It’s about time I shared a tutorial for a mini me dress, isn’t it?!
One of my all time favourite projects for myself has to be this DIY cross back dress. Not only because I like the lines of it, but also because it is SO easy to make! It’s honestly one of those projects you just want to make again and again. So, naturally I was going to make a mini version of this wasn’t I? The best thing about tiny clothes is they are incredibly quick to make. You’ll become addicted!
You need
- Fabric (we used around one metre/1 yard for this)
- Sewing machine
- Elastic to match your child’s waist
- Needle and thread
- Two pieces of thin rope
The Pattern
I made the dress using the pattern and steps from this tutorial, although I altered the bodice. Below is the very simple pattern I used to make this dress. It’s essentially a gathered skirt with an apron bodice attached and then two cross back straps. Note that you need two bust panels and if you want to turn your straps inside out for a clean finish you will need two pieces of fabric for each. You can also use velvet or grosgrain ribbon for your straps too which takes out the hassle of sewing them.
How to
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Make your gathered skirt and bodice. Then sew the bodice to the inside of the skirt. - Make your gathered skirt and bodice. Then sew the bodice to the inside of the skirt.
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Add the straps to the bodice. - Add the straps to the bodice.
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Sew the belt loops for the straps. - Sew the belt loops for the straps.
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Add the little bows. - Add the little bows.
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Loop the straps through the belt to secure at the back. - Loop the straps through the belt to secure at the back.
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Done! - Done!
How to
- Cut your fabric out using the pattern above.
- Make your gathered skirt by sewing a tube, hemming one side and threading elastic through the hem of the other side.
- Sew your bodice by simply pinning the two pieces of fabric together and sewing around three of the sides, leaving one of the short sides open. Alternatively you can make the bodice using one piece of fabric hemmed on the three edges, but I think it looks nicer this way.
- Turn the bodice inside out and iron it flat.
- Using hand stitches, sew the bodice to the skirt, attaching it on the inside along the open edge, making sure to stretch out the gathered skirt as you go so that the bodice matches up properly.
- Make your straps by sewing two pieces of the fabric together and then turning them inside out. Or use ribbon as we mentioned above. Cut two small sections of strap for the loops at the back.
- Stitch the straps to the inside of the top corners of the bodice.
- Sew the two loops of the extra strap (or ribbon/rope) to the back of the dress, one on each side.
- Finally, I added two little rope bows!
Voila!
I made three of these with my little nieces and they loved them! It was really fun to do the making together. They wore little t-shirts underneath them for a bit more coverage.
