(Alternately titled: What Could Possibly Go Wrong When You Let an 8 yr Old Choose?)
When Abby of Sew Much Ado contacted me about being part of the Pretty in Peplum tour, I jumped on board and then thought it would be fun to let my daughter make all the decisions for this dress. Hindsight is 20/20.
We were generously given some free fabric for this project from Girl Charlee, so I sat her down and let her scroll through all the tempting knits to be had. Imagine my surprise when, without hesitation, she went straight for the rainbow leopard ponte de roma. And by surprise, I mean I was not surprised at all. So, in the spirit of things, I said you know what? Let’s do this. Let’s make a rainbow leopard dress. She also chose a black jersey for the peplum, cuz a girl’s gotta contrast, yo.
I was showing her pictures of all the options so she could pick her sleeve length, and to my dismay she noticed that the peplum sits right at the natural waist, WHERE IT SHOULD. But that’s simply unacceptable to my daughter, as witnessed by the sad unworn skater dresses hanging in her closet. Nothing, not even a seam, is allowed to touch her mid-section. I can’t imagine where she gets that from (yes I can, it’s me). So I begrudgingly told her we could do the drop waist version meant for the top, but that it wouldn’t look as cute, and that was perfectly fine with her. Because she’s stubborn (she gets that from her dad, I’m certain of it.)
So, that’s the story behind my wonky Pretty in Peplum dress, and I would like to formally apologize to Abby because this dress is in no way as cute as it’s meant to be. I know this for a fact, because I also made one for my 2 yr old and it is just about the cutest thing I’ve ever seen on her. That dress was visiting over at Quilt Market, but when it returns to us I’ll show you that one and redeem myself in your eyes. I’ll also be showing you the one that middle daughter inevitably demanded when she saw her big sisters’ dress. I think it’s safe to say that in our own individual ways, we are all big fans of the Pretty in Peplum pattern in these parts! I love that it transitions from summer to winter with 3 sleeve lengths, and you can also make it as a top. Nothing better than a cute, well-fitting, easy, versatile pattern. Well done Abby!
These pictures are from her school playground, because in order to photograph her in the light I had to take the dress to her school at pick up and quickly snap some shots. It was already dark as we drove home. Freaking Daylight Saving Time.