Business in the front.
Party in the back.
It was made completely out of old T-shirts of mine I’ve been stashing.
To think, I almost sent them to the thrift store.
This cutie wears them better than I ever did. (Don’t you just want to kiss that neck?)
You can do amazing things with knits.
I’m on a mission to find out all the possibilities. Why, you might ask. Because my significant other keeps complaining about all the t-shirts I have to save that could be tossed out. (You’ll see even more in the background of the above picture).
Just so happens I used up 6 t-shirts with this dress, and I even threw away the leftover scraps. Well, at least I will, eventually.
If you are interested, I’ll show you a basic “how-to” to make this dress. I wouldn’t call it a step-by-step tutorial, because it was really late and I kept forgetting to take pictures. So I will assume if you are interested in knowing how I did this, you know the basics of constructing a dress.
First I cut out the pieces I would need based on the size of another dress of hers.
This removed the neck edge for the back piece so I made some binding with scraps and finished the neck edge.
I also cut some 1 1/2 strips for the waist tie.
I grabbed another old t-shirt and cut it the same size as the bottom skirt piece. I only used one layer of it. This will be for sewing the ruffles on.
I cut as many 4 inch wide strips as I could of 4 varying pink colors of t-shirts.
Then I ruffled the tops.
Then I sewed on the top ruffle,
Flipped it up and proceeded to sew on the rest, alternating colors. I didn’t leave to much distance from the last ruffle because I really wanted it to puff.
Once I got done doing that it was time to put the dress together. I ruffled the bottom skirt front and attached it to the top piece.
To construct the back, I cut out a triangle piece and threw it away (yay). I kept the outer pieces
and hemmed the edges.
I overlapped the center.
Laid it on top of my ruffle section and basted them together at the same time ruffling them together. Then I trimmed the sides so they all measured up the same.
I attached the bodice back to the back skirt.
Then attached the sleeves.
After I stitched the side seams all together, I sewed on the waistband. It was made from those 1 1/2 inch pieces I cut earlier. I double layered the strips and stitched it to the dress on the waistline. I pulled on the exposed seams to make them curl up.
There is probably a better way to do this next step, but I had to deal with odd length scraps. I left the back open like so,
then stitched on the top and bottom of my other strips.
The strips were attached to the remaining seam allowance on the waistband, and tied into a bow.
Then I added the rolled flower, pink buttons on sleeves, and some raw edged knit to the neckline.
Little one doesn’t want to take her dress off, and I love that.
She also had to teach her little sister how to misbehave while mom is trying to take pictures.
It’s so fun making something cute, for FREE! Oh, and if you are wondering how I made the headband, I just braided 3 narrow strips of knit. It’s so comfy, I’m thinking I just might wear a headband one of these days. I think she even forgot it was on her head, hence the reason it lasted in there the whole time I was taking pics.
It felt so rewarding de-stashing my pile down 6 whole shirts, I now feel totally justified for going to the thrift store and adding more junk to my house.
If only my husband could see it this way đŸ™‚
Seriously though, who could pass up this cute old school little people lunch box for 1 dollar. Yum.
I think I have a disease. sigh.
Thanks for stopping by!
Fantastic tutorial and amazingly cute dress. Thank you so much for sharing. One question please. Does the T-shirt material not unravel on the edges? I’ve not recycled T-shirts before and am a little bit concerned about not overlocking the edges of the ruffles and sash. Thanks.
Hi, can you please tell me what the length was on the ruffle strips for the back. It doesn’t look like my old tshirts will be long enough. Did you cut the 4 inch wide strips from seam to seam or from top to bottom? Also can you please tell me about size your dress ending up being, please?
Blessings,
Amberlynn
I have that same book that I would read to my daughter 32 years ago! We enjoyed reading this right before bedtime. memories
Just made one of these for my baby with black/white stripes and red ruffle…sooooo cute. I also put red cuffs on the sleeves. Fair is next week, I'm going to enter it, it's just that adorable. Thank you for the idea. Time to hit up the thrift store for more t-shirts.<br />
I finally finished making 2 of these for my littles for the 4th of July! I used my old maternity tshirts to make them…and they turned out SO cute!!! Thank you for the tutorial!
Nice post
I saw this on Pinteres and LOVE it I plan to make it for my Daughter.<br /><br />I have a blog of my own Called Disabled and Proud. I have Cerebral Palsy and I love doing crafts and am starting to blog about my crafts to empower other people to just try. I have difficulty using my hands but have found that with creativity and patience I can do anything.<br /> So I will try to do this DRESS><br
Love it!! Thanks for sharing. My granddaughter will love it!
Any plans to sell these on Etsy?? Im sewing impaired but would love one!! Adorable!
FABULOUS!!!!<br /><br />:-)<br />Traci
that is so cute, thanks it's gorgeous
Love the name… love the dress! how cute! This would also be cute as a skirt! Thanks for sharing.
My daughter wore her mullet dress today to church. Everyone loved it….they were simply amazed that it was made out of her dad's old t-shirts!!
Crazy about this dress. I just joined Pinterest, i pinned it and one of these days i'm going to make it…Thanks for the tut!!! You do GREAT work!!!
this has to be the cutest little dress I have ever seen, thanks for sharing!!
I just made a tunic version of this (by accident) but it turned out WONDERFUL! Super happy with my results! I dont have a blog though, so I cant share a pic!
Love love love this! Must try!!
I just finished making 1 of these for my 8 year old. It took about 5 hours from start to finish!! She LOVES it!!!! I posted pictures on my facebook account. Feel free to take a peak there at Donna Baker.
Cutest dress I have ever seen! Can you make one in a 7 for me?? And no I can't blame for for buying the farm… I bought the same one for a $1.00 at my thrift store as well as some 50 cent horses… I was lucky enough that my farm had the fence and hey toff too…can't wait to check out the rest of your blog…
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I just got finished with my version of this cute dress for my little girl for christmas! My first piece of clothing I've made that fits her! lol I'm a quilter but this turned out pretty great! If you want to see a picture just let me know!
this dress is adorable !!! I would like to sew my daughter one :)<br />PS I noticed that we were both published in the same magazine ~ how fun !<br />have a great day !
Cami – I am popping over from a pinterest link. Your mullet dress (which btw, love the name) is completely creative and adorable! Thanks for sharing and letting me visit – I've pinned this onto my board "not your ordinary T-shirt".
I'm trying to decide which is cuter, the dress or the sweetie wearing it. What a GREAT dress!
Very, Very cute! I love making things out of old t-shirts and I have a couple of boxes full of them waiting for the next project. This looks like a fun one!
Wow! You are SOOOOOO creative! Your ability is way out of my sewing league, but I had so much fun looking at the adorable pictures of your daughter.<br /><br />Kimmie<br />mama to 8<br />one homemade and 7 adopted
I have never before made a dress. I have just finished making my own version of this incredible dress! I never want to see another ruffle as long as I live but it's got to be the most awesome dress ever! I'm so excited for my little lady to wake up from her nap so I can try it on her and get the camera out.<br /><br />Thank you so much for sharing and proving that even a complete novice
I wish I was this brilliant. Now I'm just down right frustrated…
Que lindo vou tentar fazer para minha filha ficou otimo e as cores entĂ£o casaran-se perfeitamente. da uma passadinha no meu blog bjos.
I found this on Pinterest, too. I'm curious about the "pattern" of the cuts you made – did you just trace another dress and add seam allowances, or did you have an actual pattern you cut to match? Or did you just do it by eyeing it?
So, so, sooooo darling, I have to make it for my little granddaughter! @jeni, yeah, I have a problem using my sewing machine, too, but for this dress, I'm going to grit my teeth and just do it! : )
LOVE this
Hello! I'm actually making a 'Piratey Princess' version of this dress and the base is an old jersey pillow case. Would it be okay for me to post photos of it on my blog as long as I link it back to your page?
Love this sweet dress! New to the sewing world could you share how you did the ruffled part?
I love this. Other than ruffles on the back, and who hasn't seen ruffles on the back of a dress–I have been putting ruffles and flowers all over the clothing I have been making my granddaughters and she wants this little dress. I need to go find some cute used tees–darn! Just hauled two carloads of my youngest daughters clothes to the thrift store…….
I love this dress and I like yours better than the other mullet. Great job!
That dress is fab, but is it just me or does it look like it could be worn reversed with the ruffles in front? which to me makes it even cooler. very inspiring.
I just saw this ruffle dress on Pinterest, and I LOVE it! Great tutorial! I will be making one soon!
Pssst. Yours is cuter đŸ™‚ Thanks for sharing
LOVE this! I have seen dresses very similar to this in a children's clothing magazine, but they are very expensive. I have been looking for a tutorial for this type of dress for MONTHS but couldn't find one. Thanks for this!
Super cute dress! Thanks for sharing how you made it. <br /><br />Paige
A.M.A.Z.I.N.G <br />So jealous.. wish i could figure out how to use this darn sewing machine lol
I stumbled across this post through Pinterest. It is a lovely dress, and don't even worry about Sewing in No Man's Land. She's nuts. Anyway, no one has cornered the market on creative and clever ways to dress you child. Your ideas are fabulous. đŸ™‚
Truly ingenious! This would make such a sweet baby gift for someone too. Hope you come up with more ideas! Soooo Fun:)
I don't even know that our baby will be a girl but I'm tempted to go ahead and try this anyway just for fun. It's such a pretty dress! I know I would've loved wearing it when I was a little girl đŸ™‚
This is so creative. I don't think this looks anything remotely close to the other one. Yours ks so darling!
LOVE!!!!<br />Thanks for the tutorial!
Oh gosh hunny! This is gorgeous. And nothing Like the one from sewing in no man's land. I wouldn't have even remotely put them in the same category! It's not even made out of the same fabrics or style! I LOVE LOVE LOVE yours. Wish I had a little girl!!!
Love it!!! Me and my SILs got together and used your tutorial to make our own this weekend! I posted them on my blog. =) Thanks so much for sharing!
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love this, great job.
How BEAUTIFUL! The ruffle are too fun! Thanks for sharing.
Oh my goodnss, this dress is ADORABLE! Lovely work!!!
This is pretty much the universal name for mullets. Before reading your updated bit I was thinking to call it the mullet dress just from your description. <br /><br />Friday I'll be linking back to this adorable dress and hopefully will atempt making a few (agh!!! super intimidated)<br /><br />Stop by if you like .)<br /><br />~Christy
This is the cutest dress ever, I want to make this for myself! :)<br />I featured this as my Net find of the week <a href="http://tinyurl.com/6balzdd" rel="nofollow">here</a> , I hope thats ok with you! đŸ™‚
this is so cute! i love how you repurposed your shirts, I do that a lot with the clothes I post on my blog too http://www.JensOwnRoad.blogspot.com. Great job!
So adorable! I love it! The grey and pinks are great and I really like the sleeves.
darling Cami!<br />- dana<br />MADE
Wow! Made from old t-shirts? That is amazing. Beautiful dress. I really love it.
oh my goodness, this dress is so freaken cute!! I saw your post on ucreate! I don't have any daughters, but I would make this anyway just to have on hand!! And I love the oneise dress tutorial…I do have lots of nieces who would be adorable on one! I can't wait to start sewing!!
Cute, cute, cute!! Love stripes and ruffles together đŸ™‚
That dress is adorable! I am super impressed with your craftiness. And I wish I had a little girl – I doubt my son would like it if I started sewing him dresses. LOL
Cami, once again…FABULOUS. You make the most darling things. I love seeing this get featured all over the blog sphere too!
I. Love. That. Dress!
That.is.adorable! Can't wait to make one!
Omg I love this! I will def be makin my almost 2nd old one for sure!!!!!
Saw this at Ucreate and had to come take a look. This dress is adorable! I need more t-shirts in my stash!
This is incredible!!!! I have never made a dress before and your tutorial made it look easy..but I don't know if I could make one look that good!!…I just love the ruffles…so girly girly!!
SO cute & creative! Makes me wish I had a girl too! This is adorable!! Wish I could sew like you! Saw you on Ucreate.
AH this is SOO so cute! I am in love! The ruffles are gorgeous! I'd love for you to link it up at <a href="http://iheartnaptime.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow">I ♥ Nap Time</a>.
Love love love it!
So adorable, I might have to give this a whirl!
I am so glad you made this, and thank you for the comments you made on my blog! I emailed you back, but wanted to make sure you got it! <br />Hope you had a blessed Sunday!
WOW how clever you are!!! I love it, I am alwasy a bit afraid of stretch fabrics so well done you.
really cute dress and really cute little girl!
Absolutely adorable! Hubby should be proud of your talents and maybe he's just a good motivator in this instance.
so wonderful dress!!!
Adorable dress! What a great way to use old tshirts! Also, The Goodnight Book was always one of my favorites! The illustrations of the little girl perfectly capture that age!
saw you featured on kojo. Boy do I love this! It's adorable! If I ever gain the talent needed, I am so tackling this! đŸ™‚
Super adorable! I would love to feature this on my blog, Reduce, Reuse, Upcycle. Feel free to stop by and grab a featured button. Thanks!<br /><br />http://reuseandupcycle.blogspot.com
This dress is adorable. Great job. I love the title by the way.
the dress is so cute! I love the color combinations. Perfect!
Great job!! The colors are so cute and the party in the back is amazing. Thanks for the tutorial!
So cute! I featured this here: http://womenwhodoitall.blogspot.com/2011/03/ruffles-and-bustles.html
OH my goodness that dress is gorgeous – and all the more impressive that it was made from old t-shirts!<br /><br />I would love if you came over and linked this project to my weekly Round Tuit party at:<br /><a href="http://jembellish.blogspot.com/search/label/A%20Round%20Tuit" rel="nofollow">http://jembellish.blogspot.com/ </a><br /><br />I also have just started a new page on my blog dedicated
That is so adorably cute!!! I wish I was a little girl again, so I could wear one! That's just too cute and definately too fun!!!! đŸ™‚
LOVE, do you sell these? i have a party going on if you'd like to share this. http://typeadecorating.blogspot.com/
That is seriously adorable! I just love it<br />www.itsybitsypaperblog.com
Adorable! I've had an idea like this in my head for my daughter. I love how yours turned out! The pink and grey are a great combo and the ruffles are so fun. Love the details at the cuffs too.
Front & back, this dress really is "the business"! What a cute confection from your scrap shirts! I love, love, LOVE a bustle-back dress for little girls, and I really adore your mash-up of a fancy style and the most comfortable fabric in the world. Fabulous! I'm going to my closet right now to raid it…thank you for sharing! I also enjoyed the tour of your craft room. I
Totally adorable! And the dress is pretty cute too. LOL I wish I could sew like that. I would sooo make this for my granddaughter if I could. Love it!
Such a cute dress. I love the combination of stripes and ruffles.<br /><br />I am having a giveaway on my blog. $35 + free shipping to get a custom trendy backpack for your kid from Paige Holliday Designs. All you have to do is leave a comment. ends 3/23.<br /><br />http://houseonashwelllane.blogspot.com/2011/03/35-store-credit-free-shipping-to-get.html
Amazing! I love it. Totally want to make one for my little girl! Thanks so much for sharing!<br /><br />~Jessica
Your dress is beautiful, and your daughter looks adorable in it! I'm off to enjoy more of your creations!
This was too cute–I had to feature it! Come grab a button!
Oh my gosh, that is just darling!!! I wish I was that good! I love it!<br /><br />Come check out what I'm sewing for my girls! http://sunscholars.blogspot.com
way to cute and a perfect dress to my girls this summer!!!!
What an adorable little dress!!! How sweet. Cute blog- found you via Ardent Sparrow.
Well Done. Love the back!
You are so creative! I have been saving some old tee-shirts for awhile and I would love to recreate them into something fun like this. Thanks for sharing your brillance again.
What CUTE, CUTE, CUTE dress! I love it! The ruffles are too cute. And your little model–adorable! Great use of your shirts!
I need a girl!
Wow, you did a really great job with this! I love it.
Wow! That is the cutest dress i have ever seen! You are amazing!
oh my goodness I am in love with this dress! I have 4 boys and one daughter to sew for so my stash is alot of boy colors. I'm hoping to find some girly colors around here to try this! I don't sew with knot alot out of fear but I may need to start.
That is soooo cute! I love it! I am a little nervouse to sew with stretch fabrics was it hard? I love to sew but I don't think I will start sewing for my daughter till she is 2T.<br />www.mylifeunzipped.blogspot.com
Adorable dress! Great colors, great style, adorable little girl! You are a woman of great talent!!!
This is so cute!! And I LOVE the name of this entry!!! LOL!
Love it….I may have to give this a try!<br />Jen
Great take on the dress Kelly did for Project Run & Play. I love seeing it in a less dressy version.
Holy cow, wow! Now my daughter wants one.
What a sweet dress! I adore the ruffles in the back. I'm glad I found you to follow!
Soooo adorable!!!!
Are you kidding me! That is the cutest thing I have ever seen! You seriously are inspiring me. As soon as you start up your sewing school, sign me up to be your first student. One day, I want to make myself that exact dress and maybe a matching one for Tyla. Seriously, I am so impressed!
Love it, the pink and gray are perfect!!
What an adorable dress! Great de-stashing.
That is SO cute!