Dress for a Mexican Fiesta

Whether it's Cinco de Mayo or a summer evening party, a festive Mexican dress is the perfect choice!

The streamers are fluttering, the lights are strung, and the pretty party food looks tempting. Friends and family gather 'round for a special celebration, a fiesta, an event. Now for the big question: What will you wear?

The traditional Mexican peasant dress is an ideal choice. It has the cotton comfort of a sundress, but gorgeous embroidery makes it a party gown of classic elegance.

Make your own, super-easy Mexican Fiesta Dress with my downloadable instruction booklet.

If you can cut out rectangles and operate a sewing machine, you can make this stunning Mexican Fiesta Dress. If you'd like to have fun with embroidering this dress so that it becomes a work of art, my booklet shows you how, step by step. With 34 detailed illustrations and photographs, I take you through the simple steps that go into cutting, sewing and embellishing a traditional Mexican dress.

You can read complete pattern details here to learn how I created this booklet and how suitable it is even for a beginning seamstress. I cut and assembled my Mexican dress in 1 evening. I embroidered it in 4 days. I can now clothe myself beautifully for any Mexican fiesta or spring/summer party and I want to share this with you. Read more or download now:

Price: $5.00 per PDF download

How to Dress for a Mexican Fiesta
Simplicity is key here. Remember that understatement is the key to true elegance. Go for natural, not theatrical, and the end result will be far more pleasing. An oatmeal scrub made of oats and a little water mixed in the blender will polish your face so that it has a soft glow, and a little olive oil rubbed into the hands will make them soft and smooth.

Once you have created your beautiful party dress, you can think about a complementary hairstyle. Wash your hair so that it is clean and shiny. A single braid down the back would be traditional, or two braids as shown here. You can tie them with a matching ribbon for a nice finish.

A braided chignon, wore low on the head, is a traditional way in which Mexican women arrange their hair. Part hair in the middle in front with a fine comb. Make one long braid down the back and carefully coil it up, securing with combs or bobby pins. Women with abundant hair will find the super-sized bobby pins to be most helpful in keeping the hair in place.

If you are more skilled with arranging your hair, or have a friend to help you, you can also make a figure 8 bun on the back of your head for a fuller look. Tuck a single real or artificial flower such as a camelia into the hair behind one ear for a finishing touch. For a fancier finish, you can buy handcarved, handpainted or jeweled hair combs for an accent.

If you prefer to pile your hair higher on the head, you have a couple of options. It all starts with a rubber band or pony tail holder. Make a ponytail up at the very back of the top of the head. You can either coil this as is and secure, or, you can braid the pony tail for a lovely, braided bun. Simply coil the hair round in a circle that grows wider the farther out you go on the braid or pony tail.

Bobby pins or combs will keep your bun in place, and a nice touch would be to ornament it with 3-5 small flowered hair pins or real flowers. Little blooms like forget-me-knots, pansies or winter daisies would work. Metallic, beaded hairpins give a nice twinkle, too.

Accessories to go with your Mexican Party Dress
The Mexican Dress for which I'm offering this how-to instruction booklet looks wonderful when complemented with a shawl. Do you know that you can make a shawl in just a couple of hours? Go to the fabric store and choose a stunning fabric...lace, chiffon, gauze, linen? Your heart will tell you what's right when you see the perfect bolt of cloth. My Mexican dress is embroidered with red, green, golden yellow and blue flosses. Pick one of the colors that you like best to wear, and make the shawl in a solid in this color. Gold, silver or white lace would also be lovely.

Simply cut a large square of fabric and do a rolled hem along all four edges to prevent the fabric from fraying. Or, you could make a stole by cutting a long rectangle. And, that's all there is to it! You've got a shawl you would have spent tons on if you bought it at a store, but you've had the fun of making a unique garment, just for you. You could embroider it to match the dress, or embellish with beads, ribbons or trims that you like.

When it comes to choosing shoes to wear with your Mexican Fiesta dress, sandals or mules are the correct choice. Black, brown, or tan will be fine, or you can be fancier with a colored shoe that matches one of the hues in the embroidery of the dress.

Jewelry should be kept basic for an authentic look. A simple gold cross and chain would be appropriate. A string of real beads of garnet, jade or lapis lazuli would be a beautiful complement to the dress. Silver and turquoise jewelry create that southwestern look so many people enjoy.

I believe that one of the greatest virtues of folk clothing is that it does not sacrifice comfort. Mexican folk clothing is incredibly elegant, but will also keep you feeling at your best all day, unlike so many garments that are sold as party clothes. After all, how much can you enjoy yourself in ill-fitting, impracticle clothing when you wind up feeling cross wearing it and can't wait to change out of it? I guarantee, you will never feel this way wearing my traditional Mexican Fiesta Dress...a gift from our neighbors in the south for women of all ages!

Attention to neatness and a few finishing touches like the above will see you dressed in excellent taste for any family party or Mexican-themed fiesta.

Get started today by Downloading My Easy Mexican Dress Instruction Book!