Simple Dress tutorial

Hello! I spent an hour this afternoon making Gabby a simple dress, I got my inspiration from my friend, Rachel. She made some adorably dresses for her daughter, Isabel and her friend.

Anyway, since they are so easy I figured I would post a little tutorial for those non-sewers who might like to attempt one, they make a fabulous beginner project.


1. Aquire a knit t-shirt. Long or short sleeve, either will work just fine. Cut it down to the proper length for they type of waist that you desire. This one was supposed to be empire waist length, but it came out a bit longer.



2. I used a current dress of Gabby's that I knew was the length I desired, and measured the skirt off of it, just make sure to leave about 1-1.5 inches for seam allowances.


3. Fold the skirt fabric so that the "right" sides are together.

4. Sew up the open end with a straight hem.

That is what it should look like...

4. Do a loose gathering stitch. I did mine by hand, I find it easier then messing with the sewing machine settings.


5. Even out the gathers...

6. I forgot to take pictures of this step before I sewed it, but you can see the basics. Stick the skirt and shirt right sides together. In this picture, the bottom of the skirt is sticking out the neck hole of the shirt.


7. This is just an example of how to pin the pieces together. I like to put some pins horizontally to help hold the gathers, just make sure that you placed them below where you seam will be, otherwise it will cause issues. I also placed some pins vertically just to hold the pieces in place, these ones are ok to sew over.

8. This is what it looks like when finished(mostly). I did a double-rolled hem(fold and iron once, fold and iron a second time). I do about a half inch hem, so you would need to leave one inch of additional fabric when you cut it out(plus additional for the seam that connects the skirt and top).
Another picture of the ironed hem...





And enjoy! (don't mind the messy floor)
So cute!