Sewing For Children Contest at PR

If you are a member of Pattern Review,you have until July 11th to vote in the "Sewing For Children" contest. I'll warn you, though-- so many lovely garments have been entered in the contest that you will have a difficult time deciding which to vote for! There are over 70 entries in the contest, including mine. I am amazed at the talent that is evidenced by all the wonderful creations in the contest gallery. Great job, everyone!

Ruth

Fiddlehead Beach Party Top

I made this little summer top for Marie last week...couldn't seem to get good pictures, she'd just woken up from a nap and had gotten it all wrinkly, but here you have it.

Fabric is from a vintage sheet I bought at the Salvation Army. I'm on a vintage sheet kick right now. I can never resist roses anyway.

I love, love, love this free pattern found HERE at fiddlehead.blogspot.com Thank you so much for designing and sharing this, Kristin!

The pattern is only sized for 24 months right now, but it was easy to make a bit smaller for my 8 month old (who wears 9-12 month clothes). I took 5/8 inch seams instead of the recommended 3/8 inches, shortened the straps, and overlapped the front bodice pieces a bit more. The back has elastic in it, so the fit is adjustable. Super easy to sew together! I'd probably make more!

Love,
Jessica

Quick Tip: Getting Even Gathers

Ever have problems with the gathers on the front of a dress or on the top of a sleeve being bunched up all unevenly?

Mom taught me this little trick years ago, and it really helps. First sew your basting lines as the pattern directs and then gently tug your bobbin threads to pull up your gathers. Pull up the gathers till your piece is about the length it needs to be. Match up and pin the ends, the center, and any notches your pattern has.

Next, take a spare pin and use it like a guitar pick, running the end over the gathers between each pinned section. This will even up your gathers just like that!

Add more pins to keep the gathers in place and take it to your sewing machine. Sew as directed by your pattern. I keep a spare pin in hand and continue to run it over my gathers from pin to pin to as I sew.

Finished! Nice even gathers. Now go try it on your next project!

Blessings,
Jessica

Promised Pictures

More pictures on Flickr.
Complete review at Pattern Review.

Thank you for all the sweet, encouraging comments you've left as I've documented my progress on this dress. I feel so blessed!
Ruth

Fun Vintage Pattern and Fabric Giveaway!

The Whipstitch blog is hosting a great vintage pattern giveaway and fabric to make your choice of whichever pattern you pick!

Go HERE to enter. This is one of the patterns I loved... View 2, in the blue would be so cute on me, don't you think?

Hurry, giveaway ends tomorrow at 10pm

Blessings,
Jessica

The dress is complete!

The Summer Sundress is finished! I'll show a few details here, and tomorrow or the next day I will post pictures of Emily wearing the dress.

The placket turned out fine, thanks to Summerset's tutorial and Goosegirl's suggestion to cut the placket on the bias and use Fraycheck at the point.

~the placket from the inside~

Well, I just could not decide whether to add a green band to the bottom of the dress or not. I liked it both ways. So instead, I added a 1" band of green, inserted 2 inches up from the hem. I love the way this turned out.

~green band inserted into the skirt~

The dress is fully lined with white batiste. The dotted Swiss fashion fabric is somewhat sheer, and with the lining there will be no need for Emily to wear a slip. The dress has its own built-in (rather, sewn-in) petticoat.

~the inside of the dress~

This dress is quite full---just think of the twirling that Emily will be able to do in this dress! I didn't use the skirt pattern piece since it is just a rectangle. Instead I just cut a rectangle using the full width of the fabric, assuming it was 45" wide. I was wrong--the fabric was approx. 58-60" wide because the skirt measures at a whopping 114" wide! A lot of twirling potential!

~full skirt~

The dress looks lovely on Emily, and I can't wait to take pictures tomorrow.

Okay, I'm off to practice my oboe---band concert on Thursday in Edmond. If you're in the area, it's going to be a fun concert of patriotic music and free watermelon and icecream afterwards.

Ruth

Progress--Slow but Steady

In the 30 minutes I had for sewing today, I put the bodice together--complete except for buttonholes and buttons. I couldn't wait to try it on Emily, and I'm happy to report that the fit will be perfect!




The instructions called for sewing the sash ties directly on top of the side seams after the dress is completely finished. Instead, I chose to sew the sash ends into the side seam allowance. This gives a smoother look and avoids turning the raw edges under and topstitching the ties down. Also, instead of gathering, I made a little pleat in each tie before sewing it into the seam allowance.


After sewing the lining together with the fashion fabric and turning it right sides out, I pressed the seam allowance with the fashion fabric slightly rolled to the inside. I also edge stitched the lining to the seam allowance to ensure that the lining will not peek out on the right side.




I love the back of the dress, especially the big bow. Now I need to decide on buttons, 3 down the back and 2 for the straps.


This week I hope to finish the dress. The skirt should go together quickly once I get past the placket. From past experience, my plackets don't come out that great. Any suggestions for a good placket method? I'm open to any tips you can give me!

Ruth