An Ethnic Soleil Dress

I've been sewing up a storm for my kids' wardrobe next summer. I know it's a full year away, but I like to be prepared! OK, I guess in this case I like to be very prepared. I was that girl in college who immediately started working on a term paper the day it was assigned, just so that I could take my time and be done with time to spare. I've always envied those people who could work the night before a deadline. That's just not me. Apparently I need an entire year lol.

My goal (for the first time ever!) was to make as much of my kids' summer wardrobe as possible. I always make pieces here and there to fill out their current wardrobe, but this time, I wanted to tackle making an. Entire. Wardrobe. Times two. A lofty goal, but one I was pretty excited about.

With two wardrobes looming, I needed some good patterns, and the Soleil Dress by Selvage Designs came to mind immediately.

I like simplicity when it comes to patterns, but I also don't want to make anything boring. The Soleil Dress is the perfect mix of classic with an edgy twist. I fell in love with it immediately, especially the cute cutout in the back. I had been seeing different versions of the Soleil all over the place, but the one that put me over the edge is Lexi's version on Lexi Made. I totally copied her bow back and color blocking. Looooove.

Mine is a bit baggy since I was making a size up for next summer, but I couldn't help letting Haley wear it immediately for the hot summer days we've had recently.

Oh the pockets. My 5-year-old is going through a "put pockets on all the things" stage, so this dress fit the bill nicely.

The main tribal fabric and white came from a slightly flawed bargain lot that I purchased from Girl Charlee recently. You can find it, and plenty more fun tribal fabrics, here. The orange ribbing is from The Fabric Fairy, my go-to source for all sorts of fun colored ribbing.

It was a very wet, rainy day when we went out to take pictures, but Haley had a great time splashing in puddles and twirling in her new dress! The Soleil is definitely a new staple in my daughter's wardrobe.