The toddler summer dress DIY

I'm going to attempt to explain how to make a basic, just below the knee jumper dress. It's easy to get on and off, easy to wear, and can be made from almost any fabric you please. Once you can make this dress, it is easy to adapt it to add sleeves, or different pockets or necklines. The possibilities are endless, and will surely be a topic of a future post. Good luck, and please send feedback if you try my tutorial! This is my first one!

Step 1.       Draft a bodice pattern.

You can do this using a shirt or dress that fits your kid, or you can learn how to draft a bodice using measurements at ELDELAYMI or download one for 18 months to 5T at Climbing the Willow. The Climbing the Willow blog has a lot of great stuff and is worth a look if you’re learning to sew. The bodice pattern I use is very similar to hers, with a couple of small differences. I would suggest though, that you may need to go up a size, because my daughter is a petite 20 month old, and her 2T size fits her perfectly. For the purposes of this tutorial, I am using an 18 months sized bodice pattern.

Step 2.       Choose your fabric.

Lightweight woven fabrics work best, like cotton or linen. Cotton/poly blends are nice because they don’t wrinkle as much, but 100% cotton feels better. You need about a quarter to a third of a yard of fabric for the bodice and the same of lining fabric. I often use different fabric for the skirt to make it interesting, but it would still work great if you used the same fabric. For a knee length skirt, you’ll need a 23”H X 20”W piece of fabric. If you want it to be poofier, you can add several more inches to the width. 

Step 3.       Cut the bodice and lining pieces. 

Make sure your fabric is square (information on squaring here). I usually line up a square quilting ruler along the selvage, then cut a straight line across the bottom. When you lay out your fabric, make sure the selvages (the finished edges) are on your left and right, rather than on top and bottom. The fabric is stronger that way. Fold the right side of the fabric over lengthwise at least 6”, more if you are doing a larger size. Once you are sure your bodice pattern pieces will fit, press the fold. Cut two front bodice pieces and two back pieces on the fold. If your lining fabric is different from your outer fabric, cut one front and back from each. There are other options for finishing the neckline and armholes that I’ll talk about later, but it keeps it simple to have the bodice completely lined, and I think it’s more comfortable for the kid.

Step 4.       Cut the skirt pieces.

I like to have a band at the bottom rather than a hem, though sometimes a simple hem looks good too. It depends on the fabric, but I think it’s pretty much always easier to do a band than a hem, and with some topstitching it looks more professional. So, for a knee length skirt for a 12-24 month old (you may want to adjust the length for your kid, just measure from waist to knee), the skirt should be about 9” long. The band is 4” long so that when you fold it in half lengthwise and allow for seams, it adds about 1 ½” to the skirt length. Then subtract the band length from the total skirt length to determine length of the main skirt pieces, which would be 9" - 1 1/2" = 7 1/2". Cut two pieces that are 7 ½” X 20”. Then cut two 4” X 20” pieces for the band. 

Step 5.       Cut the pockets.

I like the pockets to be about 4 ½” X 4 ½”. You can certainly make them bigger or smaller, or leave them off, or check out Behind the Hedgerow to learn about the many, many pocket options. I’m going to do simple square patch pockets on this one. Cut two 5 ¼” squares of main pocket fabric and two squares of pocket lining fabric. Often, I coordinate the pocket fabric with the bodice.

Step 6.       Draw the back keyhole button closure on the back bodice.

Mark the center of the back neckline on the wrong side of the main bodice back piece. This is easy if you pressed your folded fabric before you cut the bodice pieces. Draw a dot straight down from that point 5”. Now mark 1/4” on either side of the top center mark and 1/8" on either side of the bottom mark. Draw lines connecting the top and bottom marks and connecting the two bottom marks. You will be sewing along these lines in the next step. I am using a different dress for the photo for this step because the photo for the other dress didn't turn out so great. 

Step 7.       Sew the bodice pieces to their lining pieces.

Align each bodice piece and its corresponding lining piece, right sides facing. Mark about 2” from the shoulder on the neckline and the armhole (see the photo, it’s confusing).

On the front bodice/lining, sew between the Xs on the neckline and down the armholes all the way to the underarm.

On the back bodice/lining, don’t forget the keyhole opening. Again, I have to use a different bodice for some of the photos, but the black makes it easier to see anyway. For the opening, sew down one side...

When you get to the bottom mark, pivot the fabric 90 degrees, sew across to the other bottom dot, then go back up the other side. Stop 2-3” from the top and backstitch.

Cut down the center 2” or so, between the two lines. Cut a 2” piece of elastic cord or use a small hairband, make a loop with the elastic and sandwich the loop in between the two pieces of fabric about 1” from the top neckline seam, with the ends sticking out past the raw edges about 1/8”. 

 

If you want to use a particularly large button, you may need a longer piece of elastic, and you may need to place it farther down than 1”.  Finish sewing across the elastic, go back and forth a couple of times to secure the elastic, then continue sewing the neckline to the mark (see above photo).

Sew the armholes the same as the front bodice. Cut the back opening almost all the way down, being careful not to clip the stitches. Then clip the corners to make a triangle at the bottom (photo below left).

Clip the seam allowances in the armhole and neck curves (see above right photo). Turn the front and back bodice pieces right side out.

Press the back opening flat and topstitch around the opening 1/8" from the edge.

Step 8.       Sew the shoulders together.

Follow this crafterhours tutorial. It’s very difficult to explain, and she does a great job, so why reinvent the wheel? You’ll see why you stopped two inches away from the shoulder seam in the earlier step. Here's what it looks like after!

Sometimes I have one shoulder that is wider than the other. If this happens to you, turn it back wrong side out and see where you went off track with the seam. I've had to resew both the neckline side and the armhole side before to get it just right.

Step 9.       Sew the side seams together.

Put the outside fabric right sides together and pin, then fold the lining pieces up so the right sides are facing too. Pin along the lining pieces. Sew all the way down, making sure the underarm seams between the bodice and lining stay aligned. Serge or zigzag the seams.

Now your bodice is all finished! Press it so it looks beautiful!

Step 10.   Prepare the pockets.

Place the pocket and lining fabric pieces right sides together. Sew together, starting near the middle of one side, and pivoting around corners. Stop about 2” short of where you started so you can turn the pockets inside out. Repeat with the other pocket.

Trim the corners and turn right side out. Push out the corners. Press flat.

Step 11.   Sew the pockets to the skirt.

Choose one large skirt piece and lay it out right side up. Place a quilting ruler so that it is creating a line 2” up from the bottom.  Measure 3” in from the side, and place the pocket along the ruler so it is lined up straight. Pin the pocket down. Repeat for the other pocket.

Sew 1/8” from the edge down the side, around the bottom, and up the other side. Backstitch back and forth several times at the beginning and end so the pocket doesn’t come loose with use.

Step 12.   Sew the gathering stitches on the skirt.

Across the top of the large skirt pieces, sew gathering stitches. This basically means sew about ¼” from the edge across the top with the longest stitch length your machine allows. Some people say you should sew two lines ¼” on either side of your seam allowance, like in this Instructables tutorial. You sew two because one might break. And you can sew your seam in between the two gathering threads, then remove the gathering threads.  I’ve been lazy lately, and I just sew one line most of the time, and I luckily haven’t broken any. If you have a problem with thread breakage, this technique seems awesome, thanks Niler! If you aren’t using the fancy way, start the gathering stitches without backstitching on either end, and allow at least 3/8” at the beginning and end for the skirt's side seam allowance. Leave the threads long at the beginning and end for pulling. Move the long threads out of the way.

Step 13.   Sew the side seams on the skirt and band.

Sew the large skirt pieces right sides together. Then sew the band pieces right sides together. If you have a serger, serge the seam also. If not, zig zag stitch along the seam to prevent fraying. This seam is exposed on the inside of the dress. Be careful not to cut off the gathering threads from the previous step when serging.

Step 14.   Pin the skirt to the bodice and gather.

Lay down the bodice right side out. Place the skirt wrong side out and upside down around the bodice. The skirt is much wider than the bodice at this point. Line up the side seams and pin on both sides. Now start pulling one of the threads on either side. Choose one, the front or back threads and be consistent. I’ve heard that the back thread is generally easier to pull, but I haven’t noticed a difference. As you pull, move the gathers over to even them out across the skirt. Be patient. If you’re having trouble, don’t force it or the thread will break. Sometimes this can be very frustrating, and sometimes it can be the easiest part of the dress. Once you have gathered the skirt to the same width as the bodice, place several pins to hold it in place.

Step 15.   Sew the skirt to the bodice.

Sew a 3/8” seam allowance around the pinned skirt and bodice. Go slowly and make sure the gathers don’t bunch up as you go. Serge or finish the seam.

Step 16.   Sew the band to the skirt.

I like a band at the bottom of a dress or skirt because you don’t have any visible seams on the bottom of the skirt. Fold the entire band (both pieces sewn together from Step 13) in half lengthwise wrong sides together and press. Similar to how you placed the skirt on the bodice, place the band around the skirt upside down (if your fabric is directional, pay attention here!!), raw edges lined up. Sew around, then serge or finish the seam. Press the seam up, and topstitch 1/8” above the seam. Topstitching isn’t necessary, but it looks great.

Step 17.   Sew on the button.

Choose a sweet button for the keyhole closure and sew it on where it belongs. I hate sewing on buttons, but I love finding awesome vintage buttons at thrift stores!

The dress is done! I love this dress because it is guaranteed to look adorable, while also being comfortable and easy. You really can’t go wrong. Happy Summer!!

Here are some variations on this dress, one of which is available for sale in my etsy shop, Astrid!  I'm thinking about making a grown up version for myself!