A Christmas dress for my little Abigail! This is the first Candy Castle pattern I've used, after eyeing them for several years! It's the Princess Dress.
(sorry for the quality of the photos - it's dark, I haven't learned my flash properly yet, and she was not patient for long!)
I made the size 3T slim, as she measured perfectly for that size. There is only just enough ease in the dress though, so wondering if I should have done the regular 3T.
I found this fabric a couple of months ago - bought it from a lady who owned a dress shop and was going out of business. It's an iridescent satin, sort of silvery-blue with a matte back, and she had this matching crinkle-textured satin, also with a matte back too. I think I paid about $12 for 4 yards? So I was able to mix up the textures and contrast a bit in the layers.
The only stitching on the outside of the dress is the ruffle hems and the buttonholes. I wanted a beautiful finish for the gorgeous fabric, so I was careful to understitch or just press where needed.
The sleeves are also hemmed by hand.
The neckline is very pretty. I think it I were to make this over I'd go with a slightly higher neckline though, as when she moves around much it slides a bit low for my taste. Also, the sleeves are a bit close to the body so the dress lifts up a lot when she raises her arms. I think this is probably due to the sleeve head shape, a touch steep, maybe.
I didn't do bows at the back, thinking they would just be crushed when she sits. Not sure if you can see (this shiny satin is incredibly hard to take a nice photo of!), but I spread the gathers smooth at the point of each swag to keep the ruffles flat there.
Sad little Missy - turns out the inside is uncomfortable, probably the serging at the waist seam. I thought that might happen and now I wish I had handstitched the lining of the bodice over the seam as I've done in other dresses. Guess she needs to wear something under it now, or maybe I can figure out a way to make it smoother inside.
