gretchen - two ways

This is a new favorite pattern.  Patty Young's Gretchen dress has a lot of pieces, but I think it is just adorable!  The side ties and huge pockets sold me.


I used Heidi Grace's red poppy fabric and picked out a coordinating red scalloped design.  I used Patty Young ribbon for embellishment on the bodice.


This version was for another niece for a Christmas present.


The purple has gold polka dots, and the brown has a little shimmer to it as well.

My niece complained that the sleeves were too poofy.  That wasn't a problem for my daughter, so obviously it's just personal preference.  The dress pattern gives options for a short sleeve, which might work better for my niece.  The skirt also has a bubble-style skirt option.  That's not really my style, so I'll stick with the full swirly skirt for the next one I make!

back to school

Time for a back to school dress!


I grabbed some Heidi Grace fabric and got to work.


Using one of my favorite Olabelhe patterns, it sewed up quickly


and off to school she went!

spinning and twirling

My little girly girl loves to spin and twirl and dance.  When I saw this Daisy Kingdom pattern, I knew I had to give it a try with her.

The fabrics are by Heidi Grace.  Floral and pink and perfect for spring.  The two skirt pieces are basically squares with holes cut out of the middle, so they make for some great points that really flare out when she twirls.

Because of my growing ability to understand and adapt a commercial pattern, I was able to make sure it fit in the bodice before I sewed the skirt on. It wasn't just a matter of getting the elastic right, but changing the way the triangles overlapped in front. The halter tie didn't seem to bug her either, so I declare this dress a success.

miss olivia paige

I am LOVING Sam's latest creation - Miss Olivia Paige is so sweet & easy to sew in just a (slightly long) naptime!

See the bows on the sides?  The bows on each side are from the sashes on this wrap-style dress.  I used the same fabric to make little bows for her hair too!

The dress crosses in the back forming a V-back.  I lined the inside with the same fabric I used for the sashes - a leafy fabric in Heidi Grace's line that matches the ladybug fabric on the bodice and the trees in the skirt.

The dress has tucks in the front for a sweet detail that was so easy to sew!

Hope on over to The Handmade Dress to meet Sam & get your very own pattern in her shop!

annikka's dress revisited

{GIVEAWAY here}

I decided to give Dawn's dress pattern another try - this time, with corduroy. The hand-pleating at the skirt is a bit trickier just because it's thicker fabric, but all in all I'm happy with the results!!

The overskirt, bodice lining and sleeves are a Heidi Grace print.
The bodice and underskirt are black corduroy. Perfect for a holiday picture by the tree or special occasion!


The other one is corduroy sleeves, bodice, and overskirt. The bodice lining and underskirt are a white cotton with silver sparkles.It's the same beautiful blue corduroy that I used in the ice princess dress. Even though that one didn't fit quite right for Abby this winter, I think this one will be perfect!

Abby enjoyed watching out the window for the first big snow of the winter... still none here yet!

christmas to a T

Just wanted to show a couple close-ups of recent shirts:

Look! It's snowing out the window!
A Christmas tree fabric in a Christmas tree shape on a Christmas tee!

annikka's dress

Guess what - another blue dress!
It's a very similar (if not the same) bodice as so many of Dawn's designs, but instead of short sleeves or sleeveless, it has long sleeves. YAY! I used some beautiful white floral buttons for the back. So sweet.
The double-layer skirt definitely adds some weight to the dress, but the swirl factor is amazing! The fabrics I chose are a bit busy, but depending on what you pick, you could embellish the bottom hemlines with so many fun things like ricrac and ribbon! I'm thinking I'm going to add a navy ribbon around the waistline too - just a little something extra. You could also strip piece the topskirt for some added color & pattern. There's just so many options with this dress!
The next time I make this, I think I'm going to try it with finewale corduroy. There's so many beautiful prints out there, and gorgeous coordinating solids.

Buy your own pattern from Olabelhe Designs here.

brown bubble dress

I've had this brown Heidi Grace fabric sitting around for a while. I decided to give the Olabelhe design "Amelia" another try. I originally made it for my cousin's little girl.
I used a mixed-up floral for the bodice, and a striped floral and butterfly print for the bubble skirt.
The bodice has three buttons up the back, and a bow that can be tied in front or back.

fall flowers

Fall colors are here...
This floral top is also available in long sleeve, and in a longer length dress. The gathered front has a split neckline, tied with a yellow ribbon.

Check out the ruffle on the bottom!

amelia's dress

I've been testing another pattern! Isn't it adorable? I used matching Heidi Grace fabrics for the bodice and skirt, and some pink floral buttons from Wal-mart (lucky find!)
It has elastic around the bottom hem, making it a bubble skirt. The sash can be tied in front too for a different look.Head on over to Olabelhe and get your own pattern!!!

sweet scallops

Remember how I just couldn't stop raving about Heidi Grace's fabric? Well here's another top/dress I made. I thought it would be short enough to be a top, but it ended up being a little long & because of the angle I took the pictures at, it really looks long! The top is knotted at the shoulders, and has a scalloped bottom. It is totally reversible too - blue with flowers and ladybugs on one side, white with ladybugs and hearts on the other side.
The best part - the pattern is "vintage" - meaning my mom saved it from 1976! I wore outfits made from this same pattern when I was a little girl. Too funny, huh? (My mom saw the scalloped edge on the flowers and thought of this pattern right away. I'm impressed she remembered this pattern from 33 years ago!! I love how it turned out, so thanks mom!)

Oh my gosh mommy, am I just the cutest? (It soon turned into peek-a-boo.)Look mommy, horses! (we were at the farm with my in-laws for the 40th anniversary party.)
I know, I'm adorable. But can we go in and eat cake now?!
I can't wait to make another one! It was so quick and easy, and lends itself to so many embellishment options and great fabric match-ups. hmm.....

another sweet dress

My grand plan was for my daughter to model this dress for you. I think I'm going to have to start learning about some pattern modification though, because when I put it on her, my husband started making biblical Abraham/robe references. (It was a *bit* big on her!)

She has a long enough torso for an 18 mo dress, she's just so stinkin' skinny!!! Her legs aren't quite as long either, so I had to hem it pretty high. Maybe by this fall she'll fit it a little better?! The hemming will be a little easier too when she's a confident walker. She still crawls occasionally, so I don't want anything to be really long.The green fabric from my rave on post is the neckline, yoke, and waistband/tie on the dress. The yellow is just so sweet. I don't usually go crazy for pastels, but I just really loved this one. It kind of looks like Spirograph stuff to me.
The buttons at the neckline & on the back are the Jessica Breedlove design - they come in yellow, pink, blue, and green at Joann's. I love them and have been waiting for just the right project to use them.
I even did a blind hem! The last time I did that was a few years ago with LOTS of guidance from my mom. We were making some curtains for my brother's new house. I took some scrap fabric and had to remind myself how to do it, but once I got the hang of it I was on a roll. So easy!