KCW - Party Cocoon

Kids Clothes Week is officially over for the season, but I do have two more things I worked on last week to share.  First up is this Cocoon Dress (pattern by Heidi & Finn) in a quilted knit from Joann's.

This past weekend we had a party for the big kids who both had birthdays earlier this month.  A party deserves a new dress, don't you think?  So a new dress was made.  It's a size two with a four length, with a button and loop instead of the exposed zipper.  It's super comfy and she loves it and can't wait to wear it again!

Linking up to KCW here.

I also squeezed in a new Bimaa - hopefully that'll get posted this week, too.

KCW - A New Jane

I'm really killing it with the post title creativity, aren't I?  ha!  Well, I'm sewing, photographing, and blogging - and that's good enough for me.

Up next is another layerable top - a Jane Top (first here, second here).

Linking up to KCW here.

KCW - A Couple of Stellas

Efficiency is key for me during KCW, so some assembly line sewing of a pattern I already know and trust is a great way for me to get something significant accomplished without getting too caught up in details.

As for choosing the pattern, my last post noted that Elise loves cardigans, and I love clothes that can be worn for multiple seasons.  Short sleeved (or sleeveless) blouses fit the bill nicely as they can be worn alone with shorts in warm weather, and layered with pants in cold weather.  

This week I went with The Stella Tunic.  Since this is the fourth (and fifth) time I've made this pattern, I'm not going to go into why I love it so much again.  Here are versions one, two, and three - I probably gush enough in those posts.  The fabrics were both from an estate sale I went to a couple weeks ago.  I believe they're both vintage, and the more colorful was a sheet.  There I go, dressing my kid in bedsheets again.  

Linking up to KCW here.

KCW - A New Aster

It's here!  It's here!  Kids Clothes Week is here!!  With a baby in my care, it's been hard getting back into the swing of sewing.  I have a lot of things I've cut out in the past month or two, but progress is slow when you're working in stolen ten minute increments here and there.  That's why I love this week so much - I can dive in - guilt free!  Or mostly, anyway...  I mean, it's kids clothes week.  I HAVE to sew.  I'm a rule follower, after all.

First up is an Aster Cardigan.  This girl loves a good cardigan.  Or any cardigan, really.  This one is upcycled from an adult cardigan.  I used the existing rolled hemline and buttons/buttonholes, and made the collar out of the same sweater.

Linking up to KCW here.

Also, I updated the "gallery" section.  Hope you'll take a peek!

Clearing Out the Cobwebs

Since Kids Clothes Week starts tomorrow, I thought I should maybe dust off the old blog here in case I feel ambitions beyond just the sewing (one hour per day all week, as are the KCW guidelines) this coming week.

Oh - also - I did have the baby.  She will be four months old next Tuesday, so if I hadn't things would be looking mighty scary over here.  Little Lila Elizabeth was born on June 20, our biggest baby yet at 6 pounds even.

I did a little sewing for her before she was born, but since baby proportions are so strange and I couldn't do any fittings, I didn't want to spend a lot of time on a bunch of stuff she might never wear (ahem).   Two of the things I did make her were a romper and bonnet, both from free patterns and made with vintage fabrics (The yellow gingham is from curtains that my mom made for my nursery when I was a baby!  The floral was left over from the pillow case I used for this top.).

These pictures are obviously not current - it's cold now!  But here she is, in all her summer baby glory.

Cobwebs cleared.  Hope to see you again soon.  I'm SO EXCITED to get back to my machines and hope to be back to a little sharing here, too.  And if I don't get it all posted here, check in on Instagram - aka the lazy girl's blog.  This lazy girl, anyway.  ha!

An Eyelet Rose

I haven't found a shorts pattern for Lisi Loo that I really love yet, so I usually buy those for her.  I picked up a cute pair of coral and white ones on clearance recently that were begging to be paired up with a pretty white top, so that's what I made her.

It's the Desert Rose pattern again, this time from an old, stained skirt of mine.

I used the full width of the skirt which added even more volume, and reused the original skirt's lining.  The lining wasn't as wide as the outer layer of the original skirt, so I cut the Desert Rose skirt lining to the pattern's width.  It made gathering and attaching the two layers a little more complicated, but not impossible.  Also I saved time by using the existing hem and not needed to sew and finish the skirt side seams.

It's so twirly and airy, despite the great volumes of fabric.  I can see it getting a lot of wear this summer, can't you?

A Watercolor Stella

I'm dressing my kid in sheets again.  Also, I made another top from the Garden Girl Collection.  Neither of these things should surprise you at this point, though, should they?

I made the Stella Tunic again, this time with the skirt modification I used here, but the sleeveless option like the flamingo version.

I used an old sheet (not vintage, just old) that my grandmother gave me.  I went in concerned it would look dowdy, and with the wrong pattern it probably would have, but the Stella really made it lean toward "modern watercolor" as opposed to "grandma floral" - which, technically, it is - ha!

I only put buttons on the bodice this time, as is shown in some of the versions on the published pattern.  It's fine while she's vertical, but does show some belly when she sits.  I have three more matching buttons so I just need to decide if I only want to add one more, just to keep it closed, or all three to keep the balance all the way down.  Any thoughts?  Also, I think next time I'm going to lengthen the bodice to the next size up so the waist sits a little lower.

I'm pretty happy with this piece.  More than anything it's versatility.  It's great with a cardigan (which is how she's been wearing it all day with the exception of this photo shoot), and will look equally sweet with her leggings, skinny jeans, or a pair of shorts.








PS: did you hear the announcement for Summer KCW?  I signed up (of course I did), but it starts June 22, and my due date for our littlest is June 18 (38 weeks today!) so we'll see if I actually get to participate.  I'm hoping she doesn't make me wait another two weeks (her sister was three weeks early, so there is precedent), and the big kids will be away on vacation with their Grammy the second half of the week, so there is hope.  Newborns are pretty sleepy, right?  Just smile and nod...smile and nod and say yes...thank you.