Look No Further for That Perfect Summer Dress

To start, I folded my fabric and marked about 2 inches off the top to mark my starting point.

Then I marked my shoulder measurement divided by two plus 1. This will allow your fabric to gather at the front and back

Ignore the typo on screen - my shoulder measurement is 16 divided by 2 plus 1 = 9

Then I mark my underarm measurement from the start line and squared off the line. I'm using 9 inches

Then I marked an inch down on the folded edge and connected that to the shoulder measurement in a slight curved. This is optional, cutting a straight neckline will still bring out the style.

Then I drew my arm hole in a curve like so

Then I measured the length of the top half of my dress. I want the joining to be on the hips so I'm using 24 inches and squared that off.

Then I measured the width of my fabric (15 inches) and connected that to the underarm

Then I added 2 inches sewing allowance to the neck area - I'm using 2 inches so that I have enough to create a channel for the necktie.

Then I added half an inch sewing allowance to the rest of the dress

Then I cut out the front pattern. Use the same pattern to cut out an identical piece for the back.

Then I placed the pattern on folded pieces of fabric, traced out the armhole curve to cut out my armhole facings. I cut the four facings all at once

Then I pinned my facings to the armhole, right side to right side and sew.

Then I cut the center back by about 5 inches because I want the neck time to tie at the back rather than at the shoulders. This is not necessary if you want your dress to tie at the shoulders.

Then I cut the facing and sew that on.

Then I did a double fold on the neck and sew it to create a channel for the neck tie. I also repeated this for the back piece.

Then I pinned the front and back together at the sides and sew.

For the bottom half, the fabric I'm using is 117 x 42 inches. I started off by hemming the entire length of the fabric, followed by sewing gathering stitches on the entire length.

Then I used the gathering stitch to gather the garment like so. This will now be pinned to the top half of the dress.

I then opened up one side of the top half to make it easier to pin the bottom part to it.

I then pinned the bottom part to the top so that the ruffle shows, then I sewed the two pieces together. Once I finished that, I then pin the side seams and sew that.

Finally, I cut two pieces of fabric for the next tie and the belt. The measurements I used are:

Belt 81 x 6

Neck tie 81 x 3.

Once I finished that, I fed in the next tie, tried on the dress and the fit was perfect!

Isn't this such a gorgeous dress. Look how lovely this dress came out. I love the colours and the style, it's comfortable and classy at the same time. I hope you have been inspired by this tutorial and you are raring to go!

Connect with me in the comments below, I'd love to know your thoughts.

Thank you for stopping by

Deola :)