Mulan dress: Project Run and Play re-mix

My daughter LOVES Mulan. Which is appropriate for her because she has a very strong personality, just like Mulan. She has been asking for a Mulan dress for months. I was originally going to make it for her for Christmas, but ran out of time. I've also been thinking about joining in on the link party for Project Run and Play for quite some time now. When I looked at the pattern re-mix project, I thought I could combine these 2 ideas :) The bodice front is quite different, it crosses over to look like a kimono, and I edged it with handmade purple bias tape. The skirt was lengthened, and I eliminated the contrasting band, I also added a bell sleeve to add to the kimono look. For the waist band/obi, I cut my rectangles 25" x 6", rounding the edges. I added interfacing because I didn't want it to bunch up. I embelised the front with a 2 inch strip of red, and then added a 1.25 inch strip of gold. I sewed the 2 rectangles together, leaving an opening to turn it right side out. I slip stiched the opening closed, added a button hole on one end and a button on the other.

My daughter wore this dress to school yesterday, she came home and told me a bunch of her girlfriends want Mulan dresses now! I'm debating on whether or not I want to make it a bit shorter, so it's not so costume-like and more wearable. I'm also thinking of adding a contrasting band at the bottom, like the original pattern, in the same purple cotton used for the bias tape. This is when the artist in me comes out...I'm never fully satisfied, I have to keep fussing with things!