Happy Together

A DIY craft blog

  • Home
  • About Me
  • Contact
  • Tutorials
  • Q&A
  • Published

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9

September 1, 2016 by Jessica 63 Comments

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Quite a few years ago, I sewed up a cute little dress for miss E to wear at her first birthday (see here). It has been in my head ever since then to create an actual pattern for it so I could sew more for my girls and share with you all. I had fun creating The August Dress pattern, named after miss E’s birth month, and I find it to be simple and cute. I really like how there is no need for button holes, zippers, or other closures since the hand sewn buttons hold the front in place but are far over enough that there is plenty of room to get it on in the neck area.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
I, of course, experimented with all the sizes. I did not do a ton of testing as this is a freebie pattern, so you may find you want to tweek some things. Miss J is wearing the size 8/9 in the above photo. I didn’t have enough of the horse fabric to make a dress, so hers is shorter for a shirt option.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Miss E is wearing the 5/6 in her dress here. The bottom is the full length and she has room to grow in it. Below, my sweet friend got her cute grand baby to try out the 2/3. This was my first draft and it was a little wide at the the shoulders and a little too far down, so I adjusted. I did make another one with the adjustments, but I haven’t heard on the fit yet. Hopefully it’s all good 🙂

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together

Size Chart:

  • Size 2/3: chest measurement 20″-21″
  • Size 4/5: chest measurement 22″-23″
  • Size 6/7: chest measurement 24″-25″
  • Size 8/9: chest measurement 26″-27.5″

Supply list:

  • The August Dress Pattern PDF printed out (*tip: Do not print when opened in “preview.” Open in a program like Adobe Acrobat Reader for the most accurate printing.)
  • 1/2 yard for top main fabric (or less for each piece if you use different fabrics)
  • 1/2 yard for lining
  • For bottom: 1/2 yd for size 2/3, 1 yd for size 4/5, 1.5 yds. for size 6/7, and 2 yds. for size 8/9 (* of course you can make it shorter and make this a top. That would use less fabric if you choose to do this.)
  • Scissors
  • Pins
  • Iron
  • 2 Safety Pins (optional)
  • Buttons of Choice
  • Sewing Machine and notions/thread needed
  • Needle and Thread for hand sewing
  • Measuring Tape

*All seams are 1/4″ unless otherwise noted.

*Always back stitch at beginning and end of sewing unless otherwise stated.

Once you have printed out the pattern, lay it down in order to see where to connect the pieces. It goes in order starting at page one at top left and going across and finishes with page 9 at the bottom right. Then cut out and tape together.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Cut out the following using the pattern and measuring tape:

  • Lining: Cut 1 back, 1 front left, and 1 front right
  • Outer Top: Cut 1 back, 1 front left, and 1 front right
  • Bottom Skirt: Cut 2 of the appropriate size- 14.5″ x 22″ for size 2/3; 17″ x 24″ for size 4/5; 19″ x 26″ for size 6/7; 21″ x 30″ for size 8/9

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Start by sewing the top outer pieces first. Place the back piece down right side facing up. Take the front left piece and match up on the shoulders, right sides facing. Sew together at shoulder.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Take the outer front right piece and line up on the other side, right sides facing. Sew together at the shoulder. Iron open the seams.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Next, sew the lining together. This will be similar to the outer, but the sides are sewn on opposite. Place the back lining piece down, right side facing up. Then take the lining right side and match up at the shoulder, right sides facing. Sew together.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Take the lining left side and match up the shoulder to the back piece, right sides facing. Sew together. Open the seams and iron flat.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
The the outer top down, right side facing up.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Place the lining on top, wrong side facing up. Match the shoulder seams and edges together. Pin in place. Sew together on each arm hole and around the front sides and neck.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Once sewn, you will want to make notches on the curved seams so it lays flat once turned right side out. I simply use my pinking shears (scissors with zig zag cutting sides) and trim all the edges close to the seam. This eases the fabric on all the curves.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Another little thing to do is clip the edges on the top sides of the front pieces. It takes away some of the bulk from this area for when turned right side out.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Turn right side out and iron flat. *Tip: I use the eraser end of a pencil to push all the seams out for a cleaner finish.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Now it’s time to sew the sides together. Open the side seams of the left back side and left front side. Match up at the seams, right sides together, and pin in place. Sew together.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Again, it helps to cut a little notch at that middle seam to reduce the fabric bulk at that point.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Turn right side out and iron. Repeat these steps for the right sides as well.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
This is also your last chance to sew a tag in place so the back stitching is hidden. You can do this earlier of course, but I usually forget until this step 😉 haha

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Place the top down and fold over the front pieces so the side seams are on the sides and the longer side goes over the shorter side. Use a safety pin to keep the front pieces together.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Sew the bottom skirt next. Place the two bottom pieces right sides together. Sew together down the shorter sides. To have a cleaner edge, you can go over it with a zig zag stitch or use a serger.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Iron the side seams and then iron the bottom up about 1/4″.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Fold up the bottom about another 1/4″ again and iron. Sew around the edge.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Now sew a wide stitch around the top of the skirt leaving a long tail at the beginning and end. This means no back stitching at this part. (My machine goes up to a 5 so I use that size stitch). I usually do a line from one seam to another then start another one on the other side. This helps make it easier to ruffle. Pull on the back threads to ruffle each side until it is the same width as the top piece.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Make sure the bottom is wrong side out and the top is right side out. Place the skirt over the top and match up skirt side seams to the top side seams.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Spread out the gathers so they are evened out around and pin in place. Then sew together.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Finish off the raw edge with a zig zag stitch or a serger. Turn right side out and prepare to sew buttons in place.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
For the buttons, be creative! Use different colors, different sizes, same colors, same sizes…. have fun 🙂 Depending on the size will depend on how many you want to add. You can sew them on as you like, but I want to share real quick how I sew them on. I don’t want them falling off, especially when it’s for a younger child, so I really go overboard with this part. I start by threading the needle and knotting the two ends together.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
I pull the needle through the two front pieces at where I want the first button.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Then I pull it back through and make a knot again on the end knot that is on the top.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Then I sew the button on by going through the holes and the front fabrics a bunch of times to make sure it’s strong. Then I pull the thread through from the bottom and make a knot around the button (like above) a ton of times for extra strength.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
Next, I cut the thread and make a few knots this way with the two ends. Then I trim the extra thread off.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
I sew the rest on the same way.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
The buttons keep the top together but allows for room to have it fit over the child’s head when placing it on. It’s a nice way to create a dress or top with no button holes, zippers, or other sort of closures. Nice, huh?

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together

She is wearing the 4/5 here.

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together
I love this dress because you can create so many different looks. You can use the same colors or use a variety of fabrics. Use fancy buttons or more whimsical ones. I think it would be even lovely with piping around the top edges too. Make it your own and have fun. I hope you enjoy The August Dress Pattern. Please share your creations on the happy together by jess facebook page or on other social media by tagging me and #happytogetherbyjess Happy sewing! -jess

Free Girls Dress Pattern: The August Dress Pattern Sizes 2-9 | happy together

A Plus Quilt in Grays

June 15, 2016 by Jessica 6 Comments

A Plus Quilt in Grays | happy together
As in typical form, there has been a baby wave among our friends and I’m working hard to catch up on gifts for them. I hadn’t been too motivated to sew recently but just pulled out some fabrics and made myself start. I’m glad I did as I was able to finish up this little baby quilt for a boy, a plus quilt in grays. And, of course, once I got sewing I haven’t wanted to stop! I was so happy that I was able to create this using all fabrics from my stash. Since I have two girls and I’m a girl, I tend to have more feminine fabrics. But I remembered this deer fabric I had bought and paired it with solids I had.

A Plus Quilt in Grays | happy together
The dark gray and beige are both linen fabrics and the other two grays are leftover square blocks from this quilt. I love when I can use leftovers from other projects. Since those squares were already six inches, I stayed with that size and since I didn’t have much fabric I went with a simple plus quilt pattern. I laid them out in a way that used up every single square I cut except for two. So I used a total of 42 six inch squares in all and used a 1/4″ seam. The finished size is roughly 30.5″ x 37.5″. I had to rework some to make use of them all and not have to cut more out but it all turned out fabulous. I used extra fabric for the binding as well.

A Plus Quilt in Grays | happy together
I found this solid fabric in my stash for the back that was just the perfect size. I then used a 100% batting because i like how thin and nice it is. I started with doing a simple straight line for the quilting but then decided to try and do wonky lines. I thought it was fun and went with the quilt and it was nice to try something different.

A Plus Quilt in Grays | happy together
I always want to try and do a “fancy” quilt but am always happy with how simple square or half square quilts turn out and they are truly so simple to sew up. Especially when they are bigger blocks. Have a favorite quilt pattern? -jess

Easter Outfits

March 28, 2016 by Jessica Leave a Comment

Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together
This past weekend was Easter and we had a fabulously packed weekend at that. We did the thing many Louisianan’s do and attended a crawfish boil, had Easter egg hunts, and enjoyed a wonderful Resurrection Sunday at church. I haven’t sewn Easter outfits for my girls in a while so I made it a goal this year. I went searching online for some cute sewing patterns that would suit each of their personalities and I’m very happy with the patterns I found.

Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together
First up is Miss E’s outfit. I used the Violette Fields Threads Clara Top and Shorts pattern to create her shirt. I really wanted to make the bloomers to go with it but ran out of time. So I just let her wear some jeans. I found her shoes at Old Navy and her hair clip is mine from Anthropologie a few years ago. It’s such a cute top and I was surprised at how fast it came together. I was expecting it to take longer than it did due to some of the more intricate sewing things like those ruffles and the back plackets/buttons and such. The fabric came from Hobby Lobby and I love the little pineapples on it! This outfit is so her. I say she’s my Southern Belle.

Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together
Now for Miss J’s outfit. She’s my country girl and she tells me she just wants “country girl dresses.” haha. I saw this dress and knew it would be perfect. It’s also a Violette Field Threads Pattern, the Maisie Dress and Top. I also found this fabric at Hobby Lobby. I wanted to find a fabric with small printed flowers but was short on time and this ended up working out perfect. This was another very nice pattern and I can’t wait to make more. I like the length and the little details like the sleeves. I also  learned some new techniques from this pattern which is always a good thing. She paired her dress with her cowgirl boots (of course) and those we got from Kohls a few months back.

Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together Sewn: Easter Outfits | happy together
It made my mama heart proud to see them happy and wearing these outfits that I made them. And even happier that they were super excited to do pictures too 🙂 -jess

Free Heart Animals Pattern

February 12, 2016 by Jessica 3 Comments

Free Heart Animals Pattern | happy together
Here is a free heart animals pattern for you to use in honor of Valentines Day, which is so close! Of course, these heart animals are for any time of the year really, but are inspired by this love filled holiday.

Free Heart Animals Pattern | happy together
I picked some of my children’s favorite animals to create: a fox, cat, lamb, owl, and deer. They are an easy sew and if you have scrap fabrics these are a great project to use them on. To create your own heart animals, you will need the following:

  • Fabric (scraps or a fat quarter for each)
  • Felt or Other None Fraying Fabrics (like leather/faux leather, fleece, iron on vinyl, etc) for faces, noses, and ears.
  • Safety Eyes (or use felt circles or embroidery if these are for younger children)
  • Glue, Felt Scraps, Seam Ripper, and Marker (if using safety eyes)
  • Embroidery Thread and Needle
  • Stuffing
  • Sewing Machine
  • Coordinating Thread
  • Iron
  • Hand Sewing Needle
  • Scissors
  • Pins
  • Free Heart Animals Pattern PDF Download

Free Heart Animals Pattern | happy together
Start by cutting out your pattern and using that to cut out the pieces from your chosen materials. The pattern pieces have how many of each you will need to cut. As you can see I used all kinds of stuff I had on hand. I use mostly cottons for the body but did use a linen fabric on the owl. I used acrylic felt mostly for faces and ears, but also used wool felt, fleece, faux leather from a purse I had cut up, and iron on vinyl.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Iron your main heart fabric. If you need to iron felt, I suggest placing fabric on top of it before pressing. Then place the heart face on top middle of a heart body piece and sew in place.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
If you are using iron on vinyl, you can iron that on now.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Sew on the nose.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
If your animal has ears, place them where you would like them.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Then fold them down and pin in place. Sew very close to the edge just to keep them in place.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Note: If you are making a deer, you will need to pinch the rounded bottom and sew in place.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Now place your eyes on. You can sew on felt circles or embroider eyes if this is for a little one. Other wise, add the safety eyes. Mark where they are to go.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Use a seam ripper to cut just enough of an opening for the eyes to go through. On the back, add some glue around the opening.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Cut a small piece of felt and cut a slit in the middle. Place the eye piece through the felt and let the glue dry this in place. Add the plastic eye backing. Note: I have used safety eyes a lot and find adding the glue and felt helps keep it even more secure.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Next embroider on any features you would like to add such as a mouth, eye lashes, whiskers, etc.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Take the face……

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together and place the heart back on top, right sides facing, and pin in place. I suggest doing it with the eyes up as it’s easier to sew and remove pins this way.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Sew all around the heart (1/4″ seam allowance, which is included in pattern) except to leave a small opening big enough to turn the heart right side out.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Trim notches around the curves of the heart shape.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Turn right side out and push at seams to make sure it is all out.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Fill the heart animal with stuffing until desired size is achieved.

Free Pattern: Heart Animals | happy together
Hand sew the opening shut.

Free Heart Animals Pattern | happy together
Now you have a cute little heart animal! I hope you enjoy this free heart animals pattern. Share pics on the Happy Together facebook page or use #happytogetherbyjess on social media to share your creation.

-jess

 

Sewing a Cardigan

January 4, 2016 by Jessica 4 Comments

Sewing a Cardigan| happy together
Do you ever find a fabric you love and buy it even though you have no plans for it? That is what happened with this piece of Aztek Jaquard fabric. We went over to Texas one day and I swung by Jo-Ann Fabric Store to see what they had. I don’t get over there much, so I knew if I saw something I liked and wanted to sew with eventually it would be smart to go ahead and buy it.

Sewing a Cardigan | happy together
Once I got the fabric home I decided that I would be sewing a cardigan. I got around to doing so the other week and used a sweater I have to create a pattern. The fabric doesn’t have much stretch like my sweater so I had to adjust and make sure there would be room enough for me to fit into it.

A Sewn Cardigan | happy together A Sewn Cardigan | happy together
I barely had just enough fabric to make this! I even had to add length to the sleeves with remnants to make it work. In lieu of the fabric shortage, I left all the edges raw so I wouldn’t need the extra material to create nice finished edges. I personally don’t mind raw edges and I plan on going over them with my serger later. Can you believe I still haven’t unpacked it since we moved in July? Hopefully this project encourages me to get it back out and running. The lack of fabric also made it not possible to add an extra strip that would go down the front sides and around the neck. It creates for an interesting neckline but still looks good to me.

A Sewn Cardigan | happy together I’m thinking I should try and find one of those super large safety pins to secure it to the side when I wear it. Any ideas where to find one?

-jess

Next Page »

facebook instagram twitter pinterest etsy

photo(125) Welcome to my blog Happy Together. My name is Jessica Fediw and this is where I share my adventures in life, crafting, and more. Thanks for stopping by!

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

happytogetherbyjess

happytogetherbyjess
Easter and Spring Break are now behind us, but it Easter and Spring Break are now behind us, but it was such a good time! For this past Easter I really wanted to make egg aprons for miss E and my other young nieces and nephew that are here. I looked at a bunch of pictures and just kind of figured it out myself, but I made four aprons that can hold up to 10 eggs. Thankfully I had enough fabric already to make them 🙌 It won’t be too long until my youngest will be too old for some of this, so I am trying to squeeze it all in before that happens 💛
More Here Follow on Instagram

 

Categories

Copyright

The images and content of Happy Together are protected by copyright laws. DO NOT distribute or copy the content found within this blog without written permission. DO NOT edit or remove watermarks from any image.

If you want to share an image feel free to pick just ONE IMAGE with a direct link to its original post. For questions contact me. Thank you!
Creative Commons License

Copyright © 2021 · Beautiful Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.AcceptReject Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.