Very cute pattern! (Two photos with straight-haired doll are not true colors.)

Used yarn left over from the two AG doll sweaters I completed recently for two special little girls. This pattern is well written, though I got confused around row #21. I ended up doing 4 rows in the contrast color where you’re only supposed to do two. Later, I asked the designer, Vita about this area, and she provided me with some very helpful clarifications. I’ve made some pattern corrections below. Please be sure to read them BEFORE doing row #21 - especially if you’re using a contrasting color at the empire waistline. I’ll probably end up tying a pink and green patterned ribbon around this area, so the garter stitches won’t show anyway.

I didn’t do the Kf&b type of increases in the pleated skirt area, as they are too noticeable with this type of yarn. (I did do the recommended Kf&b increases at the top of each sleeve which works beautifully in that area.) Even my M1R and M1L are too visible in the skirt pleats, but I couldn’t think of any other type of increase that would have been less conspicuous for the “top pleats”. Increases are easier to conceal in the “bottom pleats” (purled sections), and I did some “Kimmy invented” increases in this area. I think the increases will be less visible once the dress is blocked. And since it will probably be full of snags when played with, no one will be looking at the increases anyway.

I used Jeny’s Suprisingly Stretchy Bind-off for bottom of sleeves. The puffy sleeves employ short rows. Vita makes no mention of “wrap & turn”, but this is what I did to ensure there would be no holes. Vita says that the “wrap” isn’t necessary, due to the gathering in of the sleeves at the bottom. She’s right, but it doesn’t seem to hurt, if you’re in the habit of doing the wraps. I think designers sometimes intentionally omit unnecessary complications, because the mere mention of “short rows” is enough to scare a lot of knitters off. Please be assured that these sleeves are extremely easy to knit per the directions given, and “wraps” were only my preference. When I knit the pink dress, I did it per the pattern instructions. I do think the green dress looks a little nicer with the sleeve wraps, but if you use stiffer yarn, it might be better to omit the wraps and do it the way the pattern suggests.

I used my circular needles for knitting most of the dress. Got out my short, straight #5 needles to do the sleeves, so that I could just leave the body of the dress on the circular needle instead of transferring stitches to holders.

The designer recommends natural fiber yarns for this little dress. I used synthetic which is what I had on hand. It worked just fine, though a slightly stiffer yarn might give the pleats a bit more structure and help to hide the increases once the dress is blocked.

Vita is VERY helpful if you have any questions while knitting her patterns. If my notes (below) don’t answer your questions, feel free to send her a message.

Errata - top of page 4:

#19 (WS) …. end row with, P59, K3, P1.

If you are using TWO colors of yarn as I did, please see my very important notes/corrections below:

Row #21 (Wrong side, still using Main Color): SL1, K3, P14, ^K1, P1^, repeat from ^ to ^ 14 more times, P13, K3, P1. (This is SIMILAR to Row #17, but not the same, because you no longer have the sleeve stitches on your needle at this point.)

Change to Contrast Color, and do TWO rows of garter stitch as follows. (She does not number these two rows which was part of my confusion.)

Next row: Knit every stitch

Next row: Knit every stitch

(The above two rows of knit stitch result in only ONE garter ridge rather than the two that I did in my green dress.)

Switch back to Main Color and continue on to #22, but instead of working #22 as written below, it becomes a plain KNIT row.

Row #23: (WS) – SL1, ^K1, P6^, repeat from ^ to ^ 8 more times, P1.

Continue per pattern instructions from this point on. I did start knitting in the round at Row #42 as suggested. You only have 3 stitches in the “bottom pleats” at this point, so if you join to knit in the round, be sure to decrease all stitches at the center back (“bottom pleat”) to only THREE stitches. These will appear as PURL stitches from the right side of the dress. I think I did my decreases in this area over two rows to sort of ease into the transition. Any extra stitches at center back (joined area) will overlap slightly when the dress gets buttoned / fastened in the back.

In this pattern the “top pleat” stitches appear as KNIT stitches from the right side (stockinette until the rice stich at the hem), and the “bottom pleat” stitches appear as PURL stitches (garter) from the right side.

My dress measures 9.5 inches from front neckline to hem, and 7 inches from the contrast at empire waistline to hem.