Finished Object! Cinderella Dress

Just look at this face:

I'm a glutton for punishment. Clearly. 

How else to explain why I made this Cinderella dress for my 4.5-year-old daughter this week. Mid-way through sewing it she informed me that she doesn't like Cinderella anymore. She likes Merida, the latest Disney Princess (TM) franchise. F. U. Disney:

Mirror, mirror, on the wall....

 I drafted the pattern for the bodice using this tutorial at Homemade Toast, a blog I discovered through Pinterest. I bought the shiny poly satins in the Garment District for $2/yard. The tulle (which is sandwiched between two other skirt layers) was also $2/yard. The flower-print poly chiffon overlay was in my stash. I got it from a former neighbor a few years ago, and was saving it for such an occasion. Note the lovely ombre effect on the overlay:

The whole thing probably cost about $8. But it took a lot more time than I had bargained for.

The elastic shirring technique was new to me. It takes a lot of time (probably two nights of sewing for me), but the effect is pretty — AND it means my kid can slip this dress over her own head without any help (or a tantrum). Now that I know how to do it, I plan on making some summer dresses with shirred tops. 

I also used my serger's rolled hem function to finish off the skirts. (Like I was going to labor over hemming this!).

I love the addition of the hip poufs:

I highly recommend the tutorial I followed. But I hope if you make this for your kid/niece/random strange child, that she's able to feign a little more enthusiasm than mine did.