Twirly Dancing Dress

Miette loves to dance. Whenever she hears music she just starts dancing or if we are in the car, bobbing her head around. I love to watch her dance. She smiles, laughs and just has so much fun!

She kept requesting a dress "like a ballerina". Which basically meant one that she could twirl around in.

So I obliged. I've been designing and thinking about this dress for around 6 months (after seeing a dress that I loved and thinking that I could make one very similar) and I decided it was about time to make it a reality.

I love how it turned out BUT it isn't perfect and those small imperfections are just killing me! Somehow the front got a little wonky and hemming a circle skirt is just a nightmare (at least for me). There are a few things I would change next time but I'm pretty proud of it and I must say that she loves it!

I used the bodice and ruffle sleeves from the Geranium dress pattern. I lengthened the bodice and added lace to the edges of the ruffle sleeves. I also added a bib yoke to the front (using this great tutorial) and lace as well. Instead of the standard Geranium skirt, I used a circle skirt. The material was a bit thin so I had to double up on the skirt. Which added a bit more bulk but also more twirl for Miette!

And I leave you with some pictures of my girl twirling, this morning, in her new dress. (Note: these pics would be a lot cuter and less blurry if I had used my "real" camera, but my phone was much closer for me to grab when she started dancing. Next time...)

Oh, and I made this little guy some swim trunks. More on that later!

Dress, Shirt, Clutch and Sewing for Henri

Miette isn't the only one who is getting clothes sewn by mommy. Henri has a few things himself! Above are the 5 minute leggings (so easy!) and below are some brown cords using the tutorial from Dana Made It. There are a lot of cute boys patterns out there so he will be a stylish little guy!

I made a gift for a friend, using the Geranium pattern, but instead of a dress I made a shirt. I had this vintage pillowcase in my stash for awhile and thought it would just be perfect for this shirt. The embroidery was already on the pillowcase and I didn't need to sew a hem! It turned out adorable and her mom sent me a picture of her wearing it!

Next project was a birthday gift for my friend Mary. Using the tutorial and pattern from See Kate Sew I made her this adorable envelope clutch. It was a simple pattern and I was able to finish in under 2 hours! Perfect nap time project.

We are going to a wedding this weekend and I realized that Miette has outgrown her nicer dresses. I had this pattern for a simple shift dress, from Go to Patterns. So yesterday, I sewed this cute little dress. It's a really pretty material, but is quite pink! Miette loves it and it does look adorable on her!

I have a few more patterns cut, material ready and projects to sew. For the kids, gifts and for me! And once I get really good, then I can attempt some sewing for Brian!

Sewing: Geranium Dress

So...looks like my last post was almost a year ago! Yikes. Well, I've been pretty busy since then. This little man joined our family in October and this pregnancy was pretty rough so I lost my motivation to cook, bake, sew and blog. But he is here and we are in love!

I'm back in the kitchen but by the time I get dinner on the table, the lighting is terrible and I have forgotten to take pictures of the food! Sewing has been a lot of fun for me and something I can accomplish during naps here and there. So, instead of food here is a dress I recently finished sewing for Miette. I used the Geranium dress pattern created by Made by Rae.

I was inspired by You & Mie to use this eyelet fabric that I purchased awhile ago. And I love how it turned out! The bodice is a 4T and the skirt is a 3T. I love this pattern. There are so many variations and it came together so quick and was very simple. I'm already working on a few that will be gifts!

 Back, with buttons.

 How to keep the model entertained? Washi tape, of course!

 She loves pockets. So here she is doing a little dance showing me her pockets.

Can't wait to show you the other versions I'm making!

April

Sewing: Toddler Jackets & Clutches

I've had lots of fun sewing, lately. Mostly for other people but I do have a few projects for myself (I'll get to them eventually). Here are a few that I did for gifts at the end of last year.

I found an adorable pattern for a toddler jacket and I couldn't wait to try it out. I made the first one for Miette and was so happy with how it turned out that I made her another one, then made two more for Christmas gifts! I just bought some new material and want to make another one for Miette. Can one little girl have too many jackets? Well, in Southern California...maybe!




I also found an adorable pattern for these clutches. I learned how to sew a zipper and had lots of fun picking out the different material for each individual person. Now I just need to make one for myself!