Sewing to Rebuild Oklahoma

My home state of Oklahoma was hit with tornadoes more destructive than the ordinary tornado.  My heart breaks for all those left with bits and pieces of their lives.  They will rebuild, but it will take time and lots of help.  

Pattern Revolution is offering free patterns for handmade garments to give to displaced families and children.  They are also collecting handmade garments for distribution.  

I am very short on time this week, but I whipped out my favorite pattern, Children's Corner's Sassy Skirt and made a skirt for a fellow Oklahoma State family.  The black and OSU fabric were from my stash.  Praying this finds its way to a little girl that will twirl to OSU football this fall.

AG Rebecca costume and look alike contest!

 1914

Rebecca costume from Med Welch and Children's Corner patterns

 April brings my daughter's lit club to the time period of Rebecca, 1914.  

So, here is the costume:

Rebecca Costume based on Children's Corner patterns.

Doll Dress Details:

1890 Hi/Low Waist Dress from Med Welch on Etsy.

I made the high waist dress with the wide round collar.  Easy pattern to follow the directions and make a great dress.  My only fault with the pattern in putting 18" doll set-in sleeves.  I always set in clothing sleeves, but doll sleeves make my fingers cramp.

1890 Hi/Low Waist Dress

Back view of dresses and even the girl and doll's hair match!

Close-up of bodice

This dress was tough to photograph.  The small print drives your auto focus nuts.

Love the full skirt with side pleats to match the doll.

The Girl's Dress:

Pattern:  

Bodice and Sleeves:  Children's Corner Lily with an A-line modification at the bottom of the bodice

Collar:  Children's Corner Louise

Skirt:  Children's Corner Sassy Skirt

Fabric:

OLD navy blue quilting cotton from my stash

(My daughter dislikes the fabric, so she dislikes this dress.  Her comment after seeing the dress was something like this: "How about we collaborate on the fabric selection next time?" )

Construction:

NOT ALL PATTERNS FROM THE SAME COMPANY WILL FIT TOGETHER, but Children's Corner patterns are made that way.  Such a breeze to put this dress together with the many different design choices from multiple patterns.  After sewing up the doll dress, I could easily pick the pattern pieces from a few Children's Corner patterns and come up with this dress.

Children's Corner Sassy Skirt, Louise, and Lily.

Lily bodice piece that was angled into an A-line for the flounce effect.

Yeah!  Only one more dress to go!

Full Skirt.

Close-up of doll.

Happy smile!

The dog joined the photo shot.

Big brother joined the photo shot.

Instead of a Just Like Me doll, Rebecca matches my daughter to a T.

Next month is the last lit club and will be in honor of Kit.  

The Liebster Blog Award

I was nominated for this award last week by Ana Sofia from S is for Sewing.   Her comments were so insightful and humous.  

I checked out her blog to see what this little award means and this is the definition:

The Liebster Blog Award is an award given by bloggers to up and coming bloggers, most of whom have less than 200 followers (or have been blogging for less than 6 months). It is to show newer bloggers that they are appreciated, and to help spread the word about new blogs. It was created to promote appreciation and recognition among the blog world. Liebster translates to “dearest” (or favorite/best) in German. It is also known as the Love Blog Award.

The Rules:

1. You must post 11 random things about yourself.

2. Answer the questions that the nominator set for you.

3. Create 11 questions for the people you nominate.

4. Choose 11 new blogs you love and link them in your post.

5. Please leave me a comment on this post with the URL to your Liebster post so I can learn more about you!

11 Random Things About Me (Not totally random)

1.  After working out early in the morning for two years, I still hate early morning workouts.  I just can't move quickly early in the morning.

2.  I will never go to a workout without breakfast. Breakfast is usually yogurt, berries, and homemade granola.

3.  I grew up in a small town and love living in the country near a metropolis now.  I love the resources of the big city, but cherish the quiet and space.

4.  We have four kids, three boys and one girl.  If it would have been three girls and one boy, I might not ever come out of my sewing room.  I seldom sew anything for the boys.

5.  I have a chemical engineering degree, but have found that my latest career has been family organization and management.

6.  I have studied math, physics, and thermodynamics for years, but found I love history and literature.  Reading is so much fun, especially books that I read out loud to my kids.

7.  Laundry days are Monday and Friday.  An organized home must have some absolutes.

8.  My husband swears that my side of the bed is the middle.  We have been married for almost 20 years and he has given up on moving me.

9.  My grandma turns 97 this year and is still fun of humor.  I could learn so much from her.

10.  I hate going to the grocery store.  It is a necessary evil.

11.  I ask for a "day off" for my birthday and Christmas.  I can spend my "day off" any way I like.

11 questions from S is for Sewing

1. When did you realize that blogging was an important part of your life?

Blogging started as a way to reach other mothers who sew for their daughters.  It has made me a better seamstress and pushed me to do better in all categories of sewing.

2. What’s your favorite blog post (from you or others) ?

I love the SAGA chapter class I taught on Children's Corner Sassy Skirt variations.  My other favorite is the collection of costumes and American Girl doll garments I have made this year.

3. What do you see yourself blogging five years from now?

My daughter turns nine this week, so I have a feeling my sewing and blogging will change as her clothing taste change.

4. What’s your favorite childhood memory?

I have a large extended family on my mother's side and I love getting together with them, especially at Christmas.  

5. What did you want to be when you’re growing-up?

Some days I wanted to be a doctor and some days I wanted to create things.  Somehow that landed me in engineering school......

6. Do you have a favorite life quote?

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”  - Jim Elliot

"If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time." - I don't know whose quote this is.

7. Are you a morning person (or a night owl)?

I have more energy in the morning, but not at 6 am, more like 8 am.

8. What do “feed” your creativity?

I love to look a fabric and patterns.  They just come together for me.....

9. Name your favorite fabric designers/collections ever?

I have a lot of Sandy Henderson's fabric.  I love Fabric Finders prints.  I am on a solid fabric buying spree currently.

10. What’s the best advise you ever got?

Successful people never quit.

11. What do you expect to accomplish in 2013?

I hope to complete the jobs around the house that need to be done.  After that, I try to nurture my kids natural talents. ( I have a entrepreneur, debater, film maker, and comedian.)  Currently my survival plans just extend to the end of school in May.  Summer is another hurdle of activity and travel followed closely by school starting in the fall.  

My 11 Questions for the people I nominate:

Notice the close resemblance of earlier questions.

1. When did you realize that blogging was an important part of your life?

2. What’s your favorite blog post (from you or others) ?

3. What do you see yourself blogging five years from now?

4. What’s your favorite childhood memory?

5. What did you wanted to be when you’re growing-up?

6. Do you have a favorite life quote?

7. Are you a morning person (or a night owl)?

8. What do “feed” your creativity?

9. Name your favorite fabric designers/collections ever?

10. What’s the best advise you ever got?

11. What do you expect to accomplish in 2013?

My 11 Nominated Blogs:

1.  http://lifeinthesewingroom.blogspot.com

2. http://mamamademine.blogspot.com

3.  http://sewingbyshirley.blogspot.com

4.  http://smockedbydesign.blogspot.com

5.  http://sewingforthree.blogspot.com

6.  http://janssmocking.blogspot.com

7.  http://www.fabricmakesmehappy.com

8.  http://sewblessedinamishcountry.blogspot.com

9.  http://timesaflying.blogspot.com

10.  http://maggiebsmocks.typepad.com/smocking/

11.  http://www.smocksewandbemerry.blogspot.com

Strawberries and Sassy Skirt

When your daughter needs a few quick outfits, it is great to turn to a solid skirt pattern and cheap t-shirts from Target.  My "go to" skirt pattern for my daughter is Children's Corner's Sassy Skirt.  I have lost track of how many I have made.  I made two skirts with the variation of adding another tier to the skirt and making it look like a peasant skirt.  Above, the skirt is trimmed with self-ruffled dot print and rick-rack.  

Above fabric is by Timeless Treasures and the embroidery is from Planet Applique.  

Below fabric is from Michael Miller and the embroidery is from Planet Applique.

Another variation of this skirt is to make a skirt. I make the skirt as it is written for the full skirt and then add Children's Corner's Sara Skort shorts underneath to make Sassy Skirt a skort.

The Paris fabric is from Timeless Treasures and the embroidery is from Planet Applique.

Another quick skirt is a free hand rectangle of ruffle fabric sewn to an elastic band.  This took longer to thread my serger than to sew.  I sewed up the side seam and then gathered the top.  I tacked down the skirt to the elastic on my regular sewing machine and then coverstitched it with my coverstitch machine.  It looks professional and my daughter is nuts about it.

The bird cage appliqué is from Planet Applique.

Have a great weekend!

"Rose" from Ottobre and Sassy Skirt Redo

This is a quick and easy project from an old copy of Ottobre Magazine (I think 2008).  Unfortunately, it doesn't hang on my dress form well.  The skirt does hang better in person.  The fabric is a purple gingham with matching ribbon around the waist and neck.  

Normally you would not put ribbon around the neck, but the pattern shows an upturned and rigid trim, so I used the ribbon to make it match.  I made this a little too big for my daughter to last through the winter, but I am still not impressed with the fit of this dress.  I must be spoiled into believing that everything will fit well like most heirloom patterns do.  I would equate the fit to buying a Target dress when you normally shop at Macy's.  If you like the gathered waist and neck styling, I would pick a better fitting pattern and then move the pattern pieces away from the fold and then gather it.  I might make a flower pin to wear with this dress, so it doesn't look so plain.

I have been busy inside, since we are still roasting in Texas.  My daughter had outgrown a cute dress I had made from Portabellapixie.  It has a huge skirt on it and I didn't want to loose all that gathering, so I found my scraps and cut out the yoke to Sassy Skirt from Children's Corner and made the dress into a skirt.  All I had to do was cut off the bodice to the dress and attach it to the yoke of Sassy Skirt.  I also embroidered a Target t-shirt to match the skirt.  Embroidery design from Stitch on Time.

Before, as a dress.

After, as a skirt.

Pink and cute, just a girl's dream.

Have a great Labor Day Weekend!  I hope it cools off here.  Houston is in the hottest summer ever recorded and I am ready to see cooler weather.

Modkid "Emma", Liberty Jane's "Wrap Top Dress", and Felicity's Pretty Clothes

What do you do when you are bored with the traditional square yoke?  You have the freedom to make a unique outfit.  I had smocked this Cinderella plate on white and really didn't want to put it in a square yoke.  After searching through my patterns, I decided to use Modkid "Emma." I thought it that would make a great "fantasy" dress for my daughter.  The pink fabric is poly/cotton and the white fabric is a dotted Swiss.  

The yoke on this dress is plain, so I added the smocked insert, tiny pin tucks and the button details.  

The back is just as cute!

I like the elastic under the arm to pull the top in a little closer to the body.

And as usual, I used the yoke to Sassy Skirt by Children's Corner.  I was worried the skirt would be a little revealing at the bottom, but it stays put and looks so cute.

I have also been busy making a few American Girl doll outfits.  My local SAGA guild, Midnight Oil Smockers, is selling raffle tickets for Felicity and a handmade wardrobe.  When we have all the outfits together I will add a photo and a place to buy a raffle ticket.  I have added two dresses for the raffle.  

The first dress is a period dress from the original American Girl doll patterns.  This is the Laced Jacket and Petticoat.  I think the directions to these free patterns are located in multiple places on the internet, but some formats have accidentally left off key pieces of the instructions.  Glad I have experience sewing little clothes, because a beginner would quit.  But these free patterns fit wonderfully and are a great resource.

I have recently been impressed with Liberty Jane Patterns.  They sell patterns for many different dolls, but I have picked up their American Doll patterns.  They have great instructions and the clothes fit so well.  They are a great resource!  This is their Wrap Top Dress pattern made in a tiny cherry print.

Front and Back to Wrap Top Dress.

This last picture is a new decorating touch that was added to my sewing room.  A dear neighbor sells, Simply Said wall designs.  I picked this saying for my sewing room in memory of my mom.  After she passed away, we cleaned out a small bedroom that contained her crafts and were amazed that it took up the entire living room.  She was a master at packing her supplies to fit her space.  I added three of these designs to my house and they look great.

Two Easy Knit Tops

The Sweetheart Top by Jalie is a "classic."  This is a very well done pattern for (2T) 21" to  50" bust, all in one pattern.  It fits well, looks great, and is easy to put together.  What more could you ask for?  If you have been scared of knits, this is the pattern to start using.

This skirt is another "Sassy Skirt" by Children's Corner done as a peasant skirt.  Both fabrics are from Moda and done by Oliver + S.  I love the feel of the Moda knit.  It has a lovely drape.

The green top is "Gwen" from Ottobre Design magazine (Summer 2009).  It is super fast and easy to put together. I even did the knit flower embellishment from the pattern.  I love the swinging "A" line and ruffled sleeves.  I used a cotton/lycra knit for this top and I sure wish I remembered where I got it, because I would love to have more.  It is a dream to sew.

A Dozen Reasons to Love Sassy Skirt by Children's Corner, part 3 of 3

 
This post wraps up my first 12 variations on the Children's Corner Pattern Sassy Skirt.  I am sure it will not end my desire to re-engineer this cute skirt.

9.  Turn the skirt to a skort.


Children's Corner patterns are unique in the fact they are made from the same set of slopers.  They add almost the same amount of ease into each garment, so it allows us to swap pattern pieces from their patterns to easily change the look of the garment.  So for this skort, I borrowed the shorts from Sara's Skort and sewed them as the bottom layer of the skirt.  I made a size 7 and it fit within a 1/4" of total perfect, and the variation may have been my cutting.

The skort is a perfect match for my daughter doing cartwheels everywhere she goes.

10.  Add a faux button front for detailing.

I used the gathered skirt pattern and before gathering it, I folded over the center front for a faux button front skirt.  I added the buttonholes, but never cut them and just added the buttons.  To make it more unique, I dug through my button stash and pulled out an assortment of red ones to use.

11.  Add an apron layer to the skirt.

I used the single layer bias skirt for this combo.  I cut the shorter skirt front in white for the apron and then took off a few inches on the side and rounded the bottom corner.  My white was a little flimsy, so I added another white layer to the back and bound them together with bias trim.

12.  Add a flair to the bottom of the bias cut skirt.

I had made myself a few Simplicity 2410 skirts.  So I decided to cut down the circular piece a little and use it for Sassy Skirt.

Simplicity 2410 for me

Sassy Skirt for her

So ..... for those inspired to make skirts, Sassy Skirt only goes to a size 10 for little girls.  I took a picture of the difference in size 7 yoke and size 10 yoke.  (Most of the variation is in length and elastic back.)

The seam allowance in 1/4", so there is not much more than 1/4" on the front yoke in sizing difference.

What do you do for a larger girl (tween or teen)?  Sassy Skirt was published in 2009 and I was delighted to find the Simplicity pattern book full of dropped yoke skirts this year.  The tough part is finding the yoke that fits well, but once you do, the sky is the limit on variations you can do.

So for those tweens/teens/adults try Simplicity 2410, Simplicity 2411, Simplicity 2257, and Simplicity 2449.  Serendipity Studio's skirts are almost all dropped yoke skirts and they go to a size XXS, which is a 24" waist.  ( I tried to add a picture of their skirt, but it wouldn't behave.)

Add caption

I didn't try all my ideas for Sassy Skirt, so one day I will tackle smocking the gathered skirt, making the bias skirt circular, and adding pockets to the skirt.  The sky is the limit.

Now for the complete outfits!

Amy Butler fabric and Target t-shirt

Walmart t-shirt and Lynnie Pinnie zig zag flower,

Michael Miller fabric, Target t-shirt, Lynnie Pinnie zig-zag flower

Target tshirt and Bunnycup flower embroidery

Now, for that Easter dress.............