…a summerdress

I’ve really been in a dress phase lately. Something about wearing a fun and flowy dress just makes me feel like a free little kid again. I chose this pattern for the neckline mainly (the one on the middle dress) and made a few changes to it. I shortened it a fair amount and made it sleeveless and more tank-like.

I also had lots of fun accessorizing it:

 

The gathers were fun, but also tedious. There were a lot of layers of fabric and my patience is a little thinner than it used to be. If you look closely the craftmanship is… not so good! But I don’t really care.

Ruby and Alyosha like the dress too!

Oh yeah, by the way, my birthday is tomorrow! 27 on the 27th, whoop whoop!

 

…an old, treasured item

I just found my high school prom dress! 

T & I have been packing things up to get ready for the move, sorting what’s coming to Scotland, what’s being stored, and what’ll be tossed.  I came across a box of clothes I sewed way back when.  Think back in high school!  In high school I was enrolled in Mrs. Gray’s sewing class at Satellite High School (a class that Trent and I did take together!), during which I made my prom dress from a sewing pattern and was so proud of it.  I think I had more fun making it than I actually had at prom.  No offense to my date (now husband), I just really REALLY like sewing. 

It’s a little scary to see how young Trent & I were; and its hard to imagine the pre-beard times.  Please note our proud display of flip flops and chuck taylors as our prom shoes in the first photo.  We were (still are) so straight-laced that that was our form of rebellion.  Yes…  so sad.  Of course, once I came across this dress again, I HAD to try it on!  It still fits, but only barely.  Still proud!

           

siiiigh, good times.  good sews.

 

…a dress!

Although this has turned out to be predominantly a knitting blog, this is not a knitted dress; I am still very stubbornly of the mindset that knitted dresses are for the most part quite unflattering to the female form.  On the contrary, my friends, I have pulled out my dusty old sewing machine and made for myself a sewing nook once again.  Meet Ruby, my darling and ever so willing model/dressform. She looks just wonderful in my new sewing nook!

By the way, Ruby is sporting my freshly made Arrowhead Shawl, which I will post about later…

Anyway, turns out I still know a think or two about sewing, because this dress came about pretty smoothly! I picked out some really nice soft turquoise fabric fully intending it for another dress (which I may still make later on), but then I discovered my new favorite website, BurdaStyle! After spending a few hours searching patterns that can be printed at home or at a copy shop (some free, others at a very cheap price), I picked out a dress that this tuquoise fabric was much better suited for, the “Coffee Date Dress.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The best part of this dress is the great ruffle. It’s not too much, but not too little. I’m very particular about things like this so its very fortunate that I find this dress so adorable! The silhouette (A-line) is perfect. The size I thought I’d measured myself out to be turned out a little too big but with a little crafty changes I made it fit me quite nicely.

 

I think I may be putting away my knitting needles for my sewing machine a little more frequently. I have contracted the sewing bug, and its not going away without a fight.