Easy Summer Dress with Sheer Overlay

You will need a measuring tape, 2 yards of a solid material and 2 yards of thin material for your overlay. We used a jersey knit for this dress. Scissors and thread to match.

This is an easy summer dress with a thin overlay. It's like sewing a shorter dress into a longer dress. Very pretty! And fun to make!

Measurements:

You will need the following measurements; Bust all the way around, measure your waist, measure from top of bust to where you would like the waist to fall on the dress (can be right at your last rib). This pattern is similar to the Easy DIY Summer dress; except you will only sew the two dresses together.

 Then you should measure from the waist to your feet to get your skirt length for the Overlay. Measure to the knees or above the knees for the inner skirt. Just make it your own!! 

Next measure over your shoulders from where you would like the dress to begin to the back where the dress will begin in the back to get the measurements for your straps. 

  Also, make sure to measure across your chest to where you would like the straps to be in the front. You can use the same measurement for the back. 

Cutting the material

You will need to cut two rectangular from one material and two pieces from the other material. 

Use your measurement from around the bust. Divide this number by 2. This number is your length. Width will be the measurement from chest to waist. 

You will have a total of 4 pieces. 2 pieces for the overlay and 2 pieces from the solid material underneath. 

Cut the length of our skirt for each material. The solid material will be the shorter skirt. The longer skirt will come from the thin overlay. 

Then cut the material for your straps. I usually cut these 5-6 inches wide. Cut two pieces from the thin material for your overlay and cut two pieces from the solid material. 

Take the 2 pieces for the Overlay and sew the two shorter sides together with the right sides together.  Do the same with the solid material 

Next sew you straps together. Fold them with longer sides together and right side together. 

You will sew four straps. 2 will be from the thin overlay and 2 from the solid material.

Fold your straps so the seam will fall to the bottom. 

Sew each side of each skirt together. You can leave a split in the thin Overlay if you wish. 

Next we sewed the skirts on to each top. Two pleats were sewed in the front and back of each dress. 

At this point you can try them on to make sure they fit. Ok, now it gets trippy. I suffered through many a sleepless night trying to figure this part out.

Take the Overlay with right side out. Make sure your solid dress is right side out too. Take the Overlay and put inside the solid dress so that the right side of the Overlay is against the wrong side of the solid dress. Pin the seams together. This will go under your arm.

Hard to explain, but you will see why we do this. Next; pin the straps in place using the measurement you did across the bust. 

Refer to the blog entry for the Easy DIY summer dress to see how to pin it in.You will pin 2 straps in place (one from the overlay and one from the solid color). 

Sew all the way around the bodice

And turn inside out. Hem and you have a cool summer dress with a beautiful Overlay!