Knit Dress Pattern Review

I don’t know about you, but it seems as though as my girls are getting older, they are really wanting to make sure their clothes are nice and comfy. And since Miss Savannah has started full-day Kindergarten this year and she has informed me that she ‘doesn’t need to dress fancy for school everyday.’ What? Yes, of course you do! No, I’m just kidding. As much as I love to dress her up in all my fun creations, and she still loves wearing them for special occasions, she is wanting to make sure that she fits in at school. We also live in the Midwest and I think the way people dress their children a little more casual than where I moved from in Texas (insert sad face). So alas, in order to still sew for Savannah, I am gravitating towards more knits for her lately for school clothes.

Several months back (or more than several since you will notice these pictures are not during this ‘Polar Vortex’ that we are experiencing), I was excited to see that a fellow Facebook sewing friend of mine was coming out with a new knit dress pattern with a ton of options. So Kristi from Burlap Button graciously sent me her pattern for the Charlie-Mack-A-Doodle Dress (as well as the Tummy Topper Layering Tee pattern) and I got busy sewing a couple dresses for Savannah.

Both of these patterns are wonderful! You can create the dress with just the Charlie Mack-A-Doodle dress pattern which is a tank style dress, but I wanted to add sleeves to mine so I used the Tummy Topper Layering Tee to achieve that look. Both of the patterns are compatible with each other and Kristi shows you how to mix them together……the possibilities of what you can create is endless.

Sewing with knits is super-easy if you have a serger, but you absolutely do not need one to sew these patterns. There are options for exposed serged edges for a more casual look or you can have no exposed edges for a more clean look. I used a serged edge on the hem of both the dresses and I also used a serged rolled-hem on the little layering sleeve in the bird dress pictured above and the bib ruffle on the polka dot dress.

This dress with the birds is Savannah’s favorite. The birds are from Girl Charlee and the polka dots and stripes are from Riley Blake Designs. She wears this dress with leggings or jeans and I think the fit is spot on! If this dress is in her drawer, it’s the first thing she pulls out. It makes me very happy when she chooses to wear handmade! The pattern also includes ideas for incorporating ready-made t-shirts into the dresses as well!

For this polka dot dress, I added a bib to the front with a ruffle that was finished with a rolled-edge. The pattern doesn’t include this piece, but it’s really easy to create. You just add the bib to the front of the dress before you start dress construction. I like this dress because it uses three different polka dot prints all in varying sizes and scales. It’s kind of busy, but I think it works. The aqua and multi-colored polka dots are from Joann’s and the pink polka dots are from Euro Girls Boutique (which is a great source for knits).

So I am going to highly recommend these two patterns if you are looking for a fun, casual knit style dress for your little one. I will tell you that the pattern instructions have a lot of words because Kristi is giving you so much information with all the different options in these two patterns, but you don’t have to necessarily print those out. And guess what, she now has a matching doll dress pattern out……how cute is that?

You can purchase the Charlie Mack-A-Doodle Dress Pattern and Tummy Topper Layering Tee together for a discounted bundle price HERE.

Have a great weekend and Happy Sewing!