An Old Dress, A New Dress

One of the best things a self taught seamstress could do is try to replicate a work of art. It's a great learning experience & you gain an extreme respect for pattern & dress makers. For those who don't know me, I'm in awe with all things from the 50's, retro, & vintage. Not only were they simpler times, the style was amazing. Women wore beautiful dresses that were made with such quality and care. It was all about the details. The layering, the form, pleats, tucks, & pins..... I love it all! So...as if I didn't have anything else to do....I thought I'd give one a try. I have a couple beautiful vintage finds in my closet, but only two that I feel are true treasures, (and that's were my inspiration came from). One, I got when I was just a youngin' & the other about a year ago on Ebay. (It's one of my super finds.) Why did I want to replicate this, you ask? Well for starters, the beautiful peachy dress is wayyyyyy too small. Second, I'm always up for a little challenge. Third, I just wanted to & felt it was time. So.... off I went to my stash o' oldies & found the perfect pattern to help along with this project.

Sewing is not the difficult part. It's paying attention to all the tedious details vintage patterns require. I start off by ironing out all the pattern pieces, counting, & making sure everything is there that I need. (Vintage patterns are notorious for missing pieces.) After, I know you should probably make a muslin, but I didn't. I figured the skirt is wide and the top could be fitted prior to sewing. I picked a gorgeous vintage, lightweight suiting fabric that was an all over gray with light pink stripes. The lining was a simple blackish navy that added coverage and weight for the dress. Lining is great. It makes your item practically flawless & clean. The actual pattern was not lined throughout. It only consisted of a two inch border that lined the inside of the neck, & arm areas. But instead, I just made a second dress and fitted it on the inside. I should let you know something. I never follow a pattern all the way through. I have a horrible habit of 'eliminating' a "do this" and "do that." I read the patterns & often find myself saying, 'well that's just dumb....I'm gonna do it this way.' Sometimes, I'm wrong, but with this dress, I think I made out pretty good. So here it is. Take a look!

Gotta admit....that smile screams "I'm proud" :)

And take a look at the back:)

I added ribbon & a button.....These were needed!

I just love the cut, the fit, & everything.

So overall... What did I learn? I learned that my fabric choice was not sooo 'lightweight'. This dress has a pretty descent, 'heavy' weight. I learned DO NOT eliminate a 'do this' or a 'do that'. (You really do need these steps as my 'elimination' caused ribbon ties for straps. I also learned that gathering is a real pain depending on fabric choice. And last... I learned that I can make an amazing dress! No matter what things I should've done, one things for sure. I ended up with a beautiful addition to my closet... And I'm wearing it at the next tea party my girls invite me to! I still have to adjust the length, but thought I'd post it as soon as I got done. Happy Trails to sewing & doing the unthinkable:)

Crystal Knob Rack

So... what can you do with a piece of wood measuring 45 inches by 3 1/2? Well, if it's 1 inch thick, you can use it to make the cutest wall rack. But instead of using hooks, use drawer knobs! Here's how the idea got started. I needed a place to photograph kids aprons. Now, most of you know that my girls have been modeling them, but they can't model toddler aprons, right? All I could picture was a gorgeous crystal knob rack used to display those mini aprons I love to make. And after searching in stores and online, I realized they are not very easy to find. Soo...... "oooohhh hubby.... can you drill a few holes in this piece of oak wood I found in the barn?" Of course he did it in a heart beat & he even sanded it down too! The holes were positioned like this: I did the two outer ones first, then measured to the center in between those. And again, the middle of the center and outer one. Got it? I took some regular creamy white wall paint I had left

The Ogden Cami ~ A Review

Hello friends! I hope you all had a wonderful February and a great start to March! Spring is right around the corner and I'm counting down to daylight savings on March 10th! Hooray for longer sunshine! Lately, I've been longing to go back to stitching up clothes. And... I ended up finding the cutest pattern to get me back in the groove at Hawthorne Threads . The Ogden Cami by True Bias Patterns is perfect and quite simple! I started off by making a test run with some red, light-weight fabric, figuring if this comes out good, I'll have 2 tops! And guess what? It came out awesome! Making a practice piece was a great idea. It's always recommended and there are so many reasons why. In the instructional booklet, I wrote myself little notes. ~ cut the fabric 1/4" larger at the sides so I can use a serger. This will allow me to have finished ends and still a good seam allowance. ~ cut the straps 1/2" larger, so the

January.... you're almost done!

Hello friends! I feel like it's been forever since my last post. I suppose some might even say I've been spending nearly all my time on the forefront of creative madness along with trying to continue healing. Holy smokes! Chemo and radiation will change a person forever. I'm continuing my healing journey, and staying hopeful that I'll remain in the 'clear' for a long time. It's odd, the way you feel, when everything you've gotten accustomed to: the running around, working day to day, rushing here and rushing there.... how quickly it changes when it's no longer a necessity. Yes, I am extremely thankful that my spouse supports and pushes for my healing time, omitting nurse life as it was, but like I told my girlfriend the other day, "how many craft projects can a girl possibly do?" ..... Well let me just tell you..... A LOT! Today's post will revisit some Instagram pics, (in case you don't follow along) with some of my most recent

The Mint Needle

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