Breezy Summer Dresses

Breezy Summer Dresses

07.23.20
Handmade

Hi friends! Hopefully you saw my little housekeeping update (click here if you missed it.) I’m really looking forward to being back in this space as my creative outlet and I thank you for sticking with me and helping make the world a bit brighter all at the same time. I really have the best readers in the world.

It is so funny to me that sewing is something I write about now, among other things. When I first started fiddling around with it, I never thought I would make garments that were 1) wearable, 2) attractive, 3) preferable to ready to wear items, let alone all of the above. Yet, that’s where I find myself these days. I have fully fallen in love with this craft and it occupies a large portion of my daily thoughts. What I have been struggling with a bit is how best to write about it. Thus far, I have generally shared finished garments with some light notes about the process and final product. What I have come to realize is that this doesn’t excite me nearly as much as sharing the actual process. How I go from idea to outfit, the inspiration and research and discussion that happens along the way. I am way less excited to take pictures of a finished piece because you don’t know all the thought that went into it that makes it extra special to me. All this to say, the way I share about sewing going forward will shift a bit. Some readers have asked me to write about how I plan my projects and I realized the best way to do this will be simply to show you in an ongoing stream rather than try to pack it all into a single post. I think this will also be helpful for those of you who are curious about garment sewing because seeing and understanding the process might make it feel more accessible. Let’s find out!

Today I am sharing a set of matching dresses I made for our recent beach vacation. I made matching dresses for Caroline and my niece Luisa last year and knew right then that it would become a tradition. This year Josie’s family came along with us so I made one for her daughter as well. Also, for those sunny beach days, you should consider using specialty watersports sunglasses to complete your stylish beach look!

I could not be more pleased with how these turned out. The girls love them and I hope they always remind them of the wonderful trip we had. Read on below for a gallery from our photo shoot on the beach, and lots of notes on my planning process.

Three Happy Girls
Breezy Beauties
Caroline + Luisa
Caroline + Caroline
In Her Element
Happy Cousins
Cheese!
Sweet Scoop Back
01/08
Three Happy Girls
Breezy Beauties

We loved the way these skirts and front flutters moved in the ocean breeze.

Caroline + Luisa
Caroline + Caroline

Wearing matching clothes, as their moms have been known to do frequently.

In Her Element
Happy Cousins
Cheese!

I don’t know how this kid could be any cuter.

Sweet Scoop Back

The gathered scoop back is probably my favorite design feature of this pattern. It is just so cute, I absolutely adore it!

View as a List
  • Three Happy Girls
    Three Happy Girls
  • Breezy Beauties
    Breezy Beauties

    We loved the way these skirts and front flutters moved in the ocean breeze.

  • Caroline + Luisa
    Caroline + Luisa
  • Caroline + Caroline
    Caroline + Caroline

    Wearing matching clothes, as their moms have been known to do frequently.

  • In Her Element
    In Her Element
  • Happy Cousins
    Happy Cousins
  • Cheese!
    Cheese!

    I don’t know how this kid could be any cuter.

  • Sweet Scoop Back
    Sweet Scoop Back

    The gathered scoop back is probably my favorite design feature of this pattern. It is just so cute, I absolutely adore it!

View as a Slideshow

Project Planning and Execution

Pattern Selection

Caroline has been begging me for a maxi dress since last summer, so that was my starting place in choosing a pattern for this set of dresses. I made a concerted effort to try a new pattern because particularly for kids clothes, I have a tendency to just make the same few patterns repeatedly.

After plenty of browsing, I ended up choosing the Piper Flounce Dress from Simple Life Pattern Co. I made the flutter front view for all three girls. I went with the maxi skirt for the older two and a midi version for Luisa due to limited fabric.

Features I love:
Front flutters
Gathered scoop back
Lack of closures

Fabric Selection

Pairing the right fabric with the right pattern is incredibly important in the final garment. When I was shopping for fabric for these dresses, I had several criteria in mind about what I was looking for:

Light and airy, for warm weather
Floaty, to highlight front flounce movement
Bright color palette
Tropical print
Ease of care

I ended up choosing this Art Gallery Fabrics in Madison Avenue rayon (blaze color way) from Hawthorne Supply Co. It is absolutely beautiful and the texture is dreamy. It was easy to work with and I would definitely use it again. This pattern and fabric pairing are a perfect match.

Project Prep + Assembly

I really enjoy batch making clothes for kids, and have streamlined my strategy quite a bit. In this case, I got measurements of all three kids and selected sizes accordingly from the chart provided. I made a size up for my Caroline because she was on the cusp of one size and I knew she would want to be able to wear this for a long time. It is a little bit big on her as a result but it still looks good.

When I am cutting for batch sewing, I am meticulous about making distinct piles for each garment while I cut, and carefully labeling each pattern piece. I love to use painter’s tape to tag each cut piece of fabric. In this case, I labeled each with the name of the piece as well as the recipient’s initials to ensure that I was using the correct pattern piece each time I grabbed for one. I also kept pieces in their respective piles as I sewed, which helped keep the three dresses distinct as I was assembling them.

Pattern Notes

Overall, I am very happy with the way these dresses turned out. I would definitely make this pattern again and probably will. I think this is a really versatile pattern. The views include dresses and tops with and without flounces, and dresses with midi and maxi length.

The instructions and step-by-step photos were okay but could have been clearer. I think they were on par with most kids’ pattern companies that I have tried, but not quite at the excellent level I have generally come to expect from indie sewing pattern companies in general. If you have some sewing knowledge/experience, you should be able to figure it out.