1860's Gathered Dresses for Benjamin and Rose

I finished up the babies new dresses just in time for them to wear this past weekend. It's been a while since I've had to stay up late the night before an event and wake up early the next day to do hems! They got to try out their new outfits and we all had a wonderful time enjoying the first really nice weekend we have had since June. The heat lifted, the humidity disappeared and the cool breeze was reminiscent of autumn. Which is, after all, not that far away.

These were made from the same basic, quick, easy dress diagram I've used for all the kids over the years. A while ago I scanned the hand drawn pattern I used for the first 3; honestly, it's better to use your own kids measurements instead of going off of a pattern. So for the last 3 I've used the same basic idea but substituted their own measurements for length, width, etc. Here's a quick, not to scale drawing of what I do. This is seriously such an easy dress!

  

I made Benjamin's gown out of an amazing blue plaid cotton I found at a local antique/quilt shop. I love this fabric and it highlights his blue eyes perfectly!

I edged his sleeves with some narrow cotton trim and self fabric piping; I may draw the sleeves up towards the shoulder but didn't have time to try that idea out before he had to wear it. 

For Rose's dress I used some beautiful pink and white cotton I purchased from a facebook group earlier this year. There wasn't quite enough for an adult sized dress but there is more than enough for matching gowns for Anne and Rose. 

The print is a little big for such a peanut but she still looks cute in it and she was very proud of herself in her new dress! When I showed her her reflection in the mirror she laughed and giggled with glee. I want to finish her sleeves with a little self fabric ruching around the hem and draw them up on the shoulder, too.

Both of their dresses are on the roomy side. I made each about 2" bigger all round than needed so that they have room to grow. I *really* want them to last til next year. Hopefully! 

Since these are *not* white I am counting them for the August Historical Sew Monthly challenge, Patterns. Below are the details:

What the Item Is: 1860's Childs Dresses

The Challenge: Patterns

Fabric/Materials: Cotton

Pattern: My own

Year: 1860's (and a little before and after, too)

Notions: Thread, buttons

How historically accurate is it? As best as I could do. Partially machine sewn with hand finishing at the hems, fasteners, etc. Close to 100%. 

Hours to Complete: I made these in a day! Well, plus an hour the next morning to finish hemming. About 6 hours altogether, probably.

Total Cost: Benjamin's fabric was a remnant for about $8. I used about half of it. Rose's fabric was $5/yard and I used about a yard and a half for her dress. The buttons for Benjamin's dress (pearl) were 25 cents each from an antique store and Rose's buttons (china) were 25 cents each from eBay.