Dating novelty horse dress?

[KellyL]

Hi! I'm not sure what decade this dress was made in. There's no zippers or side splits, buttons etc, only a tie at the back. I think it's cotton and it appears to be homemade, I couldn't find any evidence of labels. Thanks for the help!

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Cute dress KellyL - for home made items like this, it's important to look at the fabric and construction. For example, here are some questions - if you're not sure of the answers, close up photos will tell the story:

• Fabric composition: if you can't tell if it's pure cotton or not, try snipping a little piece and burning it. The VFG has a good burn test in the fabric resource, I think. Or you can compare with the description of cotton in the fabric resource. I can usually discern synthetic components by feel and look: synthetics sometimes have a little shininess. You can compare to something you know is pure cotton.
• How are the hem, seams and openings (neckline, armholes) sewn?
  
• Are there any facings, overlocking, seam allowance?
• Is that binding on the neckline/arm openings?
• What's the shape like when it's not being pulled in with the tie?
• It looks like a drop waisted or is the waist on the right place?

This print looks fairly contemporary to me (last ten years) but there have been other times when fabric like this has been popular so inspecting the construction will help.