Winter jumper

Just because it's 18 degrees outside, doesn't mean that your daughter wants to stop wearing dresses. Using the tutorial for the Bubblegum Jumper at From An Igloo (if you haven't scooted over to this blog for great tutorials and ideas, click on it now!), I decided to make my daughter a winter dress.  I purchased fabric from Fabric.com where I was already buying fabric to make something for William's Christmas present, to be revealed soon enough. I used a rich purple corduroy fabric.

I hope you can see the rich colors and textures of this fabric.

Because I had to sew the dress in time for her piano recital, I didn't use the button hole design from the tutorial. Rather, I sewed the back straight up to the chest piece, which I lengthened to 4.5 inches, and used hook and loop closures, which are not permanent, unlike button holes, and can be adjusted as she grows. The dress is also double-hemmed, meaning that when she grows another few inches, I can let out the current hemline to reveal another hemline beneath it that is 2.5 inches longer.

The dress isn't perfect, I have to re-position one of the straps, but she looks really cute in it and it has great texture and warmth. She can wear it with a turtle neck and it will fit her again next year. Overall, a very simple dress pattern for any little girl needing a dress in a jiffy and adaptable to many different types of fabric. I might even make a doll-size one with the leftover fabric for Savannah's favorite new doll for Christmas.