In the last post, I completed the skirt portion of the dress.  In this one we look at the bodice, bonnet and shoes.  Details make all the difference in sewing children’s clothing, especially little dresses and heirloom clothing.  I prefer to make my own bias binding and piping for my dresses, so, as you can see around the neckline, I used the skirt fabric to create piping edge.

To create the piping, cut 1″ fabric strips on a 45 degree bias.  Using a thick cotton crochet thread, fold the fabric strip lengthwise over the thread and sew a 3/8″ seam down the length of the strip, encasing the thread.  Perhaps I should do a tutorial on this next time…

Following the directions, I attached the skirt to the bodice and then made the button holes.

I just happened to have two flower buttons in my stash that worked perfectly for this dress.

See, aren’t they pretty?

The bonnet directions state that you should leave an opening at the back edge and, after turning right side out, you should slip stitch the opening closed.  This seemed counter-intuitive to me, since there was a scalloped lace edging that could easily be slip-stitched shut after turning the bonnet right side out.  The way the pattern shows the finished bonnet, there are raw edges exposed where the scalloped edges are, inside the bonnet.  It seems to me that this would not only be unsightly, but would not feel very good to the baby either.  See the photos below to see the directions and to see how I did it instead.

My method: I basted the edge of the lining along the scallop, clipped and pressed the edges.  Then I removed the basting and turned the bonnet right side out.  After that it was easy to line up the pressed edge with the scalloped edge and slip-stitch it shut again.

Right side out, lining side:

Outside of bonnet:

Completed outfit:

The shoes I will cover in a post sometime down the road.  This dress ensemble will be going on the Etsy shop as a custom order, so if you know anyone who would like this outfit for their child or as a gift, please send them my way 🙂

I hope you have enjoyed seeing the progress through the assembly of this outfit.  Let me know what you would like to see next.  I would love to use this blog as a way to demonstrate techniques, if I know them.  Just give me a shout.

Finally, here is a quilt that I have pulled out of the past projects pile.  It is going together quite nicely.  I can’t wait to have this one under my belt and on to the recipient.