FF30 Fashion File to make a cute baby doll dress from 1872 Easy T

I just love sewing knits. They are so easy to handle and they look fabulous.

Are you put off by the idea of sewing knit fabrics?

Do you wish you could make cute t-shirts but think it must be hard to do?

Sure, knits are different from wovens but they are not any harder to sew.

Get yourself a stretch or jersey needle...

(but to be honest I don't always use my jersey needle. Sewing with a narrow zig zag seems to prevent snags and pulling).

You don't need any seam neatening. It would take a lot of pulling to make most knits unravel.

Of course there are exceptions and it is pretty obvious when you handle them.

Did you have a go at the Easy-T straight dress I made first? You can find it here.

Instructions to draft you own baby doll T

Print out new copies of the front and back of the Easy T Module 1 View 1

Measure 3/4" up from the waist length line and draw
a high waist line

If you have the version without the waist cutting line marked on
you just need to draw it in 1" above the bottom edge then do your
high waist line 3/4" above that.

You can do lots with the neckline but this time I am
just going to make it a fraction lower in the front by
drawing a smooth curve from the seam line at the CF
up to the neck edge on the pattern.

Trim off the neck and fold the bottom of the pattern
along the new high waist line. I fold it back then fold
it forward and leave it sticking up when I cut out.

Draw the new high waist line on the back

Fold on the line.

I planned for 8 3/4" finished length for the dress. 9" is normal short
but I wanted it a bit cute short but not as short as my straight t-shirt dress.
Subtracting the finished bodice length from the total I got 5" for the skirt
then added 1/4" waist seam allowance and 1/2" hem to get 5 3/4".
I cut two strips from my page 5 3/4" wide.

I then completed the skirt front by making a rectangle 5 3/4" x 6 1/4".
The 6 1/4" is half the front skirt plus one seam allowance.
Label the CF down the 5 3/4" side and name the piece.

I put the front on top of my second strip and made it 5 3/4" x 7".
The 7" allows for half the skirt back plus extra for the 1/2" facing plus
1/4" to create the 1/2" overlap on the finished back.

Draw in the facing fold line 1/2" from the side and label
the back facing and name the piece.

I added in the labels that the skirt was a high waist skirt
for the t-shirt dress so I would know it is a short skirt piece.

All the pieces together. Top back and front, Skirt back and front and
sleeve band and narrower neck band.

I usually fit the pieces on best I can. Here I am going to
cut the skirt out then refold the fabric and cut out the bodices.

Knit Stitching Tips

When doing neck bands I like to stitch the band together with
a narrow zig zag inside the seam allowance.
This holds the edges even when you stretch it.
You can see how narrow my zig zag is. It is barely 1 on my dial
and seems to look almost straight but it is enough to allow stretch and
stop the needle getting caught.

Don't stretch as you sew. It ends up curved.

Mark the centres of the neck band and bodice neck.

Pin at the centre and level with each end.

Hold one half and stretch it so the band fits the neck then
use a finger to hold things still while you put a pin it at your finger.
Do this on each half.

The bodice is looped between the pins.
Stretch the seam as you sew each section by holding it between your two hands
and letting it feed through. I use a narrow zig zag for seams and straight stitch for
top stitching, hems and facings.

I don't usually have a 1/2" hem. I would normally overlock it and turn up 1/4'.
This time I wanted it to look a bit flatter with no overlocking but also
be sure that it turned up cleanly with no running so I made it 1/2".

After stitching the waist seam I pressed it up and top stitched on the outside on
the bodice side of the seam securing the waist seam allowance with a straight stitch
You can see I haven't neatened the seams but they look neat.
The facing edges are just turned under and stitched down with a straight stitch the same as for the t-shirt.

Don't forget you can download an envelope to store the pieces you create
for your Custom Fashion Files.

Happy Sewing,
Val