Kids Disney Boutique / Customs Clothes

[tanyaandallie]

These are the directions I used. REALLy easy. I had no sewn a think (other than buttons) since Jr. High either and I made both dresses really easily. As long as you can get the sewing machine going, you should be able to make the pillow case dress. Mine are FAR from perfect but they work and my little girl loves them!

I really want to branch out and learn how to sew some other things. Once we get back from vacation I'm going to give some other things a try!

http://rowena.typepad.com/rostitchery/2004/06/done_is_better_.html

 

[tanyaandallie]

it will look like that once you gather it on the child no need to do anything extra! mine looks flatter b/c the rug dosen't have a body to tie it around, lol.

or looking at it again, she might have used elastic in the casing (no ribbon) and the ties are the long ends of the bias tape from around the arm holes. there was a site that had those directions somewhere in this post i think. it's another way to make the dress if you didn't want a long ribbon near your dd neck (choking hazard for little ones unsupervised)

Yes, there is elastic in the casing and I used bias tape around the arms. Out of all the directions posted this one seemed the most novice friendly and it really was easy.

 

[xyzabc33]

Those are really adorable...******NOTE TO SELF...get sewing! LOL

 

[akmom]

These are the directions I used. REALLy easy. I had no sewn a think (other than buttons) since Jr. High either and I made both dresses really easily. As long as you can get the sewing machine going, you should be able to make the pillow case dress. Mine are FAR from perfect but they work and my little girl loves them!

I really want to branch out and learn how to sew some other things. Once we get back from vacation I'm going to give some other things a try!

http://rowena.typepad.com/rostitchery/2004/06/done_is_better_.html

Thanks so much. This weekend I might give it a try. I don't even own a sewing machine! hahahaha...I'll have to borrow from the mother-in-law.

 

[CastleCreations]

I just wanted to add, that maybe the tee-shirt dresses would be easier than the pillowcase dresses. You know these are when someone buys a cute tee and cuts a few inches off the bottom, then sews fabric to the bottom to make the dress. It's similar to the pillowcase dress, but without all that work to do at the top end. LOL. These were what I first started sewing. And I didn't have to worry about the straps falling off...
An update on me...thanks to the DIS, I have gotten so many orders for clothes, that I haven't had a minute to create anything new. Well, that's a lie, I did sew up a black and white tropical dress with white capris, last night. The material is just GORGEOUS!!! It's a poly/silky blend, and has touches of sparkle through it, I will finish it later and post some photos. It was sooooo expensive.....Almost $20.00 a yard...egad!! The white linen I used on the pants was 9.99 a yard...yikes.. But it looks great.. I can't wait to finish it. I may also make a hairband with this one.
Can you tell I'm excited...
Lisa

 

[Tink561]

Here is my daughter's Nightmare Before Christmas outfit.

[/IMG]

 

[LadyRob]

I just wanted to add, that maybe the tee-shirt dresses would be easier than the pillowcase dresses. You know these are when someone buys a cute tee and cuts a few inches off the bottom, then sews fabric to the bottom to make the dress. It's similar to the pillowcase dress, but without all that work to do at the top end. LOL. These were what I first started sewing. And I didn't have to worry about the straps falling off...
An update on me...thanks to the DIS, I have gotten so many orders for clothes, that I haven't had a minute to create anything new. Well, that's a lie, I did sew up a black and white tropical dress with white capris, last night. The material is just GORGEOUS!!! It's a poly/silky blend, and has touches of sparkle through it, I will finish it later and post some photos. It was sooooo expensive.....Almost $20.00 a yard...egad!! The white linen I used on the pants was 9.99 a yard...yikes.. But it looks great.. I can't wait to finish it. I may also make a hairband with this one.
Can you tell I'm excited...
Lisa

Lisa,
Congrats on the business boom!

 

[lillygator]

love the NMBC outfit. that is one of my favorite - I had eyed a few on Ebay but they went upwards of $200 and that was too much for me.

 

[karenTX]

Ok I am finally getting started on Dd's outfits but am running into a machine problem!! I've been doing a small blanket to get back into the feel of sewing, using a straight stich. The top stich looks prefect but flip it over and it's a loose knotty mess!!! (really...it looks like loose, loose, loose, big knot mess, loose, loose, loose) Help!!!! What am I doing wrong?!?! I tightened the bobbin and the top tension, didn't help. Any other suggestions???
Thanks!!

 

[Carrie772]

Yeah, hold onto the tails of the thread behind the machine. What is happening is when you start sewing, the tails are getting jerked back to the needle area and tangling with the threads that are going into the fabric. Hold them with your left hand and feed the fabric with your right to get it going. It will work. Once it's started, you won't have to hold them.

 

[happypooh]

Ok I am finally getting started on Dd's outfits but am running into a machine problem!! I've been doing a small blanket to get back into the feel of sewing, using a straight stich. The top stich looks prefect but flip it over and it's a loose knotty mess!!! (really...it looks like loose, loose, loose, big knot mess, loose, loose, loose) Help!!!! What am I doing wrong?!?! I tightened the bobbin and the top tension, didn't help. Any other suggestions???
Thanks!!

I am definitely a novice sewer but I had something real similar happen when I dug out my machine. Found out that I had the wrong sized bobbin in! When I changed the bobbin, all went well. Another thing you may want to check is that you have the needle in the up position when you thread the machine. The lady at Joann fabrics told me to rethread the machine with the needle up (and not with the thing down at the back (don't know what that's called!)) and just set the tension in the middle to start with. I hope others will have more suggestions and that you get it working soon! I was so mad at my machine that I went and bought the brother disney machine - and then I really was mad at myself for just using the wrong sized bobbin!!! Oops actually I had a real tight mess at the back not a loose mess!

 

[katiebug03]

I think I've PMed all who asked. If not, let me know.

I would love to know also but dont know if i have enough posts to do pm's yet. I have been reading for a while here and just registered my account

 

[tanyaandallie]

Can anyone tell me how you make the material like on the top of my dd's outfit? I think it's shirred? Is that the right word? It's kind of stretchy. Do you buy it like that or do you buy regular fabric and do something to make it like that. It has stiches running close together all through it. I think it's so cute and perhaps if my sewing advances I would make a shirt/skirt set for my dd.

 

[dopeysgirl]

im hearing talk of easy to make t shirt dresses (cutting bottom off and adding fabric). anyone have any easy step by step directions for someone sewing challenged like myself? thanks!

 

[Tink561]

love the NMBC outfit. that is one of my favorite - I had eyed a few on Ebay but they went upwards of $200 and that was too much for me.

The NBC outfit is the cheapest of all that I've bought. It was $70. The woman who made it is currently working on a JoJo's Circus set in the same style for my dd. If you want to PM me I will give you her information.

 

[Tink561]

I would love to know also but dont know if i have enough posts to do pm's yet. I have been reading for a while here and just registered my account

I PMd you.

 

[dopeysgirl]

me again! hope you all arent thinking "great- its the limited sewing ability diser who is always asking for help and patterns!" sorry! i really do try to do things on my own first, then i beg for your help! ive made a few pillow case dresses for upcoming trip and a pillow case shirt (shortened the dress!) to wear with capris. i used a pattern i had for the capris #6467- not sure but i think simplicity (dont feel like digging it out right now, but i remembered th # and i thought i put it in there to validate my story! )
anyway, this pattern has the capris gathering up on the outside of each leg instead of being straight across....does that make sense? im looking for a capri pattern thats straight across but maybe ruffles at the bottom. the ruffle look i think i can acheive by placing a piece of elastic on the inside "around" the leg. am i right? any tips/suggestions, pattern #s would be appreciated! thanks- AGAIN!

 

[CastleCreations]

Hi Everyone..
Lets see if I can answer everyone in one message..
LadyRob...thanks...I'm super busy now. but it's a blessing.
KarenTX, it sounds like a bobbin problem. If it's a new machine that has the drop in bobbin, make sure you're loading it in the right direction and that it's wound tight enough.
If it's the other kind of machine, that the bobbin goes in the little silver thing, try to tighten the screw on the side of it, sometimes it gets loose.
Tanyaandallie- shirring fabric is as simple as sewing a straight stitch. If you want to shirr a garment, I usually do the backs of things. But buy elastic thread. It's in the thread department and usually comes in several colors. Buy white if it's available. You can use this with any color fabric. Take the elastic thread and wind it around your bobbin, be careful not to stretch the thread. Wind it tight, but not tight enough to stretch it. The sew across the right side of the fabric using the longest straight stitch you have. It will automatically shirr the fabric. It does take some practice, but it's not that hard. The hardest thing is getting the shirred lines evenly spaced. Some folks use a fabric pen to mark the lines, I just use the side of the presserfoot as a guide.
Dopeysgirl- The tee shirt dress can be made by,
Step 1- buy a cute tee
Step 2 - buy some cute coordinating fabric
Step 3- Cut off about half of the bottom of the shirt. Just lay it flat and cut across the middle.
Step 4- Put a basting stitch across the rough edge where you just cut. This will prevent the tee from stretching when sewing later.
Step 5- Measure the tee across the bottom and double that amount. So if the tee is 10 inches across, the total will be 20 inches
Step 6- Measure your fabric to one and a half, to two times the total you got from Step 5. So if you want the dress really full, times the total by 2. so if you got 20 inches in step 5. You will need 40 inches of fabric.
Step 7-Measure your fabric to the length you'd like and measure across to get the total from Step 6. Then add about an inch for a seam allowance.
Step 8- Sew up the seam on the fabric, using a straight stitch, then zigzag, or serge the edges
Step 9- Gather the top edge of the fabric, and pin to the bottom of the tee. Make sure you set your seam of the fabric to match your side seam of the tee, or put it in the back. It's your choice.
Step 10- Sew the fabric to the tee, using a straight stitch, or serge
Step 11- If you know how, you can topstitch around the bottom of the tee to hold the seam allowance flat.
Step 12- this is where you can end, or you can put bows around the bottom of the tee, or ribbon... have fun..
Hope this was helpful..
Lisa

 

[Tink561]

Castle Creations,

I hope you post pictures of you new creations before you send them off to the customers!

Also, I can't wait to see the Epcot outfit.

 

[Camping Griswalds]

im hearing talk of easy to make t shirt dresses (cutting bottom off and adding fabric). anyone have any easy step by step directions for someone sewing challenged like myself? thanks!

I just made one . Honestly, I had a large scrap of fabric, it went around the bottom of the t-shirt about one and a half times. I held the t-shirt and fabric up to my daughter, and eye-balled the length to see where it would fall on her legs. I folded over the bottom edge to create a hem (straight stitching) and at the top put my machine on straight stitch with the widest length and sewed all the way around, then about 1/4 inch under, did that again. I had left the thread with long (about 3 inches) ends on each end and did not secure when I did the sewing (meaning no forwards and backwards sewing to put it simply) then pulled the threads gently and "pushed" the material to the center to create "gathered" look. I then pinned to bottom of t-shirt (I had cut off about 4 inches of t-shirt to make length work.) They were turned inside out and then I sewed these together. I did secure the stitching that step. It is by no means perfect, but it is complete. I love it. some site on here has a quote along those lines. I used an old t shirt, and material that I had no idea what to do with, so even if it messed up horribly, I would not be upset. Like I said , I just love it. I just bought several t-shirts, and tanks at Target and Walmart, and "soft book" patterns. I plan on cutting out the square of the book, and apply ing it to t shirt, and then doing coordinating material for bottom of dress. Walmart has these books in Nemo, Pooh, Princess and Ariel. I am very excited!