I haven’t sewn any major items of clothing over the past few weeks, but I have made a number of tops and a dress or two.
Dora, as I’ve mentioned, likes to have kid-sized versions of my clothes, including the Vogue 1513 I made a couple weeks ago. Obviously, that is an absurd dress to make for a child, but I can’t say no to her! This is actually the extremely tried-and-true Bella Sunshine Designs Sahara dress, just with a floppy flounce on the shoulder.
Here we are together, in mom-and-kid-sized versions of the By Hand London Anna dress.
And bonus shot of Dora cutting out a pattern she drew. Her birthday is coming up and I was thinking of getting her a sewing machine. I don’t know, I don’t think she’s really ready for one yet, but maybe it’s something she can grow into? She loves to “sew” with me, which mostly means flouncing around in swathes of fabric she’s draped on herself.
Next I made my first Freya sweater, out of a citrus merino wool I got from the L.A. Fabric Store. I like the sweater a lot, although I was a little surprised that even the largest size was a little constricting. I think I made a smaller version of the TATB Seren dress and it fit fine, so who knows? The ruffles are actually tragically asymmetrical, but…just keep that to yourself.
And of course, Dora needed her own version. This is just the same Simplicity t-shirt I always make her, but I added long sleeves. She wants me to add the ruffles, too, although given the gathers at the neckline, I’m not quite sure if that will work.
I got this awesome/absurd knit from Blue Moon Fabrics, in the L.A. Fashion District. (I think you can get it online, too.) I love that it looks exactly like the backdrop to my school portraits. I dithered for a long time about what to make with it, but finally settled on the Megan Nielsen Jarrah Sweater — simple, but with a nod to the ’80s in the form of the tie waist. I left off the cuffs and neckband, thinking enough was enough. It’s an easy, fun sew. To be honest, I think it’s a little big and floppy for me, but the amazing print makes up for it, and in fact I’m happily wearing it now.
And finally, an Ogden cami, the second I’ve made. The first one I was out of a quilting cotton, so not ideal for a drapy top like this. I also noticed that the bust was pretty constricting, so I gave an FBA a shot, and also lowered the apex a couple inches while I was at it. That entailed a couple of darts, as you can see. Honestly, I made a lot of boneheaded mistakes on this, and had already consigned it to the Dustbin of History, but when I put it on, I felt like it actually looked pretty good. So victory from the jaws of defeat! The green silk came from Michael Levine Fabrics and was hideously expensive, so I’m extra-glad the top is wearable.
And that’s that! Right now I’m making a tank top for D, to match mine, although since I didn’t have any silk left, she chose the same yellow merino wool I used for our sweaters. I’m lining the inside with a pretty jersey recycled from an abortive attempt at a baby onesie, and I think it looks cool. Next up, I have this cool mushroom fabric that Fabric.com sent me, I think, by mistake — I’d ordered a swatch, but they sent me a yard and a half. I’m going to see if I can turn it into a Ruby top! I also have some green merino wool that I think might become a cowl-neck Freya dress.