A Child’s Formal Dress Sewn from an Upcycled Silk Sheet

The basic pattern of the skirt is that of a circle skirt. I created the circle skirt pattern to fit the bodice of the dress at the waist, and at lengths of knee-length, two inches above the knee, and four inches above the knee. Each petal is one-eighth of the circle skirt, with the bottom rounded into a petal shape. There are eight petals for each of the three lengths, each petal consisting of two layers of red silk sheet, sewn right sides together and then turned. I did not edge-stitch the petals; silk is so light and breathable that this way, the petals tend to catch the air and look more like real rose petals.

With only eight petals per layer, the petals in each layer of the skirt do not overlap at the waist, although they do have plenty of overlap at their bottom hems. This wouldn’t work if the skirt was a single layer, because it would show too much skin, but by centering both subsequent layers of petals on the gaps between petals in the previous layers, the skirt stays very flowy while remaining modest for normal walking, running, and skipping.

Because the skirt is meant to be spun in, however, I used the very last remaining scraps of the sheet to sew a pair of matching bloomers to be worn underneath the dress. Now my daughter can twirl as much as she wants!

This is the third year that my kiddo and I have refashioned a garment for her to model in the Trashion/Refashion Show. One year she was a Fairy Princess, the next year she was a Rainbow Fairy, but I think this year’s Rose Girl might be my favorite yet!