Fresh Stitch Patterns and the Playgroup dress

I may not have mentioned it before, but I just love supporting Australian designers!  There are a lot of great talents out there and I guess it is my little way of showing my patriotism.  Luckily there are some fabulous Aussie designers to choose from.  Rabbit Rabbit Creations, Boo! Designs, Style Arc, Felicity patterns and Bobkin just to name a few.

I was recently asked to be involved with the testing of the inaugural patterns for a new Australian pattern store 

Fresh Stitch Patterns.  Kylie, the designer is an old hand at designing, but new to children’s’ clothing.  I have to say that I love what I have seen so far. 

I borrowed a friend’s daughter to be my model and made her the playgroup dress. 

I love the simple elegance of this dress.  I did some stash diving (yes, I do a lot of that) and came up with gorgeous blue and chevron pinwhale corduroy fabrics, both left over from other projects.  Jackpot!

 

The pattern went together easily and the final tutorial is great. 

One of my favourite features is the enclosed hem.  It makes a really neat finish.  The pinwhale corduroy worked well, but due to the gathering I wouldn’t use any heavier weight fabrics.  I used snaps instead of buttons in the back for a quick and professional finish.  I will also admit that the buttonhole stitch on my sewing machine isn’t working that well at the moment – so that played a part in my decision.

 

The dress turned out looking even better than I envisioned and Miss 5 is in love with her special dress.  There are some great new patterns in the works and I am looking forward to working with Kylie in the future with both her patterns and tutorials.

 

The beautiful (beginner friendly) Playgroup dress is available here in sizes 12m to 10.

Happy sewing! :-)