Yet another twirl skirt....

I couldn't help myself. I bought some fabric last week, even though I've been trying to only use up what I have.

But that's what happens when you have time to kill and decide to "just look" while on an errand at the fabric store to pick up ONLY buttons.

Sometimes, JoAnn's surprises me with their fabric. Lately, I've been very disappointed in their fabric selection. Most of their quilter's cotton is cheap and inferior quality, yet they charge as much for it as the good cottons in the quilt stores. But just when I've given up on finding any decent fabric on the premises, I round a corner and there it is. Something cute. Something adorable. Something that has to come home with me.

This is the fabric that made me break my vow not to buy any more new fabric. It is a buttery, soft corduroy featuring Rapunzel, the character from Disney's popular movie, "Tangled". This just happens to be my little one's favorite movie right now. She has many of the phrases and songs memorized.

She squealed with delight when she saw the fabric. She's been asking everyday for the past week when I was going to make her "Tangled" skirt. Today was the day.

I love it, just like the other two I've made. It's a wonderful, froofy, poofy, girlie-girl skirt. Now I'm seriously contemplating getting another yard of the stuff to possibly make a matching top. Wouldn't that be adorable?

Feliz Party Dress

I bought this book over a year ago, for the sole purpose of making the dress that is featured on the front cover--The Feliz Party Dress. I had seen many beautiful versions of this dress all over the internet, and I just had to make one myself! Unfortunately, the pattern was no longer available on it's own, but it was included in this lovely book that I bought from Amazon.

This pattern is NOT for the inexperienced seamstress. It isn't hard to construct, but the directions in the book are vague. I found several tutorials online that explained the construction step-by-step, and these were much more helpful than the book. This dress consists of an underdress and an overdress which are sewn together at the top. Side ties and back elastic hold in the fullness--no zipper or buttons needed!

My favorite part about this dress is the ruffles! They are so cute, and remind me of the old-fashioned bustle dresses that women and girls used to wear in the 1880's. This dress can be made without the ruffles, for a simpler look, and in just one color, if desired. But we love colorful, ruffly dresses around here...in fact, the fuller and rufflier (is that a word?) the better!

Because this is a European pattern, it comes without seam allowances. You have to add them on yourself when you trace the pattern.

The center panel is fabric that I've had in my stash for ages. It is such a pretty yellow, with the cutest little children all over it. I have saved it all these years, not ever knowing quite what I wanted to do with it. The other fabrics all coordinate beautifully with the colors in the yellow print.

This dress has "twirl-a-bility"!

I had read that this pattern runs a bit small, so I made the size 3-4, thinking it would fit my 3 year old perfectly. And it did fit well everywhere, except the length was a bit long. Next time I make this (I'm picturing it in pale pink and white!) I will take this into consideration and shorten the skirts an inch or two. But Sophie loves it this length...she calls it her "princess" dress!

We put a shirt under it because the weather is still cool around here. But it can be worn as a sundress, also, when the sun finally decides to stick around for awhile.

The pattern comes in sizes 18mos-12 years. I encourage anyone with a girlie-girl in their life to make it. She will love it, and you won't be able to stop smiling every time you see her in it!

Two New Projects

Son #2 is in Afghanistan right now, serving with the US Army. I am super-proud of him, but not a day goes by that I don't feel a little anxious for his safety. We get to talk to him maybe twice a week, and it's just so wonderful to hear his voice. The last time we spoke, he requested I send him a pillowcase in his next care package, and this is what I came up with. Of course, I couldn't just go out and buy a ready-made one...what fun would that be? So I exhausted a little bit more of my fabric stash and whipped up this cute case. The Mickey print is flannel; the other two fabrics are quilter's cottons. I hope it brings a smile to his face and a sweet dreams when he sleeps.

Remember the little doll bonnet I crocheted a short while ago? Well, this is the matching dress! Unfortunately, that bonnet was too big to fit this doll, and this dress was too small to fit the other doll that modeled the bonnet! Oh, well. I am mainly doing these little doll projects so that I can get more proficient at crochet. But didn't it turn out cute? It actually made up pretty quickly, and only took me a couple of afternoons.
The back closes with two, tiny buttons. The neckline turned out a little wider than I would have liked for this doll, so if I try it again, I will adjust that. But for the most part, I am very happy with how this turned out. There are matching panties for this outfit...I may try those tonight, and maybe try to make a smaller bonnet, too.

I have a dress almost completed for my youngest--I just need to attach the shoulder straps and side ties. So hopefully, that will be my next post. But my little model has been under-the-weather for the past couple of days, so I'll need to wait until she's ready to try it on for me. Dresses always look better on a real, live child than hanging on a hanger. And all the beautiful sun we had over Easter weekend? GONE. So we may end up taking pictures indoors (not my first choice), unless we get a good break in the rain. Ah, the joys of living in the Pacific Northwest!

Happy Easter/Resurrection Day!

HAPPY EASTER! Or Resurrection Day, as many Christians are now calling it.

Because we don't have church services until the afternoon, we were able to enjoy a leisurely morning, finally coloring the eggs that were waiting for us. The colors just make me smile.

I know that some Christians prefer not to associate Easter with eggs and candy and bunnies, but I have such fond memories of all these things from when I was growing up, and I always knew the real reason behind our traditions.

Oldest daughter's nickname, since the day we brought her home from the hospital and I proclaimed how "itty bitty" she looked in her car seat.

Just the other day, one of my little ones asked me what eggs and bunnies had to do with Easter. I was so proud that they were thinking about it. "Well, nothing", I answered. "But eggs and baby animals remind us of new birth, and that's what we get when we trust Jesus to be our savior".

We have an egg hunt planned soon, church service, and then the rest of the day spent visiting my oldest son. He and his girlfriend are making us dinner! And the sun is out. On EASTER. It couldn't really get much better. Hope you're having a wonderful Easter Sunday with your family, too. Jesus lives!

Dolls on Ebay and "Journey Girls" Review

I finally got on the ball this evening and listed a bunch of things on Ebay that I've been stockpiling. I like to go to the thrift stores and collect things here and there that I think might net me a little profit. Especially dolls. They are usually naked when I bring them home, so I fix their hair, remove any marks, and make them a new outfit. I think this helps them sell much better. These two little sweeties are 18" dolls from the Journey Girls collection. They have similar bodies to the American Girls, except that they also have a vinyl shoulder plate, which makes them nicer to dress in clothing that might show their upper backs/chests. Instead of a dress (which I usually make), I decided to create an outfit with capris and a top. The pants are made of baby wale corduroy, with cuffs that coordinate with the tops. The tops are basically a sundress pattern cut short. On one doll, the ties are cut extra long so that they can wrap around and tie in front. The tops close in back with Velcro. Rick-rack trims the cuffs and dress hem. All fabric was from my never-ending stash!
This is Alana. Isn't she pretty? I almost didn't list her. She's been sitting in my sewing/doll room for the past several weeks, and I'm still not tired of looking at her. I know I will be sad when she's gone.

And this is Dana. She is pretty too, but I'm not as attached to her as I am to Alana. In my opinion, Journey Girls are one of the nicer quality play dolls in the 18" range. I believe they are made by Toys R Us. They have nice, rooted hair and bodies that hold a pose. Not to mention the shoulder plates. I wish the American Girls had shoulder plates as well. I think that these run about $40 brand new, making them a nice alternative to the American Girl dolls. Of course, they don't have all the books and accessories that the AG dolls have, but they are very nice in their own right. These are listed on Ebay right now, so hop on over if you want to take a peek. My seller name is "dotsydoodle".

I am currently working on a dress for my little one, and I've also been crocheting a new doll dress. So stay tuned...good things are coming!

Vintage Sewing Books

I love books. All kinds. When I was a kid, my mom used to drop me off at the public library for an entire Saturday while she ran her errands. I'd even bring my lunch. Yeah, I was a little bit nerdy. Then, when I was first married, I worked at that same library for five years until I quit to stay home full time with my little ones. I love being a stay-at-home mom, but if I ever had to work again, the library would be my dream job. Well, either that or the fabric store!

I used to think that maybe I had too many books. But then I saw a recent episode of the show "Hoarders" and I felt much better about my two book shelves. The show profiled a couple who had an estimated 500,000 books piled everywhere in their home, with practically nowhere to walk or even sit without having a tower of books fall on top of them. I guess there is such a thing as having "too much of a good thing"!I love everything about books...the way they smell and the way the pages feel. I love vintage books even better. And if a vintage book happens to be about sewing and/or dolls, then I'm in love! The books above illustrate the vintage sewing books in my collection. The one on the top left is "The Mary Brooks Picken Method of Modern Dressmaking". It has a 1925 copyright. I forgot to get a close up of it, but below is a picture of two of it's pages.

Mary Brooks Pickens founded the Women's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences. Starting in 1915, she wrote 96 books on sewing and fashion! She offered correspondence courses, along with classroom instruction in dressmaking, millinery, cooking, fashion design, beauty, and homemaking. It attracted women from around the world, and enrollment in her courses climbed to almost 300,000, making it the largest school in history devoted solely to the education of women.

"The Mary Frances Sewing Book"--I hunted for this book for a long time before I finally found an acceptable copy that I could afford. This book can run well over a hundred dollars if found in good shape! It is a wonderful book, with a 1915 copyright, and it even has an inscription by the author on the first blank page! It says: "For all girls who love to make pretty things" and then is signed by the author, Jane Eayre Fryer. I didn't know the inscription was there until I received the book, and neither, apparently, did the bookseller who sold it to me, or it probably would have cost way more than what I paid for it! Anyway, the book is written for little girls, with patterns included for them to make all sorts of clothing for their 16" doll. It is simply delightful. This book has been reprinted and is available today, but I just had to have an antique copy. I love the way it smells and feels. Have I already mentioned that?!

Interior pages from the Mary Frances book:

One of the beautiful color illustrations:

Here's a little book I picked up for a just a couple of dollars at a local thrift store. I'm a sucker for anything baby, and this book has the cute, vintage illustrations that I love. It was published in 1944.

Interior pages from "Sewing for the Baby"

A sweet friend gave me this book just the other day. "Sue Sew-and Sew" is another delightful book written for little girls in 1931, to teach them how to sew pretty things for their dollies. It is written from a doll's perspective and almost reads like a story.

I picked this book up for pennies at the thrift store. It is a little bit more "modern", having been written in 1951, but it's full of wonderful information that's just as useful for today's seamstresses as it was back then.

Check out the sizing chart (below): Sizes have changed dramatically since then! According to this chart, I would have to sew myself a size 18 or 20 to fit my measurements! But today, the major pattern companies call me a size 12. Amazing, isn't it? I guess that's all part of our vanity issues, and the emphasis we put on being as tiny as possible.

The last book I want to show you isn't old at all. I bought it this past year at a local fabric store and have never regretted it. It's an inspirational guide to sewing, needlework, cooking and fashion. It is chock-full of vintage pictures and illustrations. The author takes you month-by-month throughout the book, with recipes to try and simple patterns to make. This would make a lovely gift for any seamstress who loves vintage things.

A glimpse of the inside, below:

I re-read my books all the time. Often times, I forget what I have until I pull it from the shelf, and then it's like visiting with an old friend. Aren't books wonderful?

Cheap Entertainment on a Sunny Afternoon!

Living in the Pacific Northwest, we have our share of rainy, gloomy weather.
Today was NOT one of those days!

Oldest son still at home made a "train" and offered rides to all the siblings.

At first, the riding mower only had the garden cart hitched to it. But every few turns around the yard, another vehicle was added until it was pulling three ride-ons.

And yes, even I, the mature, responsible mom, took a few spins around the yard!

My goofball son

And while I was acting like a kid, my five-year-old grabbed the camera and took this picture. Not bad, huh? Hope you're having a wonderful, spring day no matter where you live.