Wovens To Knits Featuring the Perfect A- Line From Tie Dye Diva
/In today's Wovens To Knits post, Rachel shows you how to make the Perfect A-Line dress from Tie Dye Diva out of knits. If you are new to knits, or are just looking to stretch your pattern dollars this back to school month, this could be the perfect project for you. This pattern is available through Tuesday the 8th as a discounted bundle for $9.95 including both size groupings HERE, or, if you prefer to purchase split sizes you can find the Baby version HERE and the Girl's version HERE. Before you checkout, be sure to use the code BTSFASHION for $1.50 off any purchase (exp Tuesday 9/8 at noon Pacific). If you're not a member already, join the fabulous Tie Dye Diva Facebook Group for the latest releases (there's one coming today along with a fab post for the Riley Blake Back to School Blog Tour. ....ssshhhh, don't tell her I leaked it), sales, and inspiration!
Hi again, Rachel here with this month’s Wovens 2 Knits! Ever have one of those projects that works out exactly as you’d envisioned when you started it? It doesn’t happen too often for me, but this was one of those unicorns and man, I love it. My little lady started kindergarten this week and seems to be in a big hurry to grow up. :( We *might* say this was my attempt to keep her looking young and sweet just a little longer. Don’t get me wrong, I’m so proud of the big kid she’s becoming...but first it’s tie sneakers and next thing I know it’ll be high heels. Waaaaaaaahhhhhh. (Ok, I’ll pull it together now. ;) )
Anyway, we don’t have school uniforms here but I’ve been checking out all of the back-to-school posts lately and have been really drawn to the cute and classic twill jumpers. I thought it could be a good theme for this post, and starting thinking patterns and fabrics. I went with the Perfect A-Line Dress for Girls from Tie Dye Diva in a size 4 with added length (based on my girl’s height and chest/waist measurements), and it was a great fit. The pattern is drafted so that it’s fully lined and reversible, but I opted to use a shorter lining that extended about 4” down from the underarm. I stitched in the ditch along the side seam to keep the lining tacked in place, and when I turned the dress to topstitch, I rolled the lining just a touch toward the outside so the bright red peeks out like piping. This is an easy, straightforward sew that would make a great beginner project, too!
I know I’ve mentioned this in previous Wovens 2 Knits posts, but when you’re using knits for a pattern that’s been drafted for wovens, the easiest way to help the translation go smoothly is to use a stable knit that is going to cooperate and not be too drapey to help keep the shape of the garment. I considered using navy ponte knit for this, but I wanted to keep the clear a-line of the pattern and thought the ponte still hung a bit too much. I settled on this great sweatshirt fleece from Girl Charlee instead; it’s a poly/cotton blend with minimal stretch. It was the perfect match as it held the dress’ shape really nicely but still stretches just enough that I could skip the buttonholes and the dress pulled right on over Miss P’s head, too. Oh, and it’s awesomely soft and cozy inside, too. I used red cotton/lycra knit from Purple Seamstress for the lining so it didn’t add too much weight to the jumper, and the big wood buttons are from Pick Your Plum (and engraved with Made by Mom. *melt*).
Since our jumper isn’t an actual uniform, my girl and I thought it needed some embellishment. We settled on an applique, using Wonder Under with scraps of knit and a free template for an apple that I printed from Google. I didn’t technically do a Free Motion Applique, but the sewing world’s obsession with this technique is getting me good so I sewed over my stitching a few times for emphasis. The heart buttons were added last because Miss P always thinks things “need something else.” Tim Gunn would shriek EDIT!! at her if he had the chance.
This isn’t our usual style for kids’ clothes, but this was a huge hit in my house and I know it’ll make its way into the wardrobe rotation when the weather cools down a bit. While I was taking pics, I couldn’t help but think that my grandmothers would have said “now THAT’S how little girls should dress!” And what do you know, I texted a pic to my mom and received that very message in return. Mission accomplished!
Until next time,
Rachel
