Hanami Love - Improvisational Pleats

I have wanted the Hanami pattern since the day it came out. StraightGrain was one of the first blogs I came across a year ago when I discovered this incredible online sewing world. I was pretty sure that my little Elena would look great in any of An's patterns because she is built just like her daughter - rather slight, very feminine little body and face. I didn't buy until recently as part of the Perfect Pattern Parcel #2. This one's being in the parcel clinched the deal.

And then if I wasn't happy enough already just to get the pattern, An came out with a contest to use her improvisational pleating techniques. Oh, I love a good contest. I am way too competitive sometimes. I will be linking up later in May when the time comes. You can read all about it here.

This top is just beautiful, inside and out. I added the improvisational pleats to the bodice - no measuring or pre-planning. I hope they're irregular enough to look intentional and not just wonky. I was not drinking, I promise. I wanted the top third of the entire top to be pleated. The fabrics are things from my mom's old stash. All very lightweight cottons. I went with the zipper back (but not an invisible zip), the peplum length, the peter pan collar, and the tulip sleeves. Too much cuteness.

It might be just a little too dainty for Elena. As pretty as it is, if you know Elena, she is much more of a firecracker than this top would suggest. It is light and comfy so she isn't complaining at all, but she would probably prefer one in a brighter color. I'm thinking of some orange with tiny white polka dots I have leftover from this dress. I think I'll try the crossback and the flutter sleeves. That will be more her style.

The leggings are homemade too out of cotton lycra knit from Girl Charlee last year. I used elastic to ruche the sides a bit. They match the zipper.

Do you know what she is doing in the above picture? She is counting how many marshmallows she is going to get for these photos. Ah, the cost of doing business with a 2 year old.

The BBC Vest

     I grew up going to the fabric store with my mom and looking through those pattern books. I thought it was so fun and so inspiring. Once she settled on a pattern, I wanted to be the one to go find it in the rows of file cabinets. That envelope held all the creative possibilities.

     Fast forward 30 plus years and the world of patterns has changed. I still buy patterns sometimes at Joann's when they are 70 cents or $1 each, but I find them to be kind of basic. I have trouble with the sizing and the directions sometimes leave me scratching my head or looking for a bottle of wine. Sometimes I have to just put the directions away and look at the project and do what makes sense to me. But I will say that I have learned a lot and I find them very useful as basic pieces to mix and match into something more interesting. You know, frankensteining.

     The PDF patterns are very new to me. I purchased the Sew Fab bundle recently, but the first one I bought was the ShwinDesigns BBC vest. I was inspired by this one by Craftiness is not Optional and this one by girl.Inspired. I finally sewed one up yesterday for my little Elena.



     The fabric choice is a little busy for me but I LOVE the shape of this vest. The racer back and the peplum are adorable. Based on the measurements given, my tall, thin girl required the 12-18 month size in width and a 2T in length. But oh yikes, it is hard to tell with this pattern what is the width and what is the length on those collar pieces. Things were not matching up, but I eventually figured it out and it all worked out perfectly. It fits her sooooo nicely. But next time, I think I'd pick one size and just go with it.

     Did you see what I said? Next time. I guess that means I'm considering making more of these. This one was a little bit like giving birth. It was pretty tough for me to get through but in the end, it was so beautiful, I fell in love and forgot all the pain. I can hardly even remember it now. I mean, look how cute it is. Those pleats in the peplum are to die for.

 

     We are having such a nice fall around here. We had a great time down at the beach today. No wind, no waves, mid 60's. When I suggested we go to the beach, she went and grabbed a swim suit and added it to the diaper bag. She had to settle for throwing rocks into the water.

 



       

 

   

     I was very lucky to inherit a large amount of my mom's stash of buttons, trims, fabric, etc. when she did some recent purging. She is pretty excited that I'm using so much of it. That's where I found this button.

 

     Overall, I liked the BBC Vest pattern very much. It really makes a beautiful product in the end. I could see a fancy one being part of Elena's Christmas outfit this year.