Projects sewn using shot cotton
Sometimes you just have to sew a skirt in winter. Especially when it’s in this gorgeous mulberry shot cotton by Kaffe Fassett.
And if it’s got a great big bow on the back, it may just be perfection. The skirt is based off a free pattern from purlbee called the Gathered skirt for all ages, but the bow however was an addition I made.
Back bow!
I’m thoroughly enjoying the girly sewing 🙂
Mermaids are kinda a “thing” right now, incase you’ve missed it 😉 I’ve been wanting to sew my daughter a dress inspired by mermaids but not something costume-y. And so this dress happened! It’s sewn using Oliver + S seashore sundress sewing pattern in size 6.
My inspiration picture. Such pretty mermaid awesomeness. Lots of pastel rainbow colors happening here.
To capture the colors I chose an assortment of pretty pastel colors from Kaffe Fassett’s shot cottons in shell, aqua, violet, and pink.
I did modify the sewing pattern a bit. I scooped out the front neck a little, as well as cutting off the back straps, scooping it out, and finishing the top edge with a casing through which elastic was threaded. I also made the skirt fuller and sewed the straps into the front of the dress.
The straps have button holes in the back to button onto these beautiful mother of pearl buttons which are sewn into the back of the dress. Such a perfect mermaid-y touch!
My daughter adores this dress and she’s already told me she’s never taking it off. Success!
Do you try to sew clothing that satisfies the want to dress up without it being a full out costume?
Have you heard of Project run & play? It’s a seriously fun sewing challenge inspired by the popular show Project Runway, but it’s for moms and their kids! I’m not sure how I only just discovered them since they are in their 10th season! Oh well, better late than never 😉 The challenge has several chosen participants who battle it out over several weeks until there is only one victorious, but anyone can sew along, and that’s what I’m doing this season. I’d love to be one of the participants someday! (Edit: The Berenstain Bears is also a book! And so I’m also including it in the Sew Many Books sewing challenge)
This week’s challenge was to sew an 80’s cartoon inspired outfit. That theme is awesome, and there’s a ton of great cartoons to choose from that seriously take me back to my childhood. I decided to settle on The Berenstain Bear’s sister bear. She has some pretty awesome elements to her outfit that I used as inspiration, namely a pink and white polka dot shirt, and pink ruffled shoulders on a pinafore. I know sister bear wears overalls but I decided to sew a pinafore instead. In hindsight I wish I done overalls but hey, you live and you learn.
For the top I sewed it from this Japanese sewing book in size 110 from the beautiful Nani Iro Pocho double gauze. The polka dots are metallic coral pink which is extremely awesome according to my daughter 😉 Also, that shirt was my first ever project from a non-translated Japanese sewing book!
The pinafore is from this Japanese sewing book which has been translated into English and is a great place to start if you want to get into Japanese kids sewing. I sewed it in size 110 from Kaufman newcastle denim, Kaffe Fassett shot cotton in color mushroom, and I added a pocket on the front from some brushed cotton Nani Iro scraps I had left over from this dress.
I seriously love the details of Japanese patterns. The peter pan collar, the shoulder ruffles, the puffed sleeves! All just perfection.
Here’s a better shot of the polka dot print. Those metallic dots are hard to capture!
For the buttons I used mother-of-pearl buttons I found on Ebay.
Size tag!
Pocket detail.
And now for a few modeling shots!
80’s cartoon inspired success! On to sewing for next week’s challenge 😉
Have you seen the great outfits sewn by the competing participants for week one? Check them out here!
With KCW quickly coming to an end I needed some quick projects for my girl, and decided on this halter top. Thankfully it was a breeze to put together!
The pattern I used was Oliver + s ruffled halter, which is a free pattern offered on their website, sewn in a gorgeous indigo blue handwoven Balinese ikat, with Kaufman union chambray as the lining and lemon yellow shot cotton for the tie. This ikat is seriously drool-worthy! So lightweight, so airy, so brilliant in color. ❤
I made a few modifications to the sewing pattern. First, I made it between sizes so that it was a 4/5. Next, I didn’t include any of the ruffles but only used the front, back, and tie pattern pieces. Since the top ruffle is used to finish the neck and arm edges plus used to create the casing I decided to make a lining to serve these purposes instead.
You can see the lining here. I basically traced the front piece and chopped it off where I wanted the lining to end and finished the bottom edge neatly. Then I sewed it together using the same instructions as for the top ruffle, but making sure to stitch the top front and lining right sides together. Lastly, I hand-stitched the bottom hem for a more formal invisible finish.
Love that ikat! Love that kid!
The back of this halter is my favorite part. Very adorable!
Action shot!
There will be lots of wearing this top for the rest of the summer! Now I just need to sew up the shorts to go with it before KCW runs out on me 😉
Are you done sewing for KCW or will you be burning the midnight oil to squeeze out one last project?
Well I’ve done it! For the first time in 20+ years I sewed something practical for myself. Yup, 20 years. The last time I was about 8 and I hated it so much I swore never again. But this week is selfish sewing week so I’m breaking the curse with these much needed house shoes.
The sewing pattern is ThinkSew Kimono Shoes. This pattern was easy to follow, quick to sew, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who needed some house shoes. However I did find this pattern to run wide, either that or I’ve got some skinny feet, so I took them in quite a bit on the sides.
For the fabric I used Kaffe Fasset Narrow Stripe in dusk for the outer and Kaffe shot cotton in pool for the lining. My husband said they look like TOMS. That makes me happy 🙂
For the bottoms I opted to use something more sturdy then cotton so I bought some 5oz suede off of Ebay. I was a little worried to be sewing this on my machine, but all I needed was my leather needle and it sewed up just fine. Now I can walk around the kitchen in these bad boys and not worry about stepping in little spots of water that inevitably get on the floor.
The inside soles are removable and I thought it would be nice to add some padding into them, so I put two layers of quilting batting into each. The batting keeps my feet much warmer plus it’s nice and soft to walk on.
Action shot! Please don’t mind my oddly sunburned legs 😉
It’s April! This month always means happy things for me 🙂 Flowers, sunshine, spring, and birthdays just to name a few. In celebration of April I decided to make something flouncy, lightweight, and full of color for my daughter. Enter the Oliver + S Pinwheel dress.
I made both the slip dress and tunic from this wonderful pattern in size 3 width and 4 length, and all I can say is both my daughter and I are absolutely thrilled with it!
I’ve seen this dress before done in solids and I knew I wanted to follow suit. I think it just works perfectly! For the slip dress I used Kaffe shot cotton from pinkchalkfabrics.com in colors mushroom and spruce. The bias binding was pre-made by Moda Bella in color charcoal (couldn’t turn down a little time saver!)
For the tunic I used Kaffe shot cotton in colors pool and moor. What I love about the moor color is that it looks purple but is actually red and the exact same pool color shot together. I used the same charcoal bias binding for the edges. This picture shows the tunic looking rather rumpled.. it’s been worn for the past 3 days in a row! Definitely a favorite around here.
My favorite part of the whole ensemble is the tie for the keyhole back. I cut two strips of Kaffe Fasset Narrow stripe in colorway dusk from hawthornethreads.com, folded and finished the edges, and used it as my ribbon tie. The colors are perfect and make my brain happy 🙂
Doesn’t it just look like a flower or butterfly dress when the two parts are worn together? Spring has sprung!
