Rainbow Dress | Atelier Oursonne

A couple of days ago I was talking about my worries to give gifts without offending anybody.

So, I have decided to knit for those mums (to be) who have actually been in one of my knitting classes but (so far) not for the third one who might not even know who I am.

They are both having / expecting girls so I made a little Rainbow Dress by Georgie Hallam – one of my favourite little girls dresses.

I have used Lana Grossa Elastico, a cotton with 4% Polyester, for the bodice. It is very light and stretchy which is important for that part of the dress.

And to make it a bit more special occasiony I have used some of my Rowan Pure Life Revive, a recycled blend of cotton, silk and rayon. It is meant to be hand washed only (not great for a baby dress) but I did machine wash a swatch and not only did it turn out fine, it was actually softer than the unwashed version (which also has a bit of a funny smell to it).

I have added a lacy hem, a flower and picot cast off for the armholes.

I am more than happy with the result and I hope the future owners will be too (when it fits in about 8 months time 🙂 – Clearly you need to be able to stand to show off a dress )

I have just been browsing my ravelry-projects, wondering when I will ever have the time to add my latest projects and I have realised that I have used some patterns over and over again, just because they are really great and versatile.

There is, of course, the Little Rascals by Julia Stanfield.

right of 2 itchy woolen jumpers

cotton sweater with detail

coordinated set 1

matching outfits

left of 2 sleeveless cotton Little Rascal

not too girly with kangaroo pocket and fitted hood

with collar and caterpillar on lower front

comfy for little ones without hood or collar

plain white cardigan for christening

I am not even sure if the gallery shows all the models I have ever knitted from that pattern, but you can see it is very versatile and all children in my family own at least one of them.

Another favourite for a quick and easy gift for a new baby girl would be the Versa by Shannon Passmore.

sunset colours, pockets and bow

short and strait

bold colours with contrasting pockets

raspberry with green details

I almost always use this pattern when I have to knit something for a baby girl. It offers many choices to adapt the shape but I almost always knit a tunic as I feel it is the version that will fit the longest, first as a dress, later a top.

And last but not least, there is the Rainbow Dress by Georgie Hallam. I haven’t actually knit it this year but I think it is a great pattern and I am very fond of it. Maybe because it was the first time ever that I came across anything a seamless top-down pattern.