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My Spring Flip This Pattern transformed a couple of Broadwalk Henleys into a Ninja Vest and Ruffled Dress for two charming kids!

My plan was to flip, Flip, FLIP the Broadwalk Pattern from Peek-A-Boo Pattern Shop into both a Boy version and Girl version… I wanted to use knit fabric as the pattern calls for, incorporate the upper piece that makes it a Henley for the boy version, and breaking up the dress into ruffled tiers for the girls version.

Oh, and I wanted to stay kinda casual, use some really interesting fabrics, and be ready for warmer weather.

Here is how it got FLIPPED….

First the super Ninja Vest:

From the Broadwalk Top Pattern, I created a buttoned up & reversible vest in Riley Blake knits – a solid red, a solid gray, and the awesome Ninja print. The pattern was FLIPPED by lengthening the upper front and upper back pattern pieces by 4 inches and cut from the red knit fabric. The front and back top pieces were shortened and cut from the ninja print knit fabric. The neckline was cut into a ‘V’ and the front was sliced open to be closed with 5 red buttons. The sleeves were left off the top. To finish the edges, I used a red ribbed binding around the neckline, down the center front, around the hem, and around the arm openings. The inside of the vest is in a gray knit fabric cut from the same adjusted pattern pieces for the front, but the back was a single pattern piece from the upper back and back top combined. The vest is reversible – red and ninja or solid gray with red binding!

And now the lovely Ruffled Dress:

From the Broadwalk Dress Pattern, I fashioned a 3 tier dress in a solid aqua knit fabric, a solid red knit fabric, and embellished with a Ninja throwing star buttoned at the waist – this way, the star can be taken off when the dress is washed!

The dress pattern was made modified (read: FLIPPED) by taping the upper front piece to the dress piece. The front and back was then sectioned and cut to make the 3 tiers. The upper back piece was not cut on fold, and was widened by an inch. This made the opening in the back that is tied at the top with the bias trim. With each dress skirt tier, I ruffled up a long band of fabric (1.5 x width) to sew between the dress and the next tier. The sleeves were left off the dress. The neckline was drafted into a slight ‘v’, and the arm openings were closed up a bit since the dress would be sleeveless. To finish the edges, i used a red knit binding around the neckline, around each of the ruffles, and around the arm openings.

My models are my 5-year-old daughter and her 7-year-old friend. They were preschool buddies, and still play together often.

Flipping Patterns is BIG FUN for me! I enjoy starting with a quality pattern like the Peek-a-Boo Broadwalk Henley and creating a one-of-a-kind design just playing with the pattern and fabric. And then seeing others’ creations is inspiring….. Thanks Frances Suzanne for the incredible Flip This Pattern series!

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