Silk Velvet: Quinn's Holiday Geranium Part II

I love getting to make something special for my sweet girl and making her this holiday dress has been an undertaking, but also such a joy.  She loves all things sparkly and purple these days, so when I set out to buy fabric to make her a holiday dress this year, I had those things in mind.  We just started stocking this amazing silk velvet in the shop and knew she’d love the feel and shine of it. We carry so many amazing colors, but the Italian Plum color was perfect for what I envisioned.

Pattern: Geranium Dress, with Expansion pack
Materials: Cloud 9 Glimmer Solid in Pearl (¾ yard), Solid Velvet in Italian Plum (½ yard), Bemberg Lining in Silver (½ yard), and Loose Weave Metallic Cotton Ribbon in Copper, Tulle (purchased elsewhere)
Size: 3T

I’m such a creature of habit and once I find something that works well, I am bound to do it again and again.  That is how I feel about the Geranium Dress by Made by Rae. The silhouette is classic and works well for simple or fancy attire.  I used the Geranium Dress expansion pack, which made adding sleeves a cinch. I was able to get away with using only a half yard for the skirt of her dress, so not only was it going to be gorgeous but also, affordable.  Win, win!

However, it did mean the skirt would be a little less full, so I decided to reach way out of my comfort zone and use tulle to fluff it up a bit. Because I incorporated the tulle, which I knew she’d find “scratchy”, I needed to line the skirt using the Bemberg lining fabric that is so buttery silky and soft.  But, whoa, so many layers had me a little nervous. I took my time with it and cut my lining fabric the same size as my velvet, and then cut four layers of tulle about an inch shorter than both of them. I sandwiched the velvet, tulle and lining and heavily pinned all of the layers together and surged them all at the top.  Once they were all secure, I did my skirt gather using three layers of basting stitches and the results were as perfect as I’d hoped they’d be. It was time-consuming but simple and worth the time it took.

For the bodice, I chose to embrace her love of all things sparkly by using the Cloud 9 Glimmer solids, which is not only beautiful but really soft.  And I finished it off with an accent belt and bow using the Metallic Cotton Ribbon by Studio Carta. Overall, this dress turned out just as I was hoping and she’s in love with it, which makes her mama’s heart pretty happy and proud this holiday season.