a few moths ago I was on etsy looking at vintage patterns, just browsing not really intending on buying anything, when I came across this pattern, DuBarry 2132B. my niece was over so I showed it to her and she freaked out. it was so cute! I asked her if she wanted me to make it for her birthday. she excitedly told me yes, and so I ordered the pattern. then came the finding of the perfect fabric.
I first bought a solid color fabric in a teal color a bit lighter then the green dress on the pattern, but that fabric didn’t work out. when I pre-washed it I didn’t like the way it reacted, to the washing and drying . the fabric wrinkled badly and was really staticy. meaning it would need to be ironed and rolled every time it was washed something I knew would not happen. so I ditched that fabric idea (I’m going to use it in something else.) and decided to try to find something else.
at the fabric store I searched for the perfect fabric but couldn’t decide what to get I had pretty much decided, when I put it back afraid it would be something she didn’t like. my niece is getting older which means she’s not quite as easy to shop for, bubblegum pink just doesn’t do it anymore. so I asked her mom if they could meet me at the fabric store. the best thing is when they got there after spending probably an hour looking at all the fabric she chose the one I chosen. I do know my niece! yea!
now to the cutting and sewing.
the ruffles were not bad at all to make. I have a ruffle foot and can I just say I love it! I had to make four yards of ruffle which means I needed eight yards of straight fabric to be ruffled. and anyone who has had to make that much ruffle knows it can be a pain.
I also put the ruffles on different then they said too. they wanted me to sew them on facing up, then press it down to cover the raw edges. I thought doing it that way would probably cause the ruffles to stick back up every time the dress was worn, and again the pressing thing, so I opted to sew them the way I wanted them to face then added the ribbon detail to cover the raw edges,plus it gives that extra little pop of detail.
the main part of the dress I put together just the way they told me to.
the sleeves I did slightly different only because its easier to serge on the binding at the bottom of the sleeve rather then the folding the bias over the raw edges, I always mess that up. I also added the ribbon to the sleeves for a pop.
the bows I did completely different. they had me make strips then they wanted me to actually tie them! I’m not the best at tying, so after some trial and error, that had to do with math, I figured out how much shorter the strips needed to be to make a different kind of bow. its basically sewing at the center, pressing then making a little tab to wrap around it. pretty easy but takes a while simply because of the small size of them.
the fabric we chose was wonderful to sew with, there is something to be said about buying the higher quality fabrics they really do sew nicer. as I was sewing the dress I decided I was totally jealous of my niece and when I was finished and looked at the dress I was still jealous. I love the way it turned out. I loved the puffed sleeves and the big bow in the back, I love the shape of the dress and I want one too. too bad I’m not good enough to rework a child’s pattern to fit me.
there is nothing better then when people love what you spent so much time making them.
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