MILKMAID DRESS

SKIRT FRONT SIDE X2

MILKMAID DRESS
X2 FABRIC X2 LINING FRONT SIDE
MILKMAID DR
FRONT TOP
X2 FABRIC X2 LINI
MILKMAID DRESS
MILKMAID DRESS
LONG STRIP
RESS
X2
NG BACK
S
MILKMAID DRESS
MILKMAID DRESS
SLEEVE X2
 Milkmaid Dress by PaperStxrs

Size Chart

Size Numeric Size Bust Waist Hips

X-Small 0-2 30”-32” 22”-24” 32”-34”

Small 4-6 32.5”-34.5” 24.5”-26.5” 34.5”-36.5”

Medium 8-10 35”-37” 27”-29” 37”-39”

Large 12-14 37.5”-39.5” 29.5”-32.5 39.5”-42.5”

X-Large 16-18 40”-42” 33”-36” 43”-46”

Materials

Rayon Fabric: Size X-Small - 3 Yards

Size X-Large - 3.5 Yards

Lining Fabric: ½ Yard

Elastic: ¼ Inch Braided Elastic and ½ inch Braided Elastic

Zipper: 1 22” Invisible Zipper

Thread: 1 Spool of Thread

Instructions

Note: These instructions are meant to go along with my video tutorial (linked below) for

extra clarification.

DIY Milkmaid Dress Tutorial | aka sewing that one cottagecore pinterest dress

1. Print out all of your pattern pieces and tape the pages together in order with the

following image:

PaperStxrs
2. Cut out all of your pattern pieces as indicated on the patterns.

3. Sew together the bodice center and bodice side pieces at their side seams. You

should line up the shorter side of the bodice side piece to either side of the

bodice center piece. You are going to repeat these steps with the lining pieces as

well.

4. Mark out and sew the darts into all of the back pieces.

5. Now we are going to connect the back pieces to the bodice side pieces at their

side seams lining up their armholes together. Again, repeating this step with the

lining pieces.

6. Now working with the top front pieces, we are going to put them pretty-side to

pretty-side, and sew them together down the shorter straight edge for about 2”.

PaperStxrs
 This seam should start along the bottom edge of this piece (the side with the

curved edge) and go straight up for 2”.

7. We are now going to flip this piece to the back and lay the seam out flat. Then

you are going to put a hem down either side of the seam we just sewed to finish

those edges.

8. Now we are going to put two parallel basting stitches across the bottom edge of

this piece, starting where the curved edge starts, and going across the bottom to

the curve on the other side. (Note: the basting stitch is a temporary stitch meant

to be taken out later, and it is just the longest stitch on your machine.)

9. Now we are going to pin the bodice top to the rest of the bodice. We are going to

start by pinning the middle of the top piece to the peak of the center piece,

pretty-side to pretty-side, and for the time being, we are only pinning the outer

fabric layers together (not the lining pieces). Then we are going to pin the sides

of the top pieces to the curve of the side pieces, and you should match up their

curved edges not their top edges because the top piece will be a little longer than

the side piece. The top piece should extend past the side piece about 3”. Once

these are pinned in place, you can pull on two of the basting stitches on the

same side of the fabric to begin gathering up the fabric. You should ruffle the top

piece until it fits perfectly into the side piece, space out the ruffles evenly, and pin

these pieces together.

10. Now before you sew these pieces together, you are going to take the bodice

lining piece, lay it on top of the pieces we just pinned together so that it

sandwiches the ruffled layer between the two bodice pieces, then move all of

PaperStxrs
 your pins to go through all three of these layers. So now you should have the

outer bodice layer (facing up), the bodice top layer (facing down), and then the

bodice lining layer (facing down) all pinned together in that order. Once these are

all pinned together, you can go ahead and sew them all together.

11. After these are sewn you can turn it back to the right side, and your bodice

should be lined and the front ruffle section should be attached. You can now take

out the basting stitches.

12. You are now going to make a casing along the top edge of the bodice top piece

by folding over the fabric twice and sewing across the bottom edge.

13. Now we are going to take the really long fabric strip we cut out, fold it in half, and

sew all across the long side pretty close to the folded edge to make a thin strap.

14. Then you are going to trim down the raw edges and turn this piece right-side out.

(Note: there are a variety of tools to help with this step, and I know this one is

quite popular) https://rb.gy/pfgbz0

15. Once you have turned the strip right-side out, you are going to cut it in half, place

a safety pin onto one side, and guide one strip through either casing we made on

the front. After it has been pushed through, you are going to do some small

stitches to hold it in place on either side away from the center. You should now be

able to use these to tie a bow and gather up the front.

16. We are going to turn the bodice inside out and sew across the top edge of the

back pieces on either side to create a finished edge.

PaperStxrs
17. Now, working with the sleeves, we are going to fold either sleeve in half and sew

down the side seams. Because the sleeve isn’t lined, you can also do a zigzag

stitch down the seam to help with fraying.

18. You are now going to attach the bottom of the sleeve to the bodice by lining up

the bottom seam of the sleeve to the side seam of the bodice, and stitching them

together until you reach either edge of the bodice. You are also going to want to

make the seam allowance larger on this step (especially on the sleeve) so we

have enough fabric to make a casing around the sleeve.

19. Now, across the top edge of the sleeve, you are going to fold over the edge twice

and sew all around it to create a casing for some elastic. Make sure your casing

is large enough for your elastic, and that you leave either end open so you can

thread your elastic through.

20. Then you can take our ½ inch elastic, place a safety pin on one end, and guide

your elastic through your casing. It is important to try on the bodice at this step to

make sure your elastic is a comfortable tension before sewing the elastic in place

at either side of the casing.

21. To make the elastic lay nicer in the casing, you are going to stretch your sleeve

and sew a straight stitch down the center of the casing.

22. Now we are going to make another elastic casing at the bottom of the sleeve by

folding over the fabric twice and sewing all the way around, leaving a small

opening so we have a place to insert our elastic.

23. Then you can take our ¼ inch elastic, again place a safety pin on one end, and

guide it through the casing. After you have tried it on to get a comfortable fit,

PaperStxrs
 you're going to sew the elastic together with a zigzag stitch and close up the

casing with a straight stitch.

24. Finally it is time to work on the skirts, so we are going to take the skirt center

piece and sew either skirt side piece to it down the side seams. On the left side

seam however, you are only going to sew down it from the top for 16” to leave an

opening for a slit.

25. Now to make room for our zipper, we are going to take our skirt back piece, fold it

in half, and cut a 6 inch slit down the back starting from the waist.

26. Then we are going to take the skirt front pieces and sew them to the skirt back

piece down either side seam.

27. We are now going to finish up the slit on the front of the skirt by turning the skirt

to the back side and sewing a hem all along the raw edges of the slit. When we

reach the section where it has been sewn together, we are going to continue

heming the edge for about half an inch, pivot our foot, and go back down the

other side of the slit.

28. Now we are going to attach the skirt to the bodice by pinning the waists together

pretty-side to pretty-side, and sewing them together.

29. Then to finish up the back of the dress, we are going to insert an invisible zipper

all down the opening in the back.

30. After that is complete, all that is left to do is to add a hem all around the bottom

edge of the skirt.

31. Now you can go and twirl around in your dress, and give yourself a pat on the

back for all of your hard work!

PaperStxrs
Reference Photos:

PaperStxrs