Dulcie in Knit
Suz of sewpony has an delightful FREE PATTERN, Dulcie, that you must try. It's similar to her Tic Tac Toe dress pattern in that both are designed to be made with woven fabrics and have an invisible zipper in the back.
Tic Tac Toe dress, another sewpony pattern
Given the loose fit and style of Dulcie, I thought it would sew up nicely in knit fabric, and well, I couldn't be happier!
Dulcie in knit
So I made two!
The fit is relaxed, slipping over the head easily. It's perfect for everyday wear and play or Dulcie can be dressed up depending on fabric choice.
Dulcie is ideal for throwing rocks down at the levee
There are a few advantages to sewing with knits here. A) You can skip the zipper. Maybe you don't have one on hand or maybe you're scared of them. #zippersarelikespiders #theytakesomegettingusedto B) Kids tend to prefer knit clothing. It's stretchy and cozy. C) Knits typically don't need much ironing. #ironingblows D) And maybe you just have a lovely knit you want to use for this dress and there's not a woven equivalent of the print. Whatever the reason, here's all you need to do to sew Dulcie in knit-
- Cut the back pieces (skirt, bodice, and bodice lining) on the fold (subtracting the seam allowance of 3/8").
- After joining the shoulder seams, sew the neckline of the bodice and bodice lining together with right sides facing. (This is similar to how I made the peplum in this post, but the next 2 steps are different as that pattern has set in sleeves and this a dolman style bodice.)
- With right sides together, close the side seams of the bodice and the bodice lining separately.
- Close the sleeves with the lining and main right sides together, working around in a circle. (This part is a little tricky to visualize. See detail pic.)
- Turn the joined bodice. Gather and attach the skirt to both the main bodice and lining.
(I did use woven fabrics for the collar and the pockets for this version and those were sewn without any modifications.)
Detail on closing the sleeves. Working with the main bodice (blue print with white reverse here) and the lining bodice (solid peach here) from the wrong sides, fold the main sleeve back, creating a 1" cuff, exposing the right side. Slip the end of the lining sleeve over. Right sides will be together. Join along the raw edge of the sleeve, turning the sleeve around as you go.
Here's the finished knit Dulcie's guts (aka the finished dress as turned inside out.)
It was a little windy today!
