Alligator dress

I finished this one up today. It was a for hire project for a friend. Actually, for her 3-year old niece whose name starts with J. Her aunt saw M's dress and wanted one exactly like it, only with pink fabric. I convinced her to go with this design instead. It has less smocking than a bishop so I could finish it in her time frame without feeling rushed. I'm pleased with how it turned out. She was pleased too.

Things I discovered with this project: on a straight yoke dress with a monogram, you need to backsmock where the monogram is so the pleats don't get wonky. Spray starch is AWESOME stuff. Careful construction doesn't take that much longer than slapping the dress together but the results are MILES better. Blocking a straight yoke after smocking is ESSENTIAL for good construction.




This is the back. It's a reverse wrap dress. I covered the buttons so the alligator heads were on them.