(like the rod stewart song)
i'm an elder millennial living in the bay area who loves dark beer, the environment, and sewing for the tiny humans in my life.
All tagged dresses
remember that awesome fabric combo i came up with for maya's second playdate dress? well i had a fair amount of fabric left over and i was at a loss for what to make with it.
then i remembered the book report dresses i had made a year earlier. maybe the cut of the pattern that worked so well with the busy and bold ikat would also work with the tessellation print.
each time I think I've blogged all my past projects another one surfaces. here is another one i found.
i was so smitten with the library dress pattern from oliver + s after making it first as instructed for maya, then with a zipper modification for nora and etta's back to school outfits that it wasn't long before i made two more for nora and etta, this time from a simple purple polka dot cotton.
quick post today....
i first saw this joel dewberry print at gather here a few years ago. it was beautiful but i wasn't sure how i would find coordinating fabric so i held off.
a few months later i saw it for sale on fabric.com when i was order something else and this time i couldn't help myself.
one snowy day back in cambridge I bundled up and headed to gather here. on the store dress form was a darling rendition of the book report dress by oliver + s. inspired i started looking for a fabric for my own version. i came across this ikat print and knew it would be perfect.
two years ago our friends joe and kathryn got married and i decided to use the occasion to make myself a new dress.
i found myself wanting something special so i went to spoonflower, a site i had read provided a lot of the fabric for the little things to sew book by oliver + s.
it was amazing. i spent hours looking at prints before ordering a few swatches. once they arrived i quickly settled on the teal serpentine and placed an order for two yards in cotton sateen.
as previously mentioned nora and etta are quite girly. i, however, am not. so finding fabric that appeases them yet i can stand is often a challenge.
when i came across this rose and coral abstract print at gather here a few years back i knew immediately they would love it and bought a few yards.
a little while back vic's mom asked if i would like some vintage sewing notions and patterns. you see the mother of one of her friends had passed away and the friend could only part with her mother's things if she knew they were going to a good home.
well i was happy to provide said home, and today i'll share some of the wonderful things i received.
before the trick-or-treaters head out i wanted to revisit some of my favorite costumes from the past few years and give a preview for this year.
because of our age vic and i go to a lot of weddings these days. because we meet in college (same freshman dorm) a lot of these weddings have the similar guest lists.
last fall we had three weddings, three weekends in a row, all on the east coast. by the time we got through the second (our fifth of the year) i was so sick of all my dresses i couldn't bear the thought of wearing any of them the next week, especially when half the guest list would be the same.
so i did the logical thing and decided to make a dress 100 hours before the ceremony.
a few years ago when i was just discovering the glory that is oliver + s patterns i went to visit vic's family in pennsylvania for the weekend. now i've already talked about how i find hand sewing to be a great way to bring your sewing when you travel. but another thing is pattern tracing.
when done right pattern tracing is time consuming, especially if the pattern has a lot of pieces. add into that doing the same pattern for multiple sizes and you're looking at hours and hours of work. fun work, but work. so i brought along the croquet dress pattern and traced both versions for all three girls that weekend. not a small task.
my third oliver + s style was the music box jumper, making all three girls grey polka dot versions for thanksgivng.
the fabric is a quilting cotton from gather here. at the time I didn't know it was quilt backing (and thus 120 inches wide, more than double what normal fabric is) so i had a lot of it!
i probably should have started with this style, it's simple (a one scissor pattern) but most importantly, easy to get good results with, which is essential for beginners.
i would also recommend using snaps for this dress if you are just starting out. button holes are really tricky (i was never able to get the hang of them on my old machine). however i found snaps to be a great alternative during my first year of sewing.
i know what i like and i like what i know.
after my first rendition of the playdate pattern from oliver + s i was smitten. since it only goes up to a size five if i wanted to make it again it had to be for miss etta.
so make it for etta i did.
have i mentioned nora and etta are quite girly? well they are. i however am not. so it's a constant struggle to find fabrics that are sweet enough for them but not too saccharine for me.
when i saw this amy butler lark print at stonemountain & daughter i instantly knew two things: a) nora and etta would love wearing it and b) i wouldn't mind sewing it. so i picked up a few yards and waited for the right inspiration.
also know as polka dots for maya part 3
i picked up the playdate pattern from oliver + s on sale at stonemountain & daughter while visiting victor a while back. then it just sat in my stash for months. i have no idea why, but for some reason i just wasn't drawn to the picture on the front.
however as soon as i saw gail's version i suddenly had to make it. so one friday night with a nitro milk stout and some polka dot fabric i picked up from gather here that was in my stash i set to work.
also known as polka dots for maya part 2
as previously mentioned, when i first saw the library dress from oliver + s i was smitten. i mean a wrap dress fit for a little girl?! how could you not love that?
the only issue was the back. it was all buttons and i knew nora and etta would not be down for a dress that required assistance. so with plans to eventually make an zippered version in the back of my head (see those versions here and here) i decided to get the hang of the pattern by making a standard rendition for maya.
i found this purple and yellow polka dot print and coordinating solid at stonemountain & daughter. it was a bit higher quality (and thus a bit more expensive) than the standard quilting cottons but i had just nailed a job interview so i treated myself.
about a year ago i was searching for the perfect wool for maya's paddington coat. a few options online caught my eye but having never bought wool before and seeing a wide range of prices (and presumably quality) it was apparent i would need to see it in person before making a decision.
after exhausting my east bay brick and motar options, stonemountain & daughter and a verb for keeping warm, i knew a trip to the city was necessary. armed with an iPhone full of taylor swift and iced coffee from the hip local shop (exposed brick, menu written on the chalkboard wall, and light fixtures made from old bicycle parts...am i painting a mental picture for you?) i set off one saturday for my quest.
i have to admit, i wasn't in love with the hide & seek dress (available for older children here) when it first came out. (i'm willing to bet it had something to do with my deep rooted fear of making 'frumpy' dresses, caused by my sister referring to my first creations as the 'duggar dresses' and the relaxed fit of the dress.)
but then it started showing up on the blogosphere. first i saw gail's version, then this one, then this one, and i knew i had to try it.
beginners luck. that's what i had the first time i made the roller skate dress by oliver + s.
i got this chevron print at the fabric depot in portland oregon when i took nora to pick out materials for thefairy sisters dresses. i had originally planned to just dresses for nora and etta, but realized pretty quickly i couldn't exclude maya. so i planned my cutting and was able to squeeze out an additional dress from my limited fabric.
let me tell you getting the chevrons to match up was not easy, but somehow (let's give credit to the watermelon beer i was drinking and my critical thinking skills, but mostly the beer) it all came together perfectly.
as previously mentioned maya and neela have beautiful complexions and can pull off very bright colors. where other kids would get washed out or overwhelmed by bright bold prints, these girls look amazing. which means aunt maggie has a lot of fun picking out fabric for them.
when i came across this remnant of amy butler voile (spearmint buttercups from the soul blossoms | joy collection) at gather here i knew immediately it would be perfect for maya.
