There’s nothing so exciting as the first day of school, and to commemorate it I decided to sew my daughter a new tunic for the occasion! You may recognize these fabrics from some previous projects I’ve made for my daughter. Yes, I’ll admit, I went a little crazy with this chambray and sewed All. The. Things. from it. Well this is officially the last project from this chambray!
For the sewing pattern I mashed up elements from several different Oliver + s patterns; the main bodice is from the Playtime tunic, the sleeves from the Hide and Seek dress, and sleeve tabs from the Jump Rope dress all sewn in size 4 width 5 length from a gorgeous indigo Balinese handwoven Ikat and the much loved Kaufman union chambray in indigo.
Girl showing some modeling ‘tude 😉 I made a few modifications to the pattern pieces themselves to get the fit I was after. The playtime tunic has wide shoulders, so I trimmed off about 1.5 inches to the width there so the seam was near to her shoulders. I also shortened the hide and seek sleeves slightly so they hit just above the elbow.
Instead of topstitching a collar design onto the dress I opted to construct an actual collar which I stitched on around the neck like an appliqué. In hindsight I would have constructed the collar a bit differently, but I was figuring this out as I went so mistakes were inevitable 😉
For the sleeve tabs I doubled the length of the jump rope pattern piece to allow them to wrap completely around the cuff and hold it in place.
In keeping with my heirloom sewing streak, I used some lovely mother of pearl buttons which I’d bought off of Ebay.
And now for some action shots with her backpack!
The backpack I made several years ago from lovely Heather Ross Far far away II. I love getting use out of old projects!
Preschool success!
Back to school sewing is so much fun to do! What school clothing have you been sewing for your kids?
lilypadmontana 
Oh my goodness, this dress is just divine! I love your mash-up – it’s like the best of three different patterns, combined into something perfect and special! And her backpack! And her modeling ‘tude! Great dress and great post!
Thank you so much Inder! I have to agree, mash-ups are pretty awesome! I had to LOL at that model shot of Lily. Pretty much all of her pictures were of her making the most horrible faces she could concoct.. and then BAM.. model shot.
what a clever mash-up! I completely adore this dress – the style, the fabrics, the fun collar. Love how you took the different pattern elements and put them together so skillfully – the end result is truly a beautiful outfit! I think I might need to get some of that chambray when my fabric fast (no fun!) is over – you’ve made such beautiful things with it!
Thank you so much Lucinda! Oh my, a fabric fast? That sounds truly dreadful! I have I feeling I may need one of those though 😉 I can’t say enough about this chambray; I’m sure you’ll love it as well!
this is so great – the fabric, the combination of patterns – i just love it!! oh and the shoes, i love those livie and lucas! 🙂
Thanks Gail! I hear ya, Livie and luca shoes are my favorite. Where were shoes like that when we were kids?
what a beautiful outfit for a gorgeous girl.
Thanks so much Sherry!
I am in love with this dress! So pretty!
Thank you Olga!
Gorgeous dress and your little girl is adorable!
Thank you 🙂
This is so, so beautiful! Love the back pack too! 🙂
Thanks Val!
[…] is a Playtime Tunic with Hide-and-Seek Dress sleeves and Jump Rope Dress sleeve tabs. It was Amanda who put it all together and she also made other little adjustments to get the look she […]