Do you sew for your kids? I rarely sew for mine... only special occasion clothing. The reason I'm asking is that Mikaela had her first school dance tonight. I'd been searching high and low for a cute dress pattern. I was looking for something that's age appropriate for an 11 year old, that she would actually want to wear. It seems like everything I came across had that "Little House on the Prairie" dated look... SIGH. I could tell that I would really have to use my imagination to make this happen. I know some of you are asking, "Why didn't you just buy a dress"? Good question, LOL. Well, Mikaela preferred that I made her dress because I made Amber's homecoming dress, remember? If you have kids, I'm sure you understand my dilemma.

I decided to go with:

I changed the bodice of the dress because I felt the original was a bit plain and boring. Instead of adding the plackets to the front, I joined both pieces together.

I created a tuxedo type ruffle and added a ribbon to it and sewed it over the center front seam. I then sewed on the buttons. As you see, the neckline has elastic. Speaking of elastic... something I found completely useless was having an "elastic guide" pattern piece. That was just ridiculous to me. We sewers are more than capable of measuring and cutting. Just tell me how long it should be and let's keep it moving.

I really love the sleeves! They were such a fashionable and trendy detail. They were finished with a 5/8" hem. Elastic was also added at the waist. A casing was formed with the waist seam. And the dress was finished with a 5/8" hem also.

We decided to accessorize the dress with leggings and ballet skimmers. She loved the dress and it was very simple to make!