This is one of my all-time favorite smocked dresses. I made it for Rebecca when she was just 4 years old and now, 30 years later, still enjoy seeing it hang in the nursery closet.
There are several interesting features to this peach Imperial batiste bishop dress. The extra deep smocking front and back, white sleeve overlay, and original smocking design made it a pleasure to design and stitch. The bottom rows of the smocking design were drafted to mimic the sleeve overlay fancyband.
EXTRA DEEP SMOCKING: The number of rows smocked front and back on this dress greatly exceeds the recommended amount for this size. You can see that the smocking goes far below the beginning of the armhole curve, normally the absolute last row of stitching. Smocking rarely goes beyond this point because 1) it would exceed the width of the child’s shoulder and 2) it is impossible to pleat through that curve.
The first restriction is eliminated by smocking only a few rows at the neckline, well before the edge of the shoulder. Secondly, the pleating is done before construction, allowing pleats to go to any depth.
This is most easily done by working with a block of fabric, rather than a cut out front and back.  The armhole curve is traced with a washaway marker onto the fabric block before pleating front, back and sleeves from a straight edge to a straight edge. Later, the pleating threads are pulled out up to the seamline of the armhole and knotted off. Then the armhole curve is cut out and the front and back pieces are joined to the sleeves.
SLEEVE OVERLAY: The white sleeve cap overlay includes a Swiss embroidery from Capitol Imports, entredeux and French Val lace edging. This detail alone elevates the easy care bishop to a more elegant level. Continue reading →
It seems that Haydee, one of my friends in Puerto Rico, has taken or taught another Bulto Baby bag class in San Juan (see earlier post (Bulto Baby). Recently, she shared these pictures of three more spunky bags. At least one of these, the BLAH BLAH BLAH bag on the left, appears to have been redesigned for use as a general purpose bag, rather than diaper tote.
