Toddler Sweater DressPatti - March 08, 2019
I have this beautiful purple sweater that was given to me by my lovely sister in law while I was in college. I wore it all the time, but after having two babies, it no longer fits. I decided to attempt turning it into a sweater dress for my toddler. I call this one a near success because it doesn't fit her quite right, but she loves it and looks adorable in it.
Before I get into the process, here are some adorable pictures of Miri trying the sweater on, pre-makeover ^_^
Read on to see my process!
First, I found two dresses that currently fit Miri to use as a guide. I ended up choosing the pink dress.
I lay the guide on top of the sweater and cut pieces generally the same shape and size, leaving a seam allowance.
This gave me a main body piece and two raglan style sleeves.
Sew right sides together using a zig zag stitch. I was amazed at how well my simple machine handled the knit material. There was a bit of stretching, but not enough to make it look lumpy.
After sewing the sleeves, I sewed up the side seams.
Sadly, I failed to take pictures of this next part. I cut off the original collar and resized it to fit the dress. After adjusting the length, I cut off about an inch all the way around so that it was only half as wide. I then sewed it on, right sides together, again with a zig zag stitch. The first time, I sewed it on inside out and it took an hour to pick out the seam!
I did the same with the cuffs, though only the width needed to be adjusted. And the dress is finished!
The dress ended up being a bit tight under the arms, and a bit big around the collar, but we like it anyway.
Isn't she the cutest??? <3