitch possible,
and sew along the top of your skirt fabric.


Grasp one of your threads and scrunch the fabic down to create a gather.


Gather it until your skirt fabric is the same length as your top fabric.
Even out your gathering.


Folding your top fabric in half length ways, pin the loose edges to the gather of the skirt fabric.


Sew along pins, being sure to sew to the left of your gather stitch.


Fold the dress in half and pin at the very top and where the top piece and skirt meet.
Sew closed.
(If the dress ends up too loose in the end, this is where you can go back and sew it smaller.)


Trim any uneveness at the bottom of the dress.


Fold over the bottom of dress and sew.


With the dress still inside out, but the seam in the back, measure over three inches from the edges and and mark lightly.


Cut ribbon into 2 seven inch long pieces, and singe the ends with you lighter or matches.
Pin the ribbon over top of marks.


Sew along the entire top of the dress, going over the ribbons twice to secure them tightly.


Finally, trim any loose threads, turn dress right side out, and admire your work.



I liked this dress so much, I made more of them.
There is an endless world of possible fabric prints out there.


Posted by at 4/10/2012
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46 comments:

  1. LauraApril 10, 2012 at 9:02 PM

    Your daughter looks adorable in your dresses! Nice work!

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  2. FrontierDreamsApril 10, 2012 at 9:45 PM

    So sweet! Thanks for sharing over at Keep Calm Craft On!

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  3. MamaWestWindApril 10, 2012 at 10:42 PM

    So cute! Sometimes I wish for a little girl to dress in pretty things!

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  4. Michelle, Queen Behind the Lens!April 10, 2012 at 11:24 PM

    What an easy & cute little pattern! :) Thanks for visiting & commenting on my blog. Craft on!

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  5. BellaApril 11, 2012 at 1:31 AM

    Very cute dress tutorial!

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  6. suzanaApril 11, 2012 at 5:57 AM

    Lucky little girl and so charming dress!

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  7. Homestead LivingApril 11, 2012 at 7:12 AM

    How sweet! With 4 girls around here, we LOVE dresses...and this looks easy enough for my big girl to try. Thanks for stopping by my blog for a visit. :)
    Have a blessed day!
    ~Jennie

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  8. AnonymousApril 11, 2012 at 7:46 AM

    Ah craftiness of the sewing sort was never one I was able to get into! One day I need to try someone's sewing machine, I love the creations you can make from them. Beautiful dresses! -Nicole @ Working Kansas Homemaker

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  9. Memo BoxApril 11, 2012 at 8:16 AM

    Such a sweet dress and model. xxx

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  10. MelissaApril 11, 2012 at 8:37 AM

    Those dresses are so adorable! Oh to have a little girl!

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  11. NatalieApril 11, 2012 at 9:56 AM

    Lovely dresses...I especially like the second one...looks like it has strawberries on it, but they might not be. Don't you love when you find something that just simply works for you?

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    Replies
    1. HannahWApril 11, 2012 at 10:11 AM

      The first and last ones have bunnies and the 2nd one has MOD flowers LOL (It is actually called Flower Child haha)

      Delete
  12. mountain girlApril 11, 2012 at 10:15 AM

    These dresses are really sweet. And you made a doll dress, too! Awesome.
    I think you have the exact same wedding band as me...
    Mia

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  13. Sarah ~ Crafts from the CwtchApril 11, 2012 at 12:07 PM

    Very cute!

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  14. Crochet Addict UKApril 11, 2012 at 1:04 PM

    Love the dresses, they look fantastic! I wish I could sew!

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  15. SamApril 11, 2012 at 1:30 PM

    Your little girl is adorable, especially in those dresses!

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  16. UnknownApril 11, 2012 at 1:31 PM

    Those are very cute!!

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  17. Sue ~ Granny's WorldApril 11, 2012 at 2:14 PM

    Lovely little dresses. I miss dress making used to make things for my girls when they were little. Oh for a granddaughter

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  18. UnknownApril 11, 2012 at 3:11 PM

    So adorable, I hope I have a little girl to make dresses for at some point :)

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  19. SarahFayApril 11, 2012 at 3:25 PM

    The dress is totally awesome! The sewing machine and I are not of the best of friends. We have agreement that I use it only when absolutely necessary.

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  20. UnknownApril 11, 2012 at 3:30 PM

    I remember my mother making me dresses when I was growing up. Those jumpers are adorable.

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  21. MariApril 11, 2012 at 4:01 PM

    I so want to learn to sew! Cute!

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  22. MariApril 11, 2012 at 4:01 PM

    I so want to learn to sew. Cute!

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  23. MaryApril 11, 2012 at 4:02 PM

    What a beautiful dress! The fabric is adorable. I would love to be able to sew like that. :)

    Have a great day!

    Mary

    PS. Thanks for your sweet comment

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  24. JazzApril 11, 2012 at 4:17 PM

    It seems lovely, I'd like to know how to sew :)

    Thanks for your comment on my WIP!

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  25. Minding My Own StitchesApril 11, 2012 at 4:21 PM

    Very detailed tutorial ... now I only wish there was a little one somewhere in my life to make one for. I'm stuck with all nephews and grandsons, but I'm not complaining .... much.

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  26. Carolina22April 11, 2012 at 4:22 PM

    So lovely! I think my sister might like to make one so I'm passing along
    the info - thanks for posting it! And thanks for visiting my blog :)

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  27. behind the ivyApril 11, 2012 at 4:24 PM

    Beautiful dresses! They look absolutely darling on your lovely daughter. I love the pic of her with her glasses on, reading. So cute :)

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    Replies
    1. HannahWApril 11, 2012 at 4:57 PM

      Tehehe! She likes to swipe her Nana's reading glasses and wear them around making everyone giggle.

      Delete
  28. AnonymousApril 11, 2012 at 4:51 PM

    wow, that looks very simple! im sure she loves it!

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  29. AndréannApril 11, 2012 at 4:57 PM

    This is a very pretty way of doing dresses. That bunny fabric is so cute.
    My daughter loves to have a matching dress for her doll as well. I need to make a tiny ladybug dress :)

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  30. FreshyApril 11, 2012 at 6:16 PM

    So sweet and simple! My mom used to make dresses for our dolls when my sister and I were little. I have a feeling your little girl will have fond memories :)

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  31. KeriApril 11, 2012 at 6:57 PM

    What a great little dress. That simple enough that I might even be able to do that.

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  32. JenApril 11, 2012 at 9:20 PM

    Great tutorial! Thanks for sharing.

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  33. UnknownApril 12, 2012 at 3:23 AM

    Just gorgeous! My favourite pic is the one of her wearing glasses and reading the newspaper, gave me a little giggle. Thanks for your comment :)

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  34. Mrs H KnitsApril 12, 2012 at 3:29 AM

    Oh wow how cool, may have to think about this one for my God-Daughter.

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  35. LizApril 12, 2012 at 3:46 AM

    That is such a cute dress! :)

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  36. HanniApril 12, 2012 at 4:08 AM

    It is a lovely dress. Great job!

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  37. AnonymousApril 12, 2012 at 9:26 AM

    You did an awesome job. I love how your dress turned out. I wonder if I can make some for my girls. They are 13 and 9. I love to sew. I usually make culottes which I am so behind on lol.

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  38. maarnietvangrijsApril 12, 2012 at 1:13 PM

    Thank you so much for visiting my blog! Your dress looks lovely en your little ladie is adorable!!

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  39. The Little Blue HouseApril 13, 2012 at 6:23 PM

    Dresses are sweet. Thank you for stopping by my blog this week. :)

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  40. JessicaApril 14, 2012 at 8:37 PM

    So sweet! Just like you, I like doing my own thing better than following a pattern usually, for some reason it is less stressful for me! Thanks for sharing, she is adorable and so is the dress!

    Jessica @ www.prettyprovidence.com

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  41. The Mama Behind the StoryApril 15, 2012 at 6:52 PM

    This is so sweet!!! Thanks for sharing. :)

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  42. Holly @ Life as a ThrifterApril 16, 2012 at 8:54 AM

    What a sweet little dress! I'd love to try this! Thanks for sharing!

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  43. UnknownApril 16, 2012 at 9:46 AM

    I'm sure she loved having a dress that matched her baby. I love the picture of her reading. So sweet. Thanks so much for sharing at Whimsy Wednesdays.

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  44. Desire EmpireApril 16, 2012 at 8:43 PM

    What a lovely creation. You have a talent I would like to have too
    Carolyn

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