Childrens Kit

I don't get to make stuff for small people very often.  Whilst our little person is a great admirer of my work, dressing up isn't really her thing.

Then a while ago some friends contacted me and said it was their nieces 2nd birthday coming up and could I make a set of dressing up stuff for her?  I don't think it was 20 minutes after the first email before I was excitedly planning a huge range of children's dressing up clothes!

Anyhow, this is what we settled on!

First up is this medieval style 'princess dress'.  it's made of orange chinese print brocade and yellow satin and have been trimmed with cream lace and pale golden brown satin ribbon.  I made the pattern myself and it has a velcro fastening and ties at the back.

It should be noted at this point that I don't really like velcro, but as a easy fastener for a small child learning independent dressing or a quick do up/undo for an adult helping a small child who wants to go through many costume changes it's worth it's weight in gold, so it's a must for this kind of thing!

Item two is an 'Upsy Daisy' dress.  I haven't any pictures of the back of this one, but it also has velcro fastenings and a sash tie.  The fabrics are a complete mix!  There's fleece, poly cotton, pique and satin all jumbled together as the colours were more important for the look of the thing.  I don't think its a bad attempt at Upsy Daisy so I'm pretty pleased.  Again I drafted the pattern myself.

Dressing up stuff can be very annoying when it's left lying all over the house (just ask my husband for his opinions of larp kit!) so a handy bag to put it in was a must.  The small person in question loves ladybirds so this spotty poly cotton was just the thing!  It has a drawstring top and the writing is appliqued on.

 A pirate hat was requested, and though it initially caused me some head scratching I loved the end result!  black felt and white fleece, with black embroidery thread for the skull details.

And last of all - what dressing up set would be complete without a swirly cape?  I'm hopeful that this above all else will last for years, as the neck is generously sized, meaning what is now an almost full length cloak will gradually become a shoulder cape as the little person grows up.

It's made of purple corduroy and is unlined.  Again, the pattern is my own.

 So, there you go.  A quick peek into the world of dressing up and a look back at what has to have been one of my favourite projects this year!

Next time I'll show you a waistcoat and some cravats.  See you then!