[Maggie]

Rtwgirl, how old is the child? Between us we can probably give you a size. Skinny 5 year old? Round 3 year old? What do you have?

I cut out my first book report dress last night. I’m using corduroy which is also a first. It seems straight forward, and I’m itching to get started. Unfortunately school doesn’t start til Monday. My only sewing time is evening. I did sneak up to iron the bias strips and re-thread the machine. I might take a moment to staystitch the neckline. I’m like a smoker sneaking out for a ciggy.

[Masha Richart]

Maggie, she is a short but normally-proportioned 5-yo. Mom says she is in a 5T. I cut the elastic 19″ for my skinny nearly-4-yo, and 19.5″ for my normal nearly-3-yo, so I ended up making hers 20″. Hope that works …

Enjoy the corduroy – I just love it for kids’ clothes.

[Tamara]

Maggie I know the feeling! It is a far healthier obsession don’t you think? I had two kids home yesterday (much to my disappointment) and consequently did not sit at the machine for one hour straight until after “school hours”. During that time I attached about five lady bug bodies (big whacking deal).

Today however, EVERYONE (accept me that is) will be at the sports carnival for at least the morning (depending on when they have events and what is programmed) so I can indulge and indulge I will! I NEED to get this done! Late nights early starts, whatever it takes.

[with love Heidi]

Finished my Art Museum Vest! Turning the belt was a pain but everything else was great. The photos are even up!

[Tamara]

I have been working at the machine for about twelve hours (with a break here and there). Not exactly thundering through but I am making fine progress.

I will keep working away at this tomorrow but Sunday I will get going on the other things so that I can do whatever needs doing by hand during the week when I can’t get to the machine.

One more flower and I will call it a night.

[Masha Richart]

Finally began sewing older girl’s birthday Tiana dress (the green one from the Princess and the Frog). I got all the pieces cut last night and began shirring the back of the bodice, but my upper thread kept looping around the bobbin. Couldn’t figure out the problem and it was getting late so I went to bed with only two lines shirred (of 12 or so). I will try again today. Then I need to rolled-hem the organza leaves (the rest of the dress is cotton broadcloth) that attach to the skirt. It is going to be a lot of work but I am rather enjoying it now that I have finally begun.

[Tamara]

Can’t wait to see the Tiana dress. Sounds fantastic.

I have pleated a strip of the pink silk dupion to smock and make into the waist band for a teeny tiny library dress (for no one in particular but definitely for the show). I plan to get going on the smocking in an hour or so when the kids have piano lessons.

I did want to start on the lace insertion panel for the naming day library dress but my spray starch (reserved just for laces) has grown legs and walked so I have to buy another can. I hope to get started on that panel tonight. I am considering making the sleeves from lace also but we will see how we go with the panel first.

Tomorrow I plan to continue on and hopefully sew something to completion.

[with love Heidi]

Just had a lovely afternoon with a sewing friend who came around to do a rolled hem on my overlocker. It was lovely to work with someone who knows sewing so well 🙂 I was thanking God for blessing me with this friend with her wealth of experience and genuine loveliness.

[meleliza]

Round the world girl, is your machine a Brother? They don’t do elastic thread without some naughty tweaking. I had been using my old machine for elastic thread, but I finally went and bought a second bobbin casing just for elastic thread. You have to mess with the tension in the bobbin casing to get it to work.

I’ve been considering making K a Rapunzel dress for her birthday, but I’ve got so much on, I don’t know if I can manage. I also can’t find fabric I like for it.

Stayed up late last night to finish Kitty’s new things for her first ballet class today. I started two weeks ago, but things have been so crazy here I’ve had very little time to work on it. I made her a wrap dress out of Heather Ross’s new cricket fabric to wear over her leotard to class and a pink shoulder bag to carry her slippers in, pink of course. 🙂 and I embroidered a pair of ballet slippers on the front. I left it all in her room while she was sleeping and when she woke up she was so excited! I’m just so upset the weather is gray. I really wanted to get some nice pictures of the whole ensemble.

Next, I have a music class blouse in Liberty and a denim Sunday brunch skirt all cut out and ready to go. It was meant to be a “back to school” outfit for her. She doesn’t go to school yet, but this is meant for playgroup. Unfortunately, it looks like her playgroup might be cancelled. I’m pretty broken up about this. It’s a wondful program that I’ve taken all my kids to and she loves it so very much!

[Masha Richart]

The denim/Liberty pairing sounds divine. Denim skirts are my uniform in summer! I wish I could get my daughter to wear a (blue) one. I also want to see photos of the ballet ensemble! The wrap dress sounds adorable.

The shirring problem was solved by 12 hours away from the machine and (another) rethreading. I sew (and have shirred multiple times) on a 30-year-old all-metal Kenmore. I do have to loosen the bobbin casing a bit to do it, but I’ve figured out how many turns it requires. Though getting another bobbin case is a much better idea! I think I will order one.

[Tamara]

Denim and liberty – sounds like the perfect dream. My daughter will not wear denim trousers but surprise surprise! She wore her denim music class skirt the other day to school as part of her “eagles” outfit (team colours day). I was privately relieved that a, she wore it and b, it fit!

Speaking of fitting, I made a “muslin” of the bodice for the library dress yesterday (in order to distract me from some rather discouraging news I’d received) and I tried it on Imogen when we came home from piano and well you could honestly knock me down with a feather – it has oodles of room which I could happily jump for joy over. It isn’t easy to sew things right off the bat when you are sewing the largest size of a pattern and you fear it won’t fit at all! But I am glad it has enough room to at least see her through the summer (and then we will reassess).

I attempted to smock this design featuring little beads yesterday on the pink silk panel while lessons were on. I had a slight problem with the milliners needle I was using. And d’you think I could find the right one when I got home? Nah! It was a case of whipping out the skinniest beading needle with the largest eye and then using (shock horror) a needle threader! I also had to go from two silk threads to a single thread to actually get it through the eye without disastrous results!

[Masha Richart]

Yay for the muslin fitting! Smocking + silk thread sounds so intimidating to me! I find so much inspiration from all the wonderful things you ladies do.

I finished the bodice of the Tiana dress last night and am so pleased with how it fits older girl. Now I have to hem the skirt and assemble the underskirt (I’m adding tulle, of course). This will be my first time making a crinoline. I have a whole bolt of tulle and as my girl really wants the dress to be poofy, I guess I will have to use a lot of it. Any tips for gathering yards and yards of tulle?

[lattemama]

I cut out a size 8 Library dress last night for Sofia from some pale pink elephant fabric I had in my stash. I can’t decide if I should do the waistband in the same fabric with a hot pink/white micro gingham for the flat piping or if I should go wild and do a fuchsia waistband with the same micro gingham flat piping – it would be very bright but I think it could still be pretty.

I also ordered some of the new Heather Bailey line Lottie Da for a second Library dress for S – maybe that one can be her Christmas dress.

[Tamara]

RTWG I encourage you to give smocking a go. Once you know how to do the basic stitches (the english smocking kind I am talking about) the rest is simple. I find interfacing the back of the silk panel plumps the pleats and makes it much easier to even out. I am using Silk stranded thread which is just like stranded cotton to work with (except you stop every so often to let the thread untangle by dangling the needle to let it untwist). I just adds to the sheen but it isn’t compulsory to use silk with silk I just used it because of the colour. I am also using mill hill seed beads which is the time consuming part. I am up to the final row of my (made up) design – a cable stitch with beads on every stitch.

It is looking pretty but I feel like I have slowed down since I haven’t been doing this kind of thing constantly. Fortunately I just need to do one more panel for the smocked outfit and then that is it for a while.

Lotta, I think it an extreme case of great minds thinking alike! I want Imogen to pick her preference before ordering the prints of choice though – just so I get it right. It might be her birthday dress if I have time. I pulled out all the red, blue, pink or purple prints the other day as she specified her dress had to be one of those colours. She chose the red CW print with the aqua micro check as a contrast for this dress I am supposed to whip up for this do on the weekend. I think she might just have to chose something already made instead.

Ok enough talking back to sewing.

[with love Heidi]

I finally got back to Mum’s messenger bag today. I cut a new strap from a different fabric and it is working well. I haven’t had as much time to sew as I was expecting this last week or so as I have been helping out my friend babysitting their kids while she studies. It has been lots of fun but less sewing 🙂