Sierra's Dress

Front

Back

Interior lining

With purchased leggings

Sierra with her dress over pj's

Posing

Happy Girl

A delightful dress for a little girl. I bought this pattern at a quilt show so naturally it is designed to make use of fat quarters. Or you can cut it from regular cut yardage if you like as amounts are given for that also. It is fully lined and can even be reversible. The curvy edges of the pieces use coordinating purchased or custom-made bias binding trim. Buttons at the shoulders for an easy fit. A matching doll dress that fits 18 to 20" dolls is included. And leggings. View A has 5 different fabrics and View B has 6. I did View B, just so I could use more fabrics.

Sizes 2 thru 5 are included. I made size 2 for my GD who is a large age 14 months usually wearing 18 month sizing. It is big for her but she will grow!

Very easy instructions. Complete, everything a non-quilter needs to know. The pieces are layered onto an inner backing with the bias trim wrapped over the proper curving side. It is like putting together a simple puzzle. I found this garment a lot of fun to make.

I really enjoyed the construction technique and I loved picking out coordinating fabrics. I used quilting cottons pre-cut into fat quarters from Joann's. Also quilting cotton for the lining and muslin for the inner layer. I preshrunk all the fabric.

This was a fun project. It takes a bit longer than making a similar shaped dress for a toddler but much more fun. I made this at the recent retreat I attended that had many quilters there as well as garment sewers like myself. This little project got lots of compliments. I hope to sew it again. Maybe one in each size as she grows. And if she gets a doll the right size I will make that too.

Catching Up

View from the sewing room

More View

The Dragonfly Dress

The Tahoe Top

The table behind me

The Mizono Shirt

Sharon and Dorothy

Wearing the new Marcy Tilton Shirt

I had a fantastic time at the sewing retreat except for the fact that my friend Barbara was unable to attend with me. I really missed her companionship and ready advice when I needed it. We had fun keeping in touch while I was there by using my iPhone to take photos of each project and sending it to her immediately via email. That way she could comment and feel part of it too.


I was very, very focused and sewed many things. We can come to the sewing room anytime and many are there well before breakfast. Not me as I stay sewing until mid-night. Even so I am not the last one there at night. There are always the same 4 or 5 of us holding down the fort late at night. No one stays longer than Lyla Messinger who seems to have endless energy. She would be there until 3 am. Of course we never saw her at breakfast.


All meals are included at this retreat spot so I would sew, eat a meal, sew, eat another meal, sew, eat a third meal, sew and finally sleep. I figure I had 14 hours of sewing a day for 4 days and about 5 hours on the first evening. Crazy. Sore shoulders. 15 projects done! Some people are more relaxed and chat a lot. I enjoyed listening to all the chit chat around me and stopped to answer questions or show my things to anyone who came my way. But mostly I just sewed.


So I have a lot of garments to photograph and review. 1 toddler dress, 1 rain coat, 1 hooded jacket, 5 dresses, 1 pant, 2 shirts, 2 knit tops, 1 bizarre gown, 1 hospice hospital gown. The hospice gown is for a charity project the sewing group does every year. I won't review the Hospice gown, or several items I've reviewed before. But as you can see I have a lot to do.


One shirt I made is the Marcy Tilton Vogue 8709. I wore it the other day to meet SFShaza at my friend Dorothy's house. She wrote about the meet up on her blog http://communingwithfabric.blogspot.com/2011/07/blogger-meetup-meeting-ann-smith.html. So much fun.