Made by Rae Geranium Dress

Details

• Pattern: Made By Rae Geranium Dress plus Expansion Pack
• Fabric: quilt cotton
• Size: 12 to 18-months
• Modifications: none

I recently found a local fabric store that has a ton of excellent quilt cotton fabrics. I wanted to show my husband, so during the Christmas holiday, we went. While meandering around the store, I found the perfect fabric to make an Easter dress for a friend’s little girl. I needed 1 ½ yards of fabric.

As a garment sewer, I prewash ALL my fabric. Could you imagine sewing up a dress in size 12 to 18-months, washing it, and it shrinks by an inch evenly? The 12 to 18-month size is now a premie size!!!!! I came home, and without double checking my yardage, I washed and dried my new Easter fabric.

As I was getting ready to cut out my dress, I noticed how little fabric I had, only 1 yard. The fabric was still 42″ inches wide, so I figured the shop gave me 1 yard instead of 1 ½ yards, so I had to go back and awkwardly see if I could get 1 ½ yards. I was dreading it…

Let’s just say I probably won’t be going back to the shop anytime soon, because the owner was trying to mansplain to me that: (1) no one pre-washes fabric anymore, it is dumb to do so; (2) fabric can absolutely shrink by 18 inches in one direction; and (3) I’m a dumb girl who apparently doesn’t know how to handle fabric.

Sigh!

I love the dress though, don’t you?!

When constructing the dress, I made a few changes. I used my serger to finish the raw edges of the hems, then I just folded over the hems once and not twice. I wanted to reduce bulk as much as possible.

I also used my serger to finish the waistband as well. After attaching the skirt, to the top, I used my serger to finish the raw edge, then I pressed the seam up and topstitched it down. It works. I love the hidden seam shown in the instructions, but I’m lazy and didn’t want to do it that way.

Instead of buttons, I used Kamsnaps for the back. I think the Kamsnaps are easier when dealing with a squirmy toddler.

This wasn’t the first time I washed fabric before double-checking my yardage. I don’t know why I’m so negligent when it comes to confirming my fabric yardage. Lesson learned lesson learned, hopefully!!