Bellbird Dress - The Perfect Addition to Your Little Girls Winter Wardrobe

Sophie from Below the Kowhai patterns has just released her first pattern the Bellbird dress.

A sweet timeless design that was just the piece I was looking for to add to my girls winter wardrobe

 With the addition of a optional embroidery on the bodice,

 this makes for a very special piece.

However due to the nature of my chosen fabrics, I found the embroidery design was getting lost, aswell as that, it was making my eyes go cross-eyed and giving me quite the headache.  

 But determined to make this work, I had to find a solution as this fabric was part of my opshop fabric stash, and I am desperate to use more of my fabric finds from local thrift stores, as well as keen to upcycle more ( but more of that on a future post ) 

 The woolfelt worked out to be the best replacement for the embroidered flower petals, which made it alot easier for the flowers to pop against my fabric.  

I'm quite pleased with how it turned out, even though the silk stitch is not my strong point.....I'll leave that to the more talented embroiderers out there such as Sophie.

 I also love to make roleaux loops so I took the opportunity to make one for the button closure at the back, looping around the sweetest vintage button.

The pockets make a nice touch to this timeless design, and I'm sure to find many odd things in these pockets come washing time, including in the washing machine, if I've forgotten to empty the pockets......which I often am likely to do.

 The pattern itself is well written and Sophie guides you through the whole process with detailed photos, including how to line the whole bodice which tucks away all the seams and gives a nice tailored finish to the garment.  

It's perfect for any kid whom itchy seams are unbearable.

I don't know about you, but even though summer didn't really show itself much this year, I'm ready for the change of seasons with the layering of clothes, wool, tights and boots and a dress like this I think fits right in.