Little Miss Dressy would like to show you how to make a dress for your Kruseling. Here’s how the pink and white stripe, long bodice dress with lace skirt was constructed. It’s part of the Spring season range.
For this dress, the bodice is a loose fit because it falls to the hip line, which is wider than at the chest.
To start with, the 3 bodice pieces are cut for the outer and lining fabrics. These are then sewn at the shoulder seams and seams pressed open.
Next, the skirt was constructed by sewing 3 layers of lace flat onto an underskirt piece of lining fabric. Then the side edges were overlocked.
Next, the bodice sections are placed right sides together and sewn, as indicated by the red tacking stitches in the photo. The curved edges of the neckline and armhole will need to be notched carefully, so that the bodice lays flat after it has been turned to show the right side out.
To turn the bodice right side out, you need to pull the back side piece through the shoulder out to the front and this is easier if you use forceps like these.
At this stage the bodice will need a good iron to flatten the edges around the neck and arms. Sorry, I forgot to take a photo of this part, which would have explained it much better.
Next, sew the side seams together by first matching the underarm and pinning together. Being so small and fiddly, I always tack the sides before machine stitching.
I found a great YouTube video by Handmade By Ditsy-Tulip showing how to sew the side seams of a lined bodice.
Next, the skirt section is gathered. Two rows of stitching are sewn at the top edge using a long stitch length (I use 5.0 on my machine) and the cottons are pulled at each end to gather-in the fabric. Care is taken to do this evenly and I use heavy weights to keep the small skirt in one place.
The bodice piece and skirt section are then ready to be stitched together. The centre and edges of the bodice and skirt are pinned together first, and then I use a weight to keep it in place while pining the rest.
I tack the pieces along the seam’s edge and remove the pins before machine sewing them together. At this stage it is only the outer fabric of the bodice that is attached to the skirt and not the lining.
The final stage is to hand finish stitching the bodice lining to the skirt, add the Little Miss Dressy label and sew on the neck fastener to the back.
Here’s our Kruseling playing in her finished dress.
Little Miss Dressy 