Back in August, Toni from Make It Perfect contacted me and asked if I’d like to be part of a blog hop showcasing her newest patterns, the Skippy and Joey dresses. The Skippy dress is the women’s version and the Joey dress is the girl’s version. I thought the dress was really cute so I jumped at the chance to make it. I like that there are a bunch of different options included in the pattern. There is a cap sleeve, elbow length, and long sleeve option. I also really liked the cowl neck option. I deliberated and decided to make the elbow length sleeve with the basic banded neck. I wanted to be able to wear this dress year round and I thought the cowl might limit it to Fall/Winter wear. I used my favorite Laguna Jersey in Grass for this dress.
I was sort of nervous about the sizing. The dress looks to be cut pretty straight and I am a definite pear shape. I cut a medium through the bust and graded out to a 1X at the waist. I cut the skirt at a size 1X, too. I cut the sleeves at the size large because they looked like they might fit me too snugly. I actually think next time I would go up to an XL (or maybe just slash and spread at the bottom) so the sleeves would be a little looser. They are gathered so increasing the size of the sleeve would just make them a bit more puffed at the top.
After I had the skirt attached tried on the dress I decided the bodice was too long. The waistband was not hitting me at the best part of my hips so I ended up unpicking it and cutting off an inch from the bodice. This shortened the kangaroo pocket a bit, but it’s still a good size for my hands to go in. Next time I will know to shorten the bodice before I attach the pocket.
Once I was done making the dress I decided to try making a cowl from my leftover fabric. Mine ended up about 3 inches shorter than the measurements in the pattern, but I had enough width to make it work. I love the way that the cowl is assembled to give it a twisted look. I absolutely love the dress with the cowl and that is how I’ve worn it so far. I think it looks so stylish and more dressy than just a regular t-shirt dress.
Speaking of the pocket, this dress is named after the fun Kangaroo pocket on the front. A Joey is a baby kangaroo, right? I thought it was very fitting since I am currently in the process of creating our own new baby! (How I wish it would just crawl out of a pocket on the front of me when it’s ready to come into the world! Ha!) I am 18 weeks pregnant with our 3rd baby and so far this dress seems to be able to accommodate a small-ish baby belly. I know I will be trying this pattern again next Spring when I am no longer pregnant. It was a quick, fun sew with a very cute result.
Thanks, Toni, for the Skippy pattern and for letting me be part of your blog hop!
~Teri