Pattern Testing the Tuileries Dress

I have drooled over every post Kelly from Sewing in No Man's Land has ever written and jumped at the chance to pattern test her first graded pattern for the Tuileries Dress (you can read about the pattern release and see the other dresses made here).

I tested the 4T size.  My daughter is technically still 3, but will be 4 in April and so whenever I make a pattern I do a size up to be sure it can be worn more than once.

I ended up getting a cough the weekend after receiving the pattern which put me a little behind, and while I didn't have that many improvements, all the ones I thought of kept coming through in revision pdf's that Kelly sent us!  She's good. 

The dress turned out wonderfully and Abby wouldn't take it off after we took some pictures on Sunday!  Pardon the garage door, when it's barely 30 degrees and your model is not quite 4 years old, your photo shoot locations dwindle significantly. 

This pattern stands really well on it's own (you can get it here on Craftsy for a great price), I think I styled little girly face pretty well (pats self on back!) though the deadness of our yard kindof detracts...  I don't really consider myself "stylish" whatsoever, but I feel like she looks pretty excellently put together!!

The dark fabric I used for this hides the adorable pleats at the neck and skirt, but they're there!

There's also an exposed zipper which I managed to pull off, though I've got lots of room for improvement with zippers.  Heh.  They scare me...

 Isn't she adorable?!

Anyway, it was so fun, and my last addition for Kids Clothes Week Winter 2014 edition!  

The Sunshine Dress

I wanted to make Christmas clothes for the Sunday before Christmas but never got around to it until Sunday morning.  I also wanted them to be a little matchy, but not in a barftastic way...

I have had The Sunshine Dress pattern for a while, and this was the first time I've used it. 

I omitted the drawstring on the bottom and just used the main fabric for the band at the bottom of the skirt instead of a contrasting fabric. 

You know what's super great?  This pattern has pockets, which always makes me and my kids happy.  I made polka dot pockets and you cant tell they're there unless Abby's hands are in them.

I love the box pleat detail in the front.  Yellow ric-rac wouldn't be my first choice to go with this, but we were in a use what you have situation, and I think it works.

From start to finish this dress took 2 hours to make.  I finished with 5 minutes to spare before church (even though it was safety pinned closed in the back). 

She wore a cardigan over it because winter sucks here and is really cold, and because I haven't messed with adding sleeves to things yet unless they're included already in the pattern options. 

I also made Matthew a bow-tie and but didn't get any good pictures of them together.  It's pretty cute though. 

I just finished the buttons before writing this, (I'm avoiding the inevitable chore of going to the post office today but alas, I will have to do that next...) and while there is none of this teal/aqua color anywhere else, I like it. 

Abby loved it, and approved it's excellent spin and poof factor.  This dress is an unexpected Christmas dress and (in my opinion) wound up looking pretty cool. 

Just like my little lady face.

Samantha's blessing dress

Samantha is now 3 months old and was blessed at our church on Sunday two weeks ago (I'm a Mormon and you can find out more about my faith here).

We had a bunch of family come to town for the weekend and the blessing on Sunday and it was such a great time.  I always get really nervous when we have "events" or people coming around just to see us.  What if I'm not that exciting or they have a horrible time?  This time I didn't worry about that stuff at all once everyone was here!  It was excellent.  So excellent I didn't take many pictures because I was having too much fun and leaving my phone elsewhere...oops!

But anyway, I had to make her a dress!!

I always go through the remnant bins at JoAnn's and had found this lovely fabric there a while ago.  It's like eyelet, but there are no holes...I'm not sure what it's technically called.  Anyone know?

Anyway, I used the Geranium Dress pattern in size 3-6 months to make this and lined it with the lining from a linen skirt that I don't fit into anymore.  That's slippery stuff, lining.  But it worked out.

Traditionally blessing outfits are white to symbolize purity, I wanted a tiny pop of color here and there, and these were the perfect touch.

We put a onesie under the dress, and a white cardigan over, and some adorable little shoes that were a gift, on her feet.

And a tiny pink felt bow from this Etsy shop in her luscious hair.

It turned out just as I wanted.  Simple and adorable.

Aren't those cheeks the best?!  

Maggie Mae Dress

I bought the Maggie Mae dress pattern from Shwin Designs after my friend Holli made an amazing creation from one of their patterns (you should see all the wonderful things she makes anyway, she's seriously talented!).

I found this lovely mustard linen and floral linen both at JoAnn's and initially bought them to make scarves with, but after I stared at them for a while they were begging to turn into a dress.

I wanted to make it in time for Samantha's baby blessing and finished it that morning (just this past Sunday), a couple hours before church started.

The pattern is fantastic, but I got a little ahead of myself in some places and didn't bother to look at the directions after I cut out the pieces.  So I sewed some things closed before I was supposed to and had a "learning experience" that was totally my fault.  ALWAYS follow the directions.  Lesson learned. 

I scored this adorable felt bow at an online sale recently but you can find them here.

It all turned out well, and Abby loved the dress and didn't want to take it off!  That alone is a success! I sewed up the 4T size and the neck is a smidge big because she's still only 3 1/2 but I wanted her to be able to wear it for more than a month!  We added a cardigan for warmth that never came off so nobody could tell anyway.

The most adorable goof in town.  I'm so glad some of these pictures are usable!

The pictures in the pattern show 4 buttons to close, but I only used 3 and had no trouble. 

I love this pattern and the result so much that I've already cut out a 6-9 month sized dress in the same fabrics, and have listed it as a custom made dress in my etsy shop here if you're interested.  The colors are perfect for fall and winter, and all year really.  I've decided mustard is a wonderful color. 

A dress for Abby

Reading blogs the other day I came across this post and was instantly smitten with the adorableness of the Baby Slip Dress.

Fortunately for me (and you) it is available as a free pattern, so I printed it out and started cutting over the weekend.

Abby wanted a dress that matched this one I made (newborn sized geranium dress) for the baby and I had enough fabric leftover that I thought this would be a great use for it.

 I made the 4T size, and it's perfect, even though Abby's only 3.  I like longer stuff on her and have found most 3T sizes don't hit her quite right.  Plus, she's growing pretty fast so I know she'll be able to wear it for more than 3 months before growing out of it! 

It was quick to make, and the instructions and pictures are super helpful and easy to follow.  Even the bias tape isn't that scary.  I used store bought bias tape just so you know.  I'm not too good at making bias anything so I don't.  

I'm sharing this totally on my own, just because it turned out so darn cute!  Go make one! And she absolutely wore it for church this past Sunday, but wouldn't be still enough for a picture...of course....