Little Bow Pleat Dress: Minus the Bow

I love a bold pattern but I prefer it paired with a simple style.  When I came across the Little Bow Pleat Dress from Blank Slate Patterns, I fell in love.  It's such a sweet dress with such cleans line and that bow spices it up very nicely.  It's a lovely combination.  It wasn't such a lovely combination for my busy fabric so I changed it a bit.  When do I ever leave a pattern alone, though?  I also lengthened the sleeves because, while I happen to live in the Seattle area, it still gets cold here in January and sleeves are kind of important.  Removing the bow from the front also helps layer the dress under a cardigan or a coat.  I love versatility in a wardrobe!

I used some pretty, pink cotton lace to trim the front where my seams holding down the box pleat were.  I found them unsightly and I like lace, so this was a winning combination.  Little Miss says this is her favorite part of the dress.

I also added a different lace to the bottom.  I made a size 2 and it was 60's vintage short.  It fits great through the chest.  I forgot to measure the pattern piece before cutting and I knew better.  I often have to lengthen her dresses.  That's what happens when you have a 30 lb 4 year old.  So, to fix the length snafu, I hemmed it a mere 1/2 inch and added lace.

The tutorial on how to install the zipper was by far the best one I've read.  I will never put in a zipper another way.  I think I'll make another dress for the spring in pin dot voile.  How cute would that be?

Sometimes, she gets tired of all the photos.  Can you tell?

The first three photos were taken with my brand new lensbaby composer pro with sweet 35 optic that I WON from their facebook giveaway!  I'm still figuring out how it all works.  It's slow going with a completely lens.  Pulling manual focus with a four year old that refuses to quite running around is pretty tricky.