Perfect Party Dress - Satin and Tulle

Weddings don't come up very often in our little family, so I wanted to do something special for the little ones in our family to help celebrate.  What better way than to make the girls special dresses for the occasion.   

Because the girls were going to be all dressed up, we needed something for my son as well.  He was pretty easy...we found him a "daddy" shirt, and he asked for a tie.  Finding a tie for a 5 year old proved impossible, lol - so I found a narrow one in a local store, and altered it to fit him.  He looked so cute!

For the girls - I asked them what they would like...  "Sparkly party dresses" was the response.  Hmm.  Ok...  What colour?  Well, one wanted aqua, one wanted purple, and one orange.  Ok...

So the hunt started for fabric.  I got lucky and found a crepe backed satin in the requested orange, purple and aqua.  A complete fluke that I could get the right colours all in the same fabric!  But it wasn't sparkly.  Hmm again.  Then I came across some soft light draping glitter tulle.  Magically, again in colours to match!  It was obviously meant to be!

For the pattern, I knew in my head what I wanted to do - and the Perfect Party Dress by the lovely Jen of Tie Dye Diva Patterns was a great basis.  The fit of her patterns is always right, and I had one shot at this.  My two nieces live elsewhere, so I was going on measurements from a couple of months earlier when I last saw them.

Instead of the standard skirt for the dress, I added two layers of the glitter tulle over the satin - creating a three layer skirt, instead of the single layer the pattern asks for.  It took a little time to get the gathers all right - but it was worth it. 

I knew I wanted to piece some of the tulle into the bodice, so I opted to not use the sash for the front for a simpler look - and just to have the two satin ties which could be tied either back or front of the dress.  I used the lining bodice pattern pieces for both lining and outer.

I wanted the tulle over the top of the shoulders both front and back - for an accent, and to tie into the tulle skirt overlay.  The tulle is terribly hard to photograph - so isn't showing to it's full extent, but it has a lovely glittery light sparkle all over it.

I used three copies of the bodice front and back pattern.  One standard for the lining.  One I cut diagonally from centre front/back to the side seam and retained the shoulder section (making sure to allow extra for the seam allowance).  The other I did the reverse - keeping the bottom section. 

I cut a piece of satin, and one of tulle from the shoulder pieces for front and back, and then pieced them onto the bottom sections.  This then gave me a standard full bodice front and back, to continue the rest of the pattern as normal (omitting the sash front).  Why did I do this, rather than just sewing a piece of tulle on?  Because it's transparent, and I didn't want to see the tulle seam on top of the satin below...

I used some gorgeous crystal buttons on each of the dresses - completely see through to pick up the colours of each of the dresses.  You can't see the sparkles so well in the photos - but they are just stunning.

I made each one a matching tulle flower which I attached to a small alligator clip for their hair, roughly following this tutorial. 

The tulle needed a lot more layers (12 all up) than the tute recommends, as it is a lot thinner fabric.

So happy with how they turned out.  They fit well, and the girls loved them.  It was pretty cold back home where the wedding was - about 7 degrees, so we needed to layer tops and leggings underneath!

They still looked gorgeous - my 4 year old niece, 8 year old daughter and 6 year old niece, all busy with their activity packs at the wedding :)   Super good idea from my new sister-in-law!!

It wasn't ideal photo weather for little girls, so didn't manage to get much in the way of photos, so I managed to convince my daughter to dress up again when we were back home.  And yes...you can still run in a satin and tulle party dress! :)

The Little Dragon Costume

It's been a long time between posts!  Busy, busy, busy.

I spent the day on Sunday sewing for my 5 year old.  He has NEVER in his life worn a costume before.  He is not a dress up kind of kiddie - in fact, he has always run from costumes.  Until this week...

It's his first Book Week at school...and he wanted to go as a character from his favourite dragon book.  Hmmm...how to make a dragon costume...

Long story short - this is how it turned out...

I think he looked pretty adorable!  Plus it was practical - freezing cold winter weather, and easy for him to get in and out of himself.  All in sweatshirt fleece...

What is it?  In reality just a hoodie, and a pair of trackpants.  I took the Tie Dye Diva Hello Hoodie and Snazzy Pants patterns as the basis, in a size 5 - which fits perfectly.

I drafted a set of wings, which I sewed into the arm and side seams of the outer layer of the hoodie (it is fully lined).  I made them full enough so that his arms could go straight up and still not have his movement restricted.

I extended the centre back of the hoodie (both outer and liner) down to include a "tail".  The wings collapse down nicely (helped by the veining detail I added).

And I added a row of spikes all the way down from the top of his head to the bottom of the tail, and a couple of extra spikes at the bottom sides to form the end of the tail

Obligatory tail wiggle photo... :)

You can see he has full movement here (important for little jumping beans like him).  I added three spikes to the front bottom hem of each leg for dragon claws...

Ready to play and fly away...

Ombre Hearts Dress

A post for the New Year...best wishes for 2014 to you all!

I did some sewing for Christmas, as usual.  First was a dress for my 6 year old. 

I used the Fair & Square dress from Tie Dye Diva again (it's a favourite of mine), but wanted to change it up a little as I've made it maybe 6 times now?!

There was this one, and this, and this...plus a few more I haven't shared, LOL!

So, I added some little capped sleeves.  I've described how I did it below if you are interested in trying it yourself!

Really a very simple addition - but I love the way it turned out.  In fact, I think this dress is now my favourite of all time.

Some detail pics to show you...






First, the sleeve I added. 

I also chose to bind the lower armhole with some spare white faille instead of double folding the edge - just to be different!

  

Front and back views (very happy I found the perfect matching button!!)

My matchy-matchy seam!  I always make this dress now with one centre back seam, rather than two side seams.  Only one seam to match up!

 

Then some action twirls shots from Christmas Day!  I love the way this fabric design seems to ripple!

I used my own fabric design, printed on Silky Faille - this one here called "Ombre Paper Hearts":

I absolutely love the way it printed.  A gorgeous raspberry red with lovely matching lighter and darker tones for the ombre hearts.  It is such a wonderful soft, draping fabric - and so nice to the touch.  It also has a teeny bit of a sheen in the right light!  Plus it washes AMAZINGLY.  My daughter wore it to the movies - she came out covered in sticky melted chocolate and icecream.  All down the front of it - brown and orange.  My heart sank!  Not only was I able to spot clean the worst of it off in the cinema bathroom (rubbing with bathroom paper towels!) - when I finally got it into the wash every single thing came out.  Awesome!!!


Anyway, for those of you interested...to add the sleeves:

I basically drew an oval that was 7 inches high, by 6 inches wide - then chopped it in half down the longest diameter (so the straight edge was 7 inches long).  That was the template.  I cut two out of my fabric (one reversed) for each sleeve. 

Sewed a half inch seam along the curved side with right sides together.  Clipped the curve, turned, and pressed.  Gathered the straight edge in by an inch, so it then measured 6 inches... 

When the bodice outer and inner have both been completed (i.e. you have sewn the front to back at the shoulders) - and just before you the outer to the inner to complete the bodice - this is where you add the sleeve.  Line the gathered raw edge up with the raw armhole edge of one of the bodice pieces, and centre it on the shoulder seam (right sides together).  Do this for both sleeves.  You will need to tuck the curved edge of the sleeve in so you don't sew over it when you sew the neckline.  Place the other bodice piece on top like normal now, and sew away...

I love the added sleeves - and I'm sure I'll do it again someday...soon!

Happy New Year!



Stars in Stripes Dress

Quite some time ago I created a fabric design - I called it "Falling Stars in Stripes".  The fabric design was inspired by the falling binary code images in the movie "The Matrix"...maybe you remember that one?  I have to admit to it being one of my all time favourite of my fabric designs... 

I entered it into the Spoonflower fabric of the week contest way back in July 2012...  The theme that week was "Stars and Stripes".  To my delight, it was a top 10 finisher - and I always had in my mind to make a dress for my daughter out of it.  Now I finally have!

You can see the detail of the stars a bit better on the closer photos...

You can see the slight sheen on the fabric in this one...



This time - I just embellished with simple silvery star buttons.  No flower or anything fancy.  The fabric was detailed enough not to need anything much.

I chose Spoonflower's new Silky Faille, which is a stunning fabric.  So soft, satiny and prints with SUCH vibrant colours.  She loves wearing it - and the faille washes up brilliantly.  You can click the inage below to see the full repeat on Spoonflower...

The pattern I used was one of my favourites - the Fair and Square from Tie Dye Diva.  I've used it many, many times now...and I'm sure I'll use it again very soon.  It's getting hot here - and it's a great dress/top pattern for the heat.

A few things to note about the Silky Faille.  Use a microtex needle.  Keep the fabric taut when you sew - but don't stretch it - just enough pressure to keep it firm.  It does not hold a crease very well - which is awesome for washing (I'm not a keen ironer!) - but something to remember if you have to crease small double-turn seams like under the arms of this dress.

The end result - a flowy, drapey, soft and very comfortable little dress. 

The Ruffle Pop Skirt

I'm finally back at the sewing machine, after a frantic few weeks of custom fabric designing, and photography assignments!  I've got a few projects on the go - this is the first...

I had a piece of fabric looking for a home...and decided on a quick and simple skirt for Miss 6.  The fabrics in the skirt are two of my designs...if you want to replicate the look, links to get hold of them are at the bottom of the post.

This is another from Jen of Tie Dye Diva.  I like her patterns as they are fast and easy and I don't have to read the instructions over and over again to get it right!  It's called the Ruffle Pop skirt, and it goes from a size 2 through 8.  A great quick sew.

I opted to use pre-ruffled eyelet for the trim.  I had no idea it even existed till last week...  I'm not a big ruffle fan - all that gathering usually puts me off!!  But this was too too simple, and I will most certainly be using it again.  Plus I think it looks really sweet :)

The hardest part of the whole process was getting a photo of the finished skirt!  My daughter has taken to silly "model" posing whenever I ask...  It's a bit like pulling teeth to get a decent shot right now...but you get the idea anyway!

The main fabric for the skirt is this one:




and the matching stripe is this one:



Have a great weekend!
Shelley

Perfect Party Dress - Winter Edition

Hi there,

I actually made it to the sewing machine!  A long overdue return...

It's winter here, and my 5 year old has decided she will NOT wear jeans/pants anymore.  It must be dresses.  So I decided she needed some new ones.  In corduroy.

I chose the Perfect Party Dress by Tie Dye Diva.  I love her patterns, and thought this one would translate well into a winter weight dress.

Here it is:

She has declared it her favourite dress...

It has a fully lined, button up bodice, and a lovely twirl factor (very important for a 5 year old).

Some of the details:

The applique on the front, is one from Bunnycup Embroidery.  I chose to use the two fabrics from the dress, and alternate the directions of the cord stripes. 

I thought the "ragged" edges tied in well with the frill on the bottom of the dress.

Yards and yards of frills!  I cut the fabric for the frill and the sash in the opposite direction to the main blue.  Just because I could.  Plus I like the additional contrast.

I added a decorative stitch to the sash and ties...this was NEARLY the undoing of the dress I have to say.  Trying to get a straight line was a challenge and took forever.  Unpicking decorative stitches is not my favourite pastime. 

With a couple of full length shots to finish with...

I will be making this again in corduroy...or maybe a drill?

Yes, maybe drill for the next one... :)

Shorts for my Boy!

A belated post today...  It was summer, and time for some new shorts for my 2 year old.  These were made for him for Christmas, and are a larger size of the ones I made here.  I really like this pattern - again it's from Tie Dye Diva, Jen's Way Cool Shorts...

 

I made these in a size 3 - so they have plenty of room for him to grow into, and since they are Cargo shorts, a little baggy matters not!

I used my own fabric design, available on Spoonflower.com in this collection:

Then I used one of the details from the fabric design to create an iron on transfer for a quick matching t-shirt...

It's a bit hard to get a good shot of a bouncy 2 year old who won't sit still for more than a second...but I tried!

Some views of the front...

 

Some views of the back...

And we end with an action shot!