Showcasing My "Love" Fabric!

I raved about this fabric last July when I found it on the half price table at High Fashion. It is a rayon weave and I love the colors in it and wanted something that would really show it off. I pictured a long dress like one I had years ago that I loved. I searched and searched for a pattern and had no luck. Then one day I was searching on Simplicity for all patterns with cup sizes. I found 2232 which is a Khalia Ali Collection. I thought all of her patterns were plus sizes only but they actually go down to Misses 10. This sleeveless dress was very similar to what I had in mind so I tried it. I made View A without the pockets...they seemed a little house dress-ish to me. Here is the pattern envelope:

And here is my cute dress:

I love the cut in shoulders and the buttons down the front. There are two tabs at the back waist with buttons that are very hard to see because of the print ...a little easier to see on the close up:

This is a cute pattern and it was easy to put together. If you don't need smaller than a Misses 10 give it a try. I can't wait for summer to wear it. And to get some sun on my white legs!

Butterick 6466 + Love Fabric = Hurry Up Spring!

There is nothing new to say about this TNT pattern except that it is my go to pattern for a quick and simple skirt. Usually I line my skirts but this one will be like "play clothes" for the spring and summer so I just used facings. After making  a shirt from V8747 in this yummy cotton/spandex print (above) I knew I would want a skirt out of it and then the idea of a skirt out of it led to making up V8747 in white, too. (below) I love it when that happens!

I seem to be doing everything except buying fabric for my Red Dress which I am supposed to enter in a contest. Hmmmm...

Easy Breezy Summer Skirt

This was a simple skirt to put together. The fabric caught my eye at High Fashion but I think the lines of the skirt are lost because of the busy print. Don't care...I like it! It will be fun and easy to wear this summer. The fabric is a luscious Italian cotton that is so soft and wonderful. It completely called out for a rolled hem which is so super easy and fast. Below is the line drawing of the pattern:

And the cute white blouse is yet another V8747, my new love shirt. I really love the fit of that pattern and the cup sizing makes it a dream:

I need a cute new belt to pull it together. I did not do the casing for the elastic at the the waist as suggested by the pattern. I like Sandra Betzina's application of elastic that can be used when your garment is close fitting without a lot of gathering. Cut a piece of 1" elastic the exact size of your waist. Cut a 2: square of your fabric. But the ends of the elastic together and zigzag across half of the fabric square. then fold the square over the elastic and zigzag again. Now you have a circle of elastic. Divide that into 4 sections and mark with pins or a marker. Mark 4 sections around the garment. Pin the elastic to the outside of the garment and then divide those 4 sections half again into eight sections pinning the elastic all around. Then simply stretch, pull taut and sew. Turn the elastic to the inside and stretching again topstitch in place. Easy peasy. And much more comfortable than a bulky casing. The elastic will show on the inside so use black or white accordingly.   

Flirty Shirt Dress

I absolutely love it when a "hmmmm" turns into an investigation which in turn becomes a fabulously fun project and ends in the creation of something I will actually love to wear! My last post was a love affair with the shirt from VogueV8747, adorable and with a twist at the neckline that gave it some feminine softness. I planned on making another one and then I wondered "how would that shirt look lengthened and turned into a shirt dress?" I've never been drawn to shirt dresses because there is something so tailored about them and that is so not me. So I wondered, with the cute neckline on V8747, what else could I add to a shirt dress that would kick it up and notch and make it a little more girly? I already knew I needed to extend the princess lines of the blouse to create a dress so I went to my pattern stash to see what I might have on hand that would simplify that process. And then I found McCall's5523. How cute would it be for the back of the shirt dress to have one of these little flounces! Look how the lines of these 2 patterns fit together:

 It looked like the lines of both would coincide and, in fact, they did, with amazing precision:

In order to assure that the sections would all be the same length I measured the sections of the pattern that overlapped and made each overlapping section the same length. There may be more precise methods but this worked really well for me.

I added the collar to this shirt dress and felt like it still needed a little something extra so I put some flap pockets on the front:

This was a fun project and relatively simple. I look forward to getting some sun on my legs and weather a little warmer to wear my flirty shirt dress!