Dresses 8, 9, 10 and 11 - Sweetheart Stripes

Dresses eight through eleven are called Sweetheart Stripes, with fabric again provided by Monica.   I would like to share her website with you, The Fabric Bird Link   She has a lot of wonderful fabrics for sale, take a look.

She sent me two yards of this adorable double border print. 
The first thing I did, was cut the fabric into 4 pieces, each with a bordered edge.  The pieces measured approximately 36 inches wide and 22 inches long.  According to the DAG chart, this would allow me to make four size 3-4 dresses.

I decided not to add any contrast color to the hem as this pattern is busy enough with all the stripes.  Since these are small dresses, one six inch pocket is fine.  The best and quickest way to make these dresses is by assembly line.

After ironing, I hemmed all the dresses.  Next I sewed up all the backs with French seams.

I chose a green floral print to make the pockets, since I didn't make a contrast color band around the bottom.  I trimmed with pink rick rack and a pale green button.   Here I gathered all my supplies and cut the trim, elastic and bias tape ties.





 







I found a great template for pockets.  You will need to buy chocolate and eat it all first.  Yum!  Its Merci chocolate, and comes in a flat 6 1/4 inch square box.  After consuming all the chocolate (remember, its for a good cause), cut the front or the back off.  Its a perfect size!

Next I cut all the armholes using the "small" template.   I turned

down and ironed all 8 casings, and inserted the elastic, front and back.  I made sure to sew over the elastic several times at each end to prevent it from coming loose.

Next, were the bias tape ties.  I used light pink for two, and a darker pink for the other two.  Finally, I sewed on the pockets, lining them up with the pink heart row near the bottom.   Don't forget to add your DAG tag!  I put mine on the opposite side from the pocket, near the hem.

Here they all are, hanging from my china cabinet.  I think they turned out pretty cute!