Vintage Stripe Dress : Simplicity 3338

Pinterest is a dangerous thing. All these gorgeous vintage dresses that get re-pinned I just HAVE to make for myself. They are always in the tiniest size, I could never own one of the original beauties myself.  I'll just have to make my own versions! My dress was inspired by this green striped shirt dress  with the detachable scarf. 

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 I found a light blue striped shirting at Mood, very close to the original mint green. It's very light weight and silky. I cut the fabric on the crossgrain to get the stripes vertical, like my inspiration. Also I am hesitant to wear horizontal stripes. I had a pattern in my stash that was similar to the original dress, with the exception of the collar and bow, vintage simplicity 3338 from 1960. This simple version, version 3, without the square dancing sleeves, even includes a ric-rac trim. I will have to try this out another time, I am obsessed with ric rac. 

Even though my pattern is a bust 38, I still had to tweak the fit. The top button fit but everything down from that point in the front had to flair out. The back in my muslin fit almost perfectly to I left that alone. It is still pulling a hair in the front, so I will have to adjust that if I make it again. I tried my best to make the stripes match up in the front and shoulders. The skirt also has three seams that are invisible due to the stripes, making it easy to sew together. 

I had the buttons covered by Pat's Custom Buttons and Belts, and got them in record time (from across the country) Love this service SO MUCH. I should have got a belt too, but oh well. I will eventually make the scarf to wear with this dress, like my pin-spiration but I think it's cute without it. 

Are you obsessed with pinterest? Ever copy a vintage dress?

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When two become one.. Hawthorn and Iris

Hey guys, I made a romper! I Frankensteined two Colette Patterns, the top from Hawthorn and the Iris shorts, both of which I made before, into this fun romper. The fabric is a Kokka canvas from Fabricland, with an adorable polka dot and parrot pattern. Of course I had to wear parrot earrings to match! 

I changed very little with the patterns to make them match up. I did have to lengthen the waistband to fit my torso. If I made it again I would lengthen the hawthorn top to meet the shorts. I left the left side seam open to put a zipper in so I could get in and out of it. I'm not gonna lie, its not the easiest thing to take off, I kind of get stuck in the armholes, but it's doable.  

I did some modifications to the shorts, but mainly to make them fit me. I lengthened them and omitted the pockets. I feel like I had enough design details and the pocket tend to gape open, and I didn't want that. 

I was super nervous going into this that it would be a complete failure, and I wouldn't even be able to get it on, but I like the outcome! It's actually very comfortable, and I think its really fun! 

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Cambie Cocktail Dress

 

I finally made the famous Sewaholic Cambie dress! I did version A, the a-line skirt with pockets! The pockets are great, it's hard to keep my hands out of them. This was my first Sewaholic pattern, so I was a little nervous about the fit,( the patterns are made for pear shaped women right?). I am definitely more of an hourglass. 

The only fitting I did was to add an inch to the bodice, I could tell it was going to be too short.  Overall the fit is pretty good, it gaps a little near the sweetheart neckline, so if I make it again I will take out the excess fabric there. 

The fabric is a Japanese shirting fabric from Kokka, in a fabulous retro cocktail print. They still have some in yellow at Fabricworm. I made some piping at the waistband to match the pink using some rattail and a small amount of Kona cotton. 

I used to have so much trouble using my zipper foot to make piping, I could never get close enough to sew the piping. But I was told at work by the experts that it's the foot not me! YAY. The Bernina zipper foot does not get close enough to sew piping, you have to either use a piping foot or I sewed the piping to the waistband using the open foot, and moved the needle all the way over. SO MUCH EASIER. Also notice how perfectly my piping matches at the zipper :)

Do you ever use piping? Now I feel like adding it to everything! 

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Amy Sedaris Top

 Did you know comedian Amy Sedaris has a fabric line with Windham fabrics?  I love Amy's style, she always has the cutest dresses on, and she even makes me want to buy Downy Unstoppable (have you seen that commercial). I love all her fabric from Windham I have already made some pj's from the 'I like you' fabric. 

 I made this top for Fabricland, as a summer camp sample. The pattern is Simplicity 1693, a swing top with a peter pan collar. The body is made from tulip and polka dot fabric, and the collar is a printed rick rack! I LOVE RICK RACK, I might have mentioned that before ;). The stripe down the middle is a polka dot bias tape, that I sewed down on both sides. I also used the same bias tape to finish the armholes and neckline. Polka dots, rick rack, and tulips, I love how it all came together! 

I made this top months ago, and never tried it on. I've never worn this kind of top before and was unsure about the shape, but it's cute and comfortable. I like the hemline, how it is lower in the back, I guess it's a mullet top. Has anyone else used Amy's fabric? I have plans to use more of her prints, I can't get enough! 

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Hawthorns on Parade!

I'm honored to be chosen as one of the Colette Patterns Hawthorns on parade! Congrats to everyone that has finished this pattern (and sewed on all the buttons)! Make sure to drop by and vote for your top 5 before Friday, and check out the second round of Hawthorns on Wednesday.  

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Florida Room: Before and After

In case you have been wondering what the bright and cheery room I have been posing in...take a peek into my "florida room". That's what we call it around here, but it's also known as a screened in porch, or sun room I guess. I like the way florida room sounds, and went for a tropical vibe so we could have a getaway all year round! It's also an excuse to decorate with plastic flamingos, my favorite. 

The first thing I  found was the rug on gilt, and went crazy from there. The furniture I got on double sale at Crate and Barrel, and kept it basic, it actually looks a lot like our indoor furniture! The curtains are a marimekko fabric I found at the Crate and Barrel outlet for under $5 a yard. They are an oversized floral print called OONA. I think I got around 18 yards for 6 panels of fabric. Right now they aren't sewn, I just stapled them for the summer. We still have a bit of work to do in the cornices before curtain rods can go up. 

It was really tough to find the right kind of fabulous fabric for the pillows. I finally stumbled upon a twin size quilt on clearance in Marshall's for $22. Another bold floral print, but somehow it all works. I used 18x18 pillow forms, cut 19" squares used 1/2" seam allowances and closed them with invisible zippers. I've put in about a million invisible zippers but for still used this video as a reference, it really helped and I love the lady in the video. My pillows came out perfectly! I used two different kinds of trim, JUMBO orange rick rack, and this fabulous neon pink pom poms. 

It's been really great spending time in the new room, reading or even doing some hand sewing outside. And make sure to check out the BEFORE pic below. YUCK! (yes that is astro turf, very classy)

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Vintage Burda Pajama Set

I made some pj's! This is a Burda pattern re-release 7109. I just love how vintage kitschy it is. They definitely don't sell this kind of lingerie in stores anymore! I used a silk/cotton blend in a yellow floral print, that I got on sale at Fabricland. It is very sheer so I underlined the front of the bodice in a yellow voile I had leftover from a dress lining. 

The pj top is sort of a bell shape and very lose, the bottoms are bloomers with elastic around the thigh! I didn't put sleeves on it, I thought it might be annoying to sleep in. The edges are finished with a bias tape, also made from the yellow voile. For all the seams I used the french finishing, for a nice clean look. 

This was my first Burda pattern, and I was not really impressed. If I needed to use the directions I would have never finished this project. I'm still not sure how they wanted to attach the ruffle, so I just did my own thing. Definitely not for beginners, based on the directions alone. Why can't they just be clear! 

So these are really comfy and cute for summer. If only I could get my beehive on like the illustration  then I would be really cute! 

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