Desert Rose by Caila Made

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Today we take a look at the adorable Desert Rose Dress from Caila Made.  This sweet little number offers a scoop front neck line, a placket with two buttons, and skirt measurements to have a dress or tunic length garment.

This is perfect for the transition to fall!  Layer leggings and a cute jean jacket or cardi and you are all set for dropping temperatures.

Here are Crystal and Carrie to show off the pattern and tell you all about it!

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Hi there! It’s Crystal, from Stitched by Crystal, and today I get to share a pattern from a new designer with you!  Caila has been around the blogging world for years; her blog Caila Made is full of great tutorials, beautiful sewing projects, and fabulous photos.  The Desert Rose Dress & Tunic is her very first PDF pattern and I am excited I get to tell you all about it!

 

This sweet little dress features a bodice with a scoop neckline, with one or two buttons in the front, and a gathered skirt.  It also has the option of adding some little ruffles to the front neckline.

 


I sewed up this dress in a size 18 months with a little extra length on the skirt for my small 2 year old daughter using a cute bicycle print I have been hanging onto for a while.  This dress pattern is great for play, but can also be dressed up a bit if you use more formal fabrics and add the neckline ruffles. 

 

Here is the lowdown on the Desert Rose Dress & Tunic…
  • The pattern is for sizes 3 months through size 8.
  • This pattern can be made in dress or tunic length and options for a straight or a line gathered skirt.
  • Fully lined bodice with enclosed seams and instructions for an optional lining for the skirt.
  • Options for neck line ruffles and side seam pockets.
  • Professionally digitized pattern pieces.
  • Excellent instructions and really great pictures for every step.
  • There is a materials list and list of suggested fabrics in the pattern.  This pattern can be sewn with a lightweight woven fabric.
  • There is a chart for fabric requirements for each size.
  • There is a size chart to help you determine which size to sew for your child and it also includes the finished measurements of the dress.
  • The pattern has a glossary of terms.
  • An illustration for cutting layout is included.
  • The whole pattern prints on 15 pages, or you have the option to just print the bodice and use measurements given in the chart for the skirt.  The bodice prints on just 3 pages, then there are 2 additional pages to print, one for a small facing piece for the skirt and one for the test square to check your pattern size.
  • This pattern is a quick sew and it is something an advanced beginner could tackle.
  • If you plan to sell dresses from this pattern, the designer asks that you purchase a sellers license from her shop.
  • Need inspiration?  Caila has made lots of beautiful Desert Rose dresses and she has some gorgeous pictures of her cutie pie in them in the pattern!
 

My daughter was between sizes and I sized up as suggested in the pattern. Overall, the dress fits great but, I found the neckline to be a bit low cut on her.  Next time, I will either size down or add the neckline ruffles for a more modest neckline.
 

The front of the skirt has a small slit at the top with a facing.  I was a bit worried about how the slit would look on the front of the finished dress and was thinking maybe a small bound placket would be better.  But it turned out just fine, you can’t even tell the slit it is there when the dress is buttoned and it is a huge help in dressing my wiggly toddler!

 

This dress is a great addition to my daughter’s wardrobe! It is perfect for the hot weather we have almost all year round, but it will be really cute layered for winter too.  

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Hello! I’m Carrie, from Beri Bee Designs, here to share with you all a review of the Desert Rose Dress and Tunic from CailaMade. As the name indicates this can be made in 2 different length options, plus an optional ruffle along the neckline and pockets. This has a great range of sizes, going from as tiny as 3 months (oh how it makes me wish I had a baby to sew for!) up to size 8.


One aspect of this that I really liked was it has a page guide so that if you only wanted to print the pattern pieces for the bodice (since the skirt is just rectangles) it gives you the pages to print and then the measurements for the rectangles to cut. Ink is a hot commodity around here so the few pages to print the better!  It also explains that you can mix and match the sizes if you have say a taller, slim girl like I do. For this tunic, I cut the size 4 bodice based on her chest measurement but used the size 5 skirt pieces to be sure it was long enough. After finishing, I probably could have gone with the size 5 bodice to have a bit more room under her arms but overall it was a great fit.


I was a little nervous about the front buttons, and how it would attach to the skirt but the directions were so clear, and really made it super easy.  I also LOVED how the dress was finished on the inside. It has a nice professional finish, enclosing that dreaded seam to attach the skirt, which is great especially for those little ones that think everything is itchy...mine included!


This was a pretty quick sew. I had everything cut and sewn together in about 2 hours total. With a newborn and going back to work, quick is exactly what I need so I can tell you we have a few more of these in the works!



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