Toddler Party Dresses! Playgroup, Snapdragon, and Bonny Leggings!

I have been making some little party dresses for my animal loving toddler.

First up, the Fox dress! The pattern is the Playgroup Dress by Fresh Stitch Patterns. I like this simple pattern, which uses woven fabrics (like quilting cottons) with a fully lined bodice and an option for a cute decorative panel. My only complaint is it doesn’t come with a print guide (that I saw – I have been known to miss things) so I had to manually go through the pattern pages to see which I needed to print. Either that or print out the larger sizes which go all the way up to 10 years – and that’s not really necessary for a size 18 month!

It is a little tricky (as a total beginner to garment sewing) to figure out the lined bodice, but the directions are great – once you do it once, it’s super easy!

It’s not a complaint, but I do think this dress is a little long for my preferences. On the other version I made, I left off the bottom contrast panel and I like that length better for running around and climbing like my maniac daughter prefers.

The fit is pretty loose, but that’s because I haven’t bothered to put in the button yet. I am planning to!

Please don’t think she’s holding a fox in her fox dress – that is a red panda!

Holding a stuffed animal and eating snacks: my kid.

I also made a version without the decorative front panel – the dinosaur dress has been worn a lot and completely stained before I had a chance to take a picture – or put in a button! I like the  length a lot better without the bottom accent panel. This is a very, very fast sew!

Next up the Snapdragon Pattern by Sew Like My Mom – I love this pattern! I made the flutter sleeve version with a woven quilting cotton for the bottom – with this pattern you do a knit top and have an option of a knit or woven for the skirt.

In this case, I used an old t-shirt for the top – since I was testing the pattern for the first time, I didn’t want to cut into any precious fabrics – and we have sooo many old t-shirts!

And this time I didn’t have to put in a button (thank you knits!) but I didn’t bother to do the hem. Late night sewing, what can I say!

Lastly I made her a full coverage bikini! She is pretty fair, and while pretty patient about putting on sunscreen this is definitely easier! I used the Bonny  Leggings pattern (which is GREAT and free if you join the facebook group!) and the Lullaby Lap Tee – the fabric is from Peekaboo fabric shop which has adorable swim knits!