Tiered Twirl Sundress

Tulips are blooming, rain is falling and allergies flaring. Spring is here. This means it is time to finish up some duds for baby girl for summer. Today I am sharing the Tiered Twirl Sundress.Thanks to my awesome friend Carly for doing a sew along with me on this one. A few seasons ago I fell in love with the Matilda Jane Jumping Wendy dress...

but waited too long to buy it and they sold out in Avery's size. So this is my summer version of that fabulous dress.

I started with a stretchy cotton tank top that I picked up from The Children's Place last summer for $1.99. I tried it on my daughter to determine where I wanted the first tier of the dress to start. I then measured out the length around the tank including a 1/3" seam allowance. Mark it with a dressmaker's chalk pen. Then use a rotary cutter or sharp scissors and cut the unneeded couple of inches at the bottom of the tank off.  Set the tank aside.

Next decide which order you would like your tiers to be in. I bought all of my printed cotton knit at Hobby Lobby.

I measured the width of the tank top to be 17". So I cut my first tier at 22" x 2 1/2". The length of each tier then increases by two inches and the width remains the same. So the second tier is 24" x 2 1/2", the third 26" x 2 1/2", the fourth 28" x 2 1/2" and so on. I used a rotary cutter to cut all of the tiers.

Once they were all cut, I took each tier right side together (wrong side on the outside) and serged the seams. If you are using a sewing machine to stitch the side seams, use 1/3" as the seam allowance.


Next you sew tier one and two together. Make sure you start by matching up the side seam of all each tier. They should make a straight line. I used a simple straight stitch. To help the fabric to ruffle up, slightly stretch the longer tier of the two tiers when running them under your sewing machine. After you sew tier one and two together, attach tier three, then four, etc.

 Here is a quick look of what the inside of the dress looks like just to be sure you are on track :)

Lastly, attach the tiered skirt to the bottom portion of the tank top using the same technique you did when you attached each layer of the tiered twirl skirt.Match side seam, pin, sew with a straight stitch.

No need to sew a hem at the bottom. Cotton knit is great because it doesn't fray, it will just roll up a bit. I love the simplicity of the dress and it can be easily lengthened (add extra tiers) or even made fuller (increasing the length of each tier by an inch or two). It is comfy yet stylish. Once the dress is washed, the exposed raw edges of the exposed seams with roll and ruffle up a bit. I can't wait to hear how yours turns out.

Coming soon is a "mom" version. After I made my daughter's, I decided I need one too because it looks so comfy and fun. 
 

Don't forget to save your knit scraps to whip up a fun hair pretty to wear with the Tiered Twirl Sundress. Check out my Mop Top Headband and Pony-O.

This project is linked up at: