Friends Part 2 - The One With the Re-do

I'm asking for a re-do. My first Friends look for Alida's Sew the Show was boring. I must have been PMSing and feeling old and incapable of having fun. So here is my new Phoebe look instead (complete with my rendition of Smelly Cat).

After Becca DuVal wrote in the Facebook group that she was looking for a slip dress pattern, I thought "Oh, that'll look great on her. She's young and cute and slim. I can't pull that off." Then I watched Oprah's Spirit Class yesterday (Sunday's epidsode with Christiane Northrup) and had an ah-ha moment. She said, "Belief trumps genes." So if I believe I'm still young and pretty enough, I will be. And my genes must be pretty good too because I have a 3 year old. I read somewhere recently, that having a baby in your 40's makes it very likely that I'll live into my 90's. There is a correlation between my reproductive system being young enough to do that at 42 and the age of all my cells. Elena will be 4 this summer and is keeping me young.

Anyway, the dress here is made using an old pattern from 1996. I forgot I had it, but am so glad I did. I used a thrifted rayon dress to make this, which is essentially a muslin because it felt very experimental. I didn't have enough fabric to make it as long as I would have liked. I also didn't have enough to do the facings the pattern called for, so I did bias tape instead. All in all, it still turned out pretty good and I may even make another. It feels so light and comfortable it's amazing.

I feel quite naked without my granny chic sweater on, but I  wanted to show it on it's own at least once.

So now that I'm feeling young again, we'll be switching to the Golden Girls for next month!?!? Are you screwing with my head Alida? That is another awesome show and will be perfect for summer coming up so I'm excited. Thanks for stopping by.

KCW - Day 3 - Blouse & Skort

I've been wanting to make a white blouse for a while now and today was the day. This one is Butterick 4176 made from a vintage sheet from my neighbor. I will think of Irene every time Elena wears this. (Irene is now in an Alzheimer's unit and doesn't even realize that her house has been sold. That is so sad to me.) The skort is the free Monkey Bars Skirt from Crafterhours. I moved up to the size 3 width and 4 length this time and the fit is very good. The inner shorts are the size 2 from last year because I was in too big a hurry to trace a new size. (The skirt pieces have all straight lines and can easily be folded to the right size.)

I love the design of this blouse - the pleats and the puffy sleeves are so sweet. It was a pretty easy sew except that set in sleeves in a size 2 isn't really much fun. The Big 4 patterns don't get much love in blogland, but I have 3 I'd say that I just love and have used multiple times. I opted for flat felled seams on most of it. The neck is finished with bias tape. There is a button and loop in the back.

 And yes, Elena is freezing in these photos. It's about 60 degrees but windy as all get out. All done in 2 minutes flat.

I'm still planning on continuing sewing for her each day this week, but I may not blog about it. The list of things she needs isn't very exciting right now - a white t-shirt, some knit capri's in a couple of colors, boring basics. I'd like to get back to sewing for me since Me Made May is right around the corner. Until next time.

KCW Days 1 & 2 - Butterfly Tee & Shorts

This is going to be the fastest post ever. I have approximately 1 hour of battery life left to work off of until I can get a new power cord for my laptop. Oh yikes.

For the Kids Clothes Week Wild Things theme, I was able to make Elena some summer pieces that she really needs. These pieces are in our same color family I've been working with so the mix and match theme continues.

The tee is CINO's Nessie Top, again. Instead of hemming the sleeves, I did little bindings. I also bound the neckline instead of doing a band. It is hemmed with the double needle, which I must say I had been avoiding lately, but she performed beautifully today. She is a fickle thing and this knit from Girl Charlee is quite thin so I was nervous.

The shorts are really Twisted Trousers made before the turquoise capri ones. These were my muslin made out of some lightweight denim. They were worn 3 or 4 times and then Elena tore both knees in
the same day. I hemmed them by making facings and adding little vents at the sides.

The embellishments were done with freezer paper stencils and fabric paint. I sponged on a few colors last night and then added the embroidery this morning. It's like grown-up coloring and it's fun to do.

That's the first 2 days of work. I'm hoping to do some sewing every day and post at least a couple more times this week. Enjoy your week!

Spring Essentials to Mix & Match

I am still committed to not purchasing any clothes for Elena with very few exceptions - socks, jeans (which she doesn't like anyway) and winter coats being the main ones, and possibly swim suits. We do have some ready to wear items handed down to us, but the goal is to sew most everything and be smart about it. I strive to make pieces that Elena will like and will wear a lot. I also don't want her to have so many clothes that each hardly gets worn. While I enjoy making them, it feels wasteful to me.

Her spring wardrobe really started with February & March's Project Run & Play outfits. (February 1, February 2, & March) Then I ordered some more fabrics that would fit in with the purple, green, coral, pink, and turquoise that those outfits included. I'm also considering the fact that Elena really likes to pick her own clothes out now, so I want everything to coordinate as much as possible so it's easy. She may still look ridiculous sometimes (I'm cool with that) if she puts some of the prints together, but otherwise, I hope she'll look pretty good no matter what she picks.

Those are our 3 new pieces I'm showing you today. The pants are the Titchy Threads Twisted Trousers again. I like the 5-pocket styling options with the simplicity of a knit, pull-on waistband. I used floral stretch twill from Girl Charlee.  These are the 2T again, with 2 inches added to the length (at the lengthen line mid thigh). I didn't use any piping this time but added a bit of coral ribbon to the front pockets and back yoke. Elena hates them. She actually cried and begged for leggings. They aren't really that heavy so I'm hoping she'll try them again when she is in a better mood and not being such a threen. They fit her very well.

Next up is the Sofilantjes Otium Sweater in it's most basic version in size 2. I used scraps of green sweater knit left from her big sister's sweater 2 winters ago so they can sort of be twinsies if big sis will allow it. The fabric is from Joann's and has held up great on Olivia's sweater. Being so close to Lake Erie, we'll warm up slowly in the spring and still need sweaters in the morning and evening until early June. It's neutral enough to be versatile.

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As you can see here, she can bend down perfectly easily so hopefully she will accept these pants even though they aren't leggings.

And finally, Elena's favorite new piece - the heathered lilac peplum tee. I used the GYCT Designs Tinley Tee in 3T that I've used several times before. I shortened it and made up the difference with a ruffled flounce that is twice the width of the bottom of the tee. The puffy, gathered sleeves and a skirt are so girly and just what this princess loves. It looks allright with the floral pants, but not as great as I'd expected. A darker purple might have been even better I suppose, but I also bought this same cotton/spandex from Girl Charlee in coral so there will be other tees. Elena prefers this top with some leggings.

I'll be back next week during Kids Clothes Week. I'm planning on a pair of shorts and a tee at the very least, but possibly more. Will you be participating and if so, how are you incorporating the Wild Things theme? I'm not sure how wild I want to get yet, even though I've seen so many inspiring posts.