Special Request

Amy gave me some extra fabric this summer hoping I would make a pair of pants and jumper top for Little E.  I was excited to pull this together and love the fabric she chose.  Both prints are a lightweight corduroy perfect for fall.

Jeans and Tunic Top

I knew I would sew something for Baby K's first birthday, but it wasn't until a few days ago when her mom commented on the ruffled jeans I made when I knew this had to be it.  I also made a peasant style tunic top to make it a complete outfit.

 

Although here is proof that I sometimes have to make this stuff up as I go along.  I misjudged the width of the sleeves and didn't have fabric or time to redo them.  I was ready to toss it in the trash when my best friend encouraged me to just figure out something because she knew I could.  I knew I needed to add a band of fabric to increase the width/circumference of the sleeve, but didn't want the inset panel of fabric to look pointless so I added these cute little pleats.  A contrasting fabric would have worked, too, but I didn't have anything that really went with this dark pink.  I am thrilled with how the pleats turned out.  I hope K likes them, too : )

Paisley Pillowcase

A pillowcase dress actually made from a pillowcase : ) This color scheme is a bit of a departure for me but the wedgewood blue is so pretty and I just love the paisley print. I found a new pattern for pillowcase dresses that will be my new go to although I overcompensated a bit on length for this one.  It will pretty through the fall, I suppose.

Romper

I was busy with my sewing machine last week so we have a few fun new outfits to model this week at the beach.  Tonight, we started with this romper and I can't wait to make more.  I found the pattern from a great little shop on Etsy (Pink Poodle Bows) and have another ruffled top and shorts pattern along with a dress to try from her.

The shorts are even.  I think she was just standing at a funny angle.  That, or it was all the running she did all night!  She didn't stop moving.

Shirred Dress

I combined a few tutorials (here and here) for shirring and came up with this cute dress in pink gingham. And really, nothing says summer more than gingham!  I decided to practice my french seams for the body of the dress.

And also added a folded band of white fabric to the bottom - first because I barely had enough pink fabric for my tall little toddler and second because I don't like hemming!

I think she liked it!

Dresses for SJ and Little E

A certain little girl had her first birthday the other week. It was just the excuse to sew another dress. It's a tad tight on Delaney since Miss SJ is just now turning one. Cute nonetheless.

Little E got a new dress, too, but I didn't get a picture of Delaney trying it out first.

Tie Back Pillowcase Dress

I loved this navy and white polka dot fabric as soon as I saw it! I added some preppy kelly green accents for this first dress, but I have enough left over to do another one with red accents for summer.

 

 This was my first experience using bias tape to bind my sleeve openings (and I'm in love!) and also making my own fabric tie.  A lot of dresses call for ribbon ties, but once I used the green on the hem I had to make a matching tie.

Toddlers don't make the most cooperative models.

But at least the dress is cute!

My second version is coming soon, but it will have to wait until a certain little girl opens it on her first birthday before I can post pictures!

New Dress

My first a line jumper!  I still need a lot of practice on button holes, but her cuteness makes up for any imperfections.  Even if she wasn't in the mood for standing still.

Sewing Projects

I was blessed with my grandmother's sewing machine and little by little I'm learning to do lots of fun things with it.  I originally bought our little girl a pair of denim ruffle pants on Etsy, but she was ready for a bigger size.  I used the old pants as a pattern and turned them inside out to figure out how to assemble them.  I am so happy with the result, but also plan to make the ruffles a bit fuller next time around.  Also, no contrasting thread.  I thought it would be cute, but it was such a pain to keep my "white lines" straight.

My next project today was this simple peasant dress.  I found this tutorial and just scaled down the measurements to what I hoped would be an 18 month size.

I don't plan to have her wear them both at the same time, but it was easier to model both at once.  She wasn't feeling very photogenic tonight!