Arrrr...more dress-ups

Two pirate costumes are needed right away. So here they are.
One for Caitlin.....

......and one for Adam.

But first here's is the Pirate story....

Once a week one of the steamships on our lake becomes a Pirate Ship. It's special cruise for families. Everyone dresses up like a pirate and there's breakfast and entertainment from a children's entertainer. He's the fellow standing on top of the wheelhouse.
The ship cruises around the lake looking for other pirates (local cottagers) to attack. On the wheelhouse is also an air-cannon so when the pirates passengers count down ...ready, aim, fire... it's followed by a loud bang.
It's great fun.

Some cottagers dress up their boats and attack from the water.

And some cottagers put on a short skit and attack from shore.

Here are spectators watching some land-lubbers walk the plank.

For the skirt, I used Oliver + S badminton skort.  There are shorts underneath but it was just too difficult to photograph. It's size 3 and so easy and quick to make. Like all the O+S patterns the directions were easy to follow and the results simply perfect.

For the blouse I used Oliver + S Class Picnic pattern. Another quick and easy pattern. Size 3. I put large ric rac along the front between the yoke and bodice front. Plus I added a little pirate bling in the form of lace on the sleeves.

For the vest I used the pattern pieces from Oliver +S Sleepover pyjamas. Using the front and back bodice pieces as a guide for size for the back and front width as well as for the armscye, I lay tracing fabric over and redrew the shape I wanted for the front of the vest.
For the front closure I used a little bit of black velcro so Caitlin can do up her vest, or not.

I traced a skull and crossbones on Steam-a-Seam then ironed and stitched the pieces in place. Unfortunately I didn't have any stabilizer to put behind the applique so it puckered like crazy. Right now time is of the essence and driving an hour to another town isn't an option.

Overall it looks just fine and perfect for a child's Pirate Cruise.

Digging out vintage pattern S9514 I also found some scraps of red stripe fabric that I used for a dress up outfit I made for Adam's mom when she was a child.  I also used this pattern to make overalls for her brother when he was little nipper.

Adam is such a chubby baby that as I measured exactly his width on the striped fabric, only two white stripes lined up, as opposed to white and red, and right in the middle too!  Arrgh.  Oh well. It is what it is and this only a costume.
Again, I didn't have stabilizer so the applique is somewhat distorted.

 

So, what is a Pirates favourite letter in the alphabet?
Arrrrr you say?
No!
It's the sea!

Twirl-ability

Lately, the measure of my sewing ability is if the dress twirls. Well, here's the test.

First the wind-up........

 ....then let 'er twirl!

She really liked this dress as well but getting a photo proved difficult.
Here's the back as per the tutorial I previously posted.

And here's the front.

But she didn't want to play tea party ......

...she wanted to twirl!

This photo is out of focus, I know, and who wouldn't be after all that twirling?

Notes to self:
Vintage Natalie dress fits just a little on the roomier side in size 3. Perfect for long time use w/blouse underneath for cooler weather. Make more; maybe in pinwale corduroy or viyella. Mom didn't like patterned piping. Gah!
Basic Bodice dress fit exact in size 3. Back treatment worked perfectly. Mom wants more of same with big sash.

Tea Party Dress

I've had this tea party themed fabric in my stash for such a long time. I bought it with the intention to use it as backing for a child's quilt.  But I'm just not a quilter so it's been sitting in my stash waiting for another project.

Well, the other day my internet sewing friend Sharon posted this tutorial found here.  
It gave me inspiration so I dug down deep in the abyss of the turquoise fabric box and unearthed the tea party fabric.

I have a tea set for Caitlin that's lime green and turquoise, so this will be a perfect outfit for dress-up when we have tea in the Gazebo.

Truth be known, the image reminds me of myself pouring imaginary tea for my childhood and lifelong friend Kathy. When we were kids, we played tea party for hours on end.

So here's the finished dress with piping (of course) on the arm and neck opening.

While I was sitting on the rock stairs taking this photo, mom Blue Jay and one of her fledglings landed beside me.
I think this is her second brood because it's so late in the season to see young Jays. And speaking of the unusual (or maybe proof of global warming) is the presence of many Common Buckeye butterflies that rarely appear here. They've even been spotted north of Lake Superior which is in the Boreal Forest.

None of this has anything to do with sewing though.

Nor does this photo.
Beside where the Jays landed is a bench with a basket of Iceberg Pansies and I have long blamed the local deer eating the blooms.  Not any more.  It's Chippy who is the culprit!

Okay, back to sewing.  The pattern I used was Bodice Dress by Collars Etc.  I omitted the collar on view 4 and used Sharon's directions.

I made it size 3.

Okay, so now I'm going to go jump in the lake because it's outrageously hot and humid here again. And when I dry off ... tea in the Gazebo of course!

Vintage Natalie

When I saw this pattern I knew I had to make it. As good luck would have it I was inspired from versions here and here made by my internet sewing friend Jenny Jo, as well as here made as an entry for PR&P.

The fabric for my version is by Robert Kauffman called Betty Dear. The dress is size 3.

The pattern was designed by Janet Gilbert for Sew Beautiful and you can read all about how she got her inspiration for the pattern here. 
http://texassmockingcompany.blogspot.ca/2011/04/picture-that-inspired-pattern.html

The instructions were quite detailed as there are many versions of this dress. Overall, they were clear to follow and there were lots of tips too.
It's a good idea to read through all the steps before even cutting out this pattern. It's not a difficult pattern by any means, there are just a lot of versions.

While the illustrations and instructions were straightforward, I managed to goof up the placket. It didn't come out sitting as flat as it should but my trusty iron fixed that problem!
I dithered about adding a belt/tie and in hindsight perhaps a narrow one might have been a good idea.
Next time.
Also, perhaps I should have tried to line up the flowers so that the front panel matched the sides. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough fabric to do that.

If this dress is a little too big for Caitlin, which I suspect it might be, my plan is to make a white blouse that she can wear under this dress in the fall.

Note to self:
For the back skirt, cut on fold and make placket with slit and 2" facing.

Ruffled Halter

On the Oliver + S website there are several free patterns to download.  Today I decided to make this one called Ruffled Halter. Download it here.

The fabric is raised dot voile and it's sized to fit 3/4.  It was really easy and quick to make. The hard part is getting a decent photo.

Maybe this is a better angle and better lighting?

The neck strap ties at the back and there is elastic around the back bodice. 
On the hems of the ruffles, I serged using the rolled hem technique and because I didn't have the correct colour of cotton thread, I had to use several shades of rayon thread. 

Perhaps this is better photo? Maybe not. The Day Lilies look good though because the deer haven't eaten them yet.
At any rate, this top ought to be light and cool for the hot and humid dog days we're experiencing right now.

Now it's time for lunch, afterwards a quick swim and then back to the sewing room!

Antoinette

I have my sewing room back for a few days as all the guests have gone....but not for long.
Today I was able to complete this dress, it's called Antoinette, size 4.  It was designed by a very talented lady named Nele from Belgium.
Despite that the instructions were written in Dutch, it was really easy to put together. There were good photos and the rest was intuitive.  Unfortunately, the pattern is no longer available.
The next time I make this dress, I will add 4cm to the hem as opposed to 2cm as per the instructions.

Nele's website can be found here . She has many beautiful items that she has made, designed plus a lot of sewing tips and tutorials.
She got the inspiration her Antoinette dress from this dress at modcoth.com

The fabric I chose is periwinkle blue linen and the collar and piping is light green cotton.

Afternoon sewing.

This afternoon I managed to squeeze in some sewing.  It'll be the last sewing for awhile because we're expecting an onslaught of guests this summer and my sewing room has to revert back to being a guest room.  Next weekend alone, there will be 14 people and 4 dogs sleeping over.

Here's what I made.

Using Oliver + S patterns, I made the Swing Set top in a gauzy cotton fabric and Puppet Show shorts in gray linen. They are size 3 and they fit perfectly.

I whipped these up while my daughter, her husband and the grandchildren who are visiting us for several days went to Santa's Village, a local amusement park.
Poor Santa must have been sweating buckets because we've had a heat wave of 100+ with humidex over the past week.  Given this is his summer home, maybe he should be wearing a Hawaiian style shirt instead of his fur trimmed red suit!

Here's our little model with a prize she won earlier in the day and her best pal, Lucy. Labradors and kids are a good mix.

I have a few items cut out and ready to sew but given the busy summer that lies ahead, any sewing time for me will be a complete luxury.

Mallory

This is a Children's Corner pattern that's been sitting in my to-do box for some time.
Inspired by this talented lady (go here) I just had to make it.

It took no time at all to make. As a matter of fact, I dilly dallied all day long surfing the internet that when I realized it was late afternoon, I scurried back to my sewing room and assembled it before dinner.
What took the most time was cutting bias strips and making piping.  Oh, and deciding whether to have off-white or blue piping.

(I supposed I could have done a better job of centering the dress on Dumella, but the light was disappearing fast.)

I think the key to getting this dress right is to press the pleats from the beginning and basting them in place while assembling the dress.

For the lining I used batiste. The main fabric is a poly/cotton twill from Fabricland that looks sort of Fabric Finders-ish, but not the same quality.  No matter.  I'm happy with the outcome.

Size 3.

More summer outfits

The top is the Oliver + S pattern Swingset which I found rather difficult to follow.  Confusing actually.
I have since found several tutorials: here and here which I will use next time.
Size 3.
The shorts are from the pattern Puppet Show and are easy to make.

Using the Oliver + S pattern Sailboat pants and top. I made the top in size 3 from cotton. The sleeves were too long and I had to shorten them by 1/2 inch.

The pants are in linen, size 3 and they haven't been tried on yet.

While I was trying to get a good photo and obviously didn't succeed, a very hungry mom Chipmunk hung around.
I usually have a pocket full of peanuts so I tossed her some.

Brains in the mailbox

I've learned once again that the grass isn't always greener elsewhere. I should have stayed true to Bernina.
Thankfully a reader, Anne Lo from Denmark, suggest contacting a Husqvarna dealer in Europe to find the utility stitch card, essentially the main brains, for my sewing machine.
I found an on-line sewing business in England who most likely has the last few remaining stitch cards in the world, for my machine.
As coincidence would have it, my Grandparents and my Auntie and Uncle lived near Bournemouth, England where this sewing business is located.  I spent one summer there when I was young and while I was happy to get my stitch card, thinking about Bournemouth brought back a flood of happy memories. 
How I fondly remember eating Ice Lollies (popsicles) and spending day after day by the seaside with them.  Oh I do like to be beside the seaside.
But I digress. 

The stitch card came in the mail yesterday and life is back to normal.
Thank you Anne Lo and Sewing Machines On-line.

Using my backup sewing machine in the meantime, I was able to finish the Baptism outfit for Adam.  It's difficult to make something for him because he's not handy to try things on.  In addition, he has enormous thighs, a beer belly and a plumbers crack. Chunky baby! 
I made and unpicked these overalls several times. 

On the sleeves of the shirt I used some entredeux.  For the collar and around the bib edge I used a size 18 needle as the wing needle was gouging too large a hole,  and a Turkish style stitch.

Because he is teething and drooling as babies do, mom wanted a bib to match the outfit. 
On my Husqvarna Iris embroidery machine I have Martha Pullens' Heirloom card and found this crucifix.
(I'm waiting for that machine to poop out on me next.  A new boat anchor!)

This photo is out of focus, sorry, but these are just the sweetest little bunny buttons ever. 
The thread in the stitching is silk and it's absolutely beautiful to see in real life.

The outfit looks much better on Adam than hanging on a hanger off a tree limb.  Mom is happy with the outcome and that's all that matters to me.

Meanwhile, his sister Caitlin called "Grandma, can you make me a Cinderella dress?"
Using Simplicity 2563 I was able to whip this up today.  I used a satin type of fabric that is just horrid to work with especially when inserting the zipper.

For fun, I called around to find out what a new Bernina is worth and maybe with embroidery capabilities because I know the day is coming soon when the machines I have will have to be replaced.
The price I was quoted was around $11,000. 
I nearly fainted.
 
If I had that kind of money to spare I would rather have a Dippy.   Now that's practical!

Tea towels.

I've had this embroidery pattern sitting in my to-do-embroidery box for some time. Maybe since the last century.  And since I'm trying to bust stash and there's no time like the present, I stitched this pattern onto some beige linen and then made a Class Picnic blouse.

I got carried away and stitched more birds on the top yoke of the blouse and paired it with denim Puppet Show shorts.

I'm thinking tea towels.  The blouse looks like a repurposed tea towel.

I may unpick the birds on the yoke and perhaps it may look better.

Well, whatever.  There are plenty more embroidery transfers in my to-do-embroidery box so I'll give it another go on another item.

2 dresses

I really like the Bubble Dress. I've made slight changes to the pattern in the past adding long sleeves. But since my daughter likes Peter Pan collars, this time around I added just that. I left off the bubble part. Yet true to my usual, I put piping around the capped sleeve, bodice, and of course around the collar too.
My daughter picked out the fabric, it's really summery looking.

I also really like the pattern Maggie Mae by Shwin & Shwin.  The last time I made it, I added piping around the armscye but found it was too bulky.  This time around I left off the piping there but kept it around the neck and between the upper yoke and mid-yoke.  I also added a placket to the back skirt.

April showers plaguing the lighting for these photos.

Shorts and Tops

The top is Class Picnic Blouse. Added a little ric rac on top.  The shorts are Puppet Show and added ric rac on the pocket to match the top.
Size 3T. Oliver + S pattern.

Top and shorts are exactly the same as above.  The fabric on both pieces are a little stretchy which might make the outfit more comfortable when climbing.

My daughter just loves these shorts.  I've got 2 more made but need to pair them up with tops.  Three more need to be cut out.

It was raining like crazy when I took these photos so the lighting wasn't the best.

Boat anchor

The "A" card on my Quilt Designer is kaput.  Finding a replacement is highly unlikely according to several Husqvarna/Viking dealers I called.

Meanwhile, I have several big projects that I'm trying to complete in limited time.  It never fails, eh?

Thankfully I hung on to the first sewing machine I bought 30 years ago, a Bernina 801.  I'll dust it off and put it back in action.  But creating buttonholes on that machine is really difficult. And of course, several of the projects require numerous buttonholes. Argh!

Testing

I only have this week to complete a Baptism outfit.
My daughter wants white linen overalls with a smocked insert and a white shirt with perhaps some blue stitching here and there.
So I sent her this blue corduroy overall and white cotton shirt to test for size. 
The overalls need to be lengthened as does the waist  and of course a smocked insert will be on the final outfit.

The shirt fits but the collar needs to be closer at the front neck. I'm not happy with the feather stitch. Next one will have just straight double stitching. There will be entre deux on the sleeves just as this one has.

There are few other tweaks needed for this outfit, but this test run has worked out just fine.  I drafted the pattern for the overall myself.

I don't mean to be biased but isn't my grandson just the cutest little baby ever?