KCWC Day 2 - T Shirt Dress x2

I am not sure what came over me when I bought these shirts.  Now I remember, they were on the sale rack at Target.  The green is a pretty but an odd color and once I got home I wasn’t sure if I would ever be able to match them up with something.  As luck may have it I bought some of the Tula Pink Price Charming fabric line not even thinking about these shirts and when I went digging through the stash I found that they matched up perfectly. 

Originally I had planned to make either a skirt or pair of shorts to match the top but A has been on a dress kick recently so I though I would make my girlies some matching dresses.  Oh, I have to fess up.  I also have one of these shirts in a size 5T so I will probably make some matching shorts for A when she grows into that size and has decided that she wants to wear shorts all the time. 

To cut the shirt I measured 4” down from the armpit and then cut it all off with my rotary cutter and ruler. 

To figure out the length of the skirt portion I just measured a dress that fit each girl from the chest to the bottom of the skirt and added 2 inches for hemming and attaching to the shirt. 

I used the full width of the fabric and positioned the seam in the back.  If you are making this in a bigger size or want the skirt to be a little fuller you can take 2 pieces of fabric and just have the 2 seams on the side matching your shirt.  Just and FYI: I usually use about 1.5 times the width of the shirt to find my measurement for my skirt fabric.

I serged and hemmed the bottom of the skirt and then gathered the top up to attach to the t-shirt.  I attached the skirt and top with a straight stitch on my regular sewing machine and then I used my serger to neaten up the edges. 

For the sash I just used white Kona cotton that I had from my stash and cut three 3.5” pieces the width of the fabric.  I took the first strip and cut it in half and sewed it together on the long sides.  I turned it right side out and pressed it flat.  This will be the main part of your sash that goes across the front of the dress.

The second two strips are going to be used for ties on each side of the shirt.  I cut each one of the straps in half, cut one end on an angle and then sewed them together leaving just the short flat end open.  Cut the seam down along the angled end and turn your straps right side out and press. 

This is the only place that gets a little bit tricky.  I measured the center sash to fit the front of the dress just covering the seam where the shirt and skirt match up.  I added about ½” to each side and then took each side sash and attached it to the center piece. 

I pressed the seam allowance towards the center strap and then pinned the center sash on the dress just covering the skirt seam.  I stitched along the perimeter of the sash on all 4 sides attaching the center sash to the skirt panel and to the shirt making sure to keep the seam ends tucked under towards the center. 

I finished both of the girl’s dresses last night and it probably took me about 45 minutes for the each dress. I will probably sew some white bike style shorts for A to put under her dress when she wears it to school and make a matching diaper cover for M.

Tonight I plan to start on the Clever Charlotte Flutter blouse.  I have been putting off sewing it because it seems like it might be a little above my head but I am jumping in with both feet and ready to start it up.