bee mine
if i had one regret about my 2015 sewing it's that I didn't make enough for my older nieces nora and etta. at 5 and 7 they are a tad pickier than 3 year old maya and baby neela. so I promised myself the first project of 2016 would be for them.
when oliver + s announced their pattern mash up challenge i knew i had to try it. so over the next few weeks of commuting i developed a vision came together that combined four different oliver + s patterns.
I knew the fabric would be the mustang heart from cotton and steel that victor's aunt and uncle had given me for the holidays. looking through my stash I found a soft orange cotton that accented the coral and tangerine hearts perfectly.
i started with view b of the jump rope dress, a style I've admired since seeing gail's version for stylo. that placket was a little intimidating but with the oliver + s instructions it came out beautifully (and my pattern matching is pretty sublime if I do say so myself).
I used the accent color for the inner placket fabric, which lends a little pop of color.
i also was able to sneak in the accent color on the under collar.
since it's a shirt dress I decided to add in the swooping shirt hem line from the sailboat top.
to accomplish this I had to modify the slightly a-line style of the jump rope dress to a more straight cut, extending down from the arm perpendicular. this ended up only taking about an inch from the width and the bottom.
i completed the hem with a facing in my accent color.
the print was had a distinct repeat so I knew the gathered patch pockets from the jump rope dress, while adorable, wouldn't work. so I used the inseam ones from the playtime dress. Naturally I used this as another opportunity to sneak in my accent fabric.
finally for the sleeves I went with a favorite pattern of mine: the three quarter length sleeves with contrasting cuff from the library dress.
the end result is pretty adorable.
love,
aunt maggie
after making pretty dresses for talia, halloween costumes are probably my favorite thing to sew.
within an hour of finding out that talia was going to be a girl i went to my fabric stash and starting planning her first dress.
when a very good friend had a baby girl named violet, i knew whatever i made her had to be floral and purple.
after a decade of sewing for other people’s daughters i knew sewing for my own would be fun…but i had no idea how much fun.
for halloween this year i decided the kids would go as characters from jude’s current favorite book: strega nona.
is this thing on?!
Between the new house, trips, lots of visitors, and a generally busy millennial lifestyle, I haven’t had time to sew, let alone blog recently. however when maya specifically requested a back to school dress three weeks ago I knew it was time to change that.
but wait, there are more flower girl fabric leftovers!
i used was able to squeeze one more piece out of the lovely honeycomb fabric from fabric depot I used for the garden party dress and mini southport dress: an oliver + s butterfly top in the 12 - 18 month size.
so for over a year now I've had a several yards of white eyelet fabric left over from the flower girl dresses i made my nieces for our wedding.
baby clothing continues!
what to make for a baby girl whose dad is a big hunter? something out of the cotton + steel arrow print of course!
our friends recently had a baby girl, so i whipped up this little top for her to wear next summer.
our friends have begun having children so i decided it was time to build up a supply of gifts to have on hand.
my lovely mother-in-law lois got me this fabric on their trip to alaska last summer and i decided to make it into a pair of sleepover pj pants. from, you guessed it, oliver + s.
so i love harry potter.
i’m gonna say that again to really hammer the point home: i love harry potter.
another baby boy, another oliver + s sketchbook shirt.
unlike my previous renditions of this pattern (here, here, and here) i decided to make this one from a chambray (which I got from stonemountain & daughter on my birthday as mentioned here) for two reasons:
1. it’s this couple’s first baby and chambray is a gender neutral choice. you know just in case a girl comes along later.
2. the father of this baby wears a lot of chambray button down shirts, so now they can be twins.
a few years ago I came home from work to the best surprise: the good folks at oliver + s had sent me a package of goodies! (i’ve already shared the first things I made from this package here.)
back to school outfits might be the start of fall sewing but for me the season doesn't sink in until i've made at least one coat. this year my inaugural outerwear garment was another school days coat, from you guessed it, oliver + s.
quick post on something I whipped up for baby wesley!
one of the oldest fabrics in my stash is this whale laminated oilcloth I bought back in cambridge at gather here in 2012. having never sewn with oilcloth before I was looking for an easier pattern that would provide lots of instruction and up my odds of a successful result.
cue the little things to sew book from oliver + s.
