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For my Baby A’s 2nd birthday party later this month, I’m planning a “Bake Shoppe” themed party. I decided that I’d pick a theme this year because it would be my very last chance. Now I know that from age 3 onward, my little girl will want to choose her own theme… and it will probably be princesses. (Not that I dislike princesses, but one gets a little tired of them… know what I’m saying?)
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Easter seems to be approaching really quickly this year (and it is coming quicker quite literally since it’s in March this year). I’m really not sure I’ll be able to sew my two girlies Easter dresses this year which makes me sad – it’s been a tradition so far in our little family! Plus, I have such wonderful memories of my mom sewing me Easter and Christmas dresses, and she has memories of her mom sewing her and her sisters dresses. It’s in the genes!
However, I did make a couple of frilly Easter dresses for both my girls last year, and I simply didn’t have the time to write about them (I think it had something to do with getting used to having two kids). I thought I’d share them with you today just in case you’re gearing up for some Easter sewing and are in need of some ideas (and maybe I’ll motivate myself here – who knows)!
I made a dress for my then 3 year old and my then 3 month old. I wanted them to coordinate, but I didn’t want them to match exactly.
I used two patterns from the wonderful book Cute Clothes for Kids by Rob Merrett (I encourage you to buy it – it’s one of those great resource-type sewing pattern books that you can use as-is or you can use the patterns as a base for your own creations).
Little C’s dress (the older one) was based off of the “Teatime Treat” dress pattern in Cute Clothes for Kids, and the only things I changed were adding a ruffle to the hem and a double ruffle to the bottom of the apron piece.
The pattern was easy to follow and look how cute the tied sash is at the back!
Baby A’s dress was based on the “Spring Orchard” dress pattern in Cute Clothes for Kids. I added a ruffle on the hem and used snaps instead of buttons at the shoulders (only because that’s what I had on hand at the time and I wanted to finish these!).
I used the “Tweet” fabric line from Timeless Treasures for these dresses, purchased from Fabric.com – my favourite place to buy fabric online.
I was really happy with the two finished Easter dresses for my little girls. They had a vintage flare to them because of the fabric style and mix, and they coordinated but weren’t exact duplicates.
Just for kicks, here’s my silly Little C in her dress from last year – it’s a wee bit snug, but she still looks like a princes don’t you think?
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by Christina Dennis
My good friend asked me to help her make a Tinkerbell fairy costume for her little girl’s fourth birthday. We started with a gorgeous little green tutu made by Whimsical Elements, picked up some bright green satin from a local fabric shop, and she also snagged a $6 extra small women’s tank top in green. I ended up altering the top and making a little leaf apron skirt to tie over the tutu. I was happy with the results, and my little girlie was more than happy to model the outfit! Here’s how I did it and how you can too:
Materials:
Directions:
From the satin, cut out a front and back for 4 large petal shapes (mine were 8″ by 7″ and I eyeballed the shape) and 3 smaller petal shapes (mine were 8″ by 7″). Cut out a 6″ wide strip across the entire width of the fabric (your fabric will probably be 54″ to 60″ wide) for the sash.
Put the petal pieces right sides together, and sew around the two sides. Turn over & press.
Press the 6″ wide strip in half lengthwise wrong sides together, and then press the two raw, long edges in 1/2″.
Arrange the larger leaves side-by-side with the top raw edges aligned. Place the smaller leaves on top, over where the larger leaves meet, as pictured above. Pin in place and sew together about 1/4″ from the raw edge.
Measure your child’s waist to find out how long you want the waistband of the leaf apron to be, and then gather the tops of the leaves to fit. In this case, I wanted the skirt to measure 21″ long.
Tuck the leaves about 1/2″ into the waistband you’ve previously folded and pressed. Pin (a lot) because satin is slippery!
Press the short ends of the waistband inwards and press (so there are no raw edges showing on the ends of what will be the tie). Sew the layers together with a topstitch about 1/4″ from the open fold of the waistband, sew the tie ends shut at the same time (as shown below).
For a matching top, find a green tank top that’s your child’s size (if not, you can do what I did and alter a women’s small tank top by taking in the shoulders and sides). Make small leaves in the same manner as the large leaves made for the skirt (mine measured about 2″ by 3″). Pin them together side-by-side, gather them, and then turn the raw edges in, pin, and stitch to the neckline as pictured above.
To wear, simply have your girlie slip on the tank top and a tutu and tie the leaf apron over top. Cuteness!
I'm Christina - a DIYer and decorator living on the Alberta prairies in a home we built ourselves. My goal is to inspire you to create a cozy home and life you love!
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