A new dress for Daughter #1

Daughter #1 wanted (and needed) a new dress for church. So, she went through the Burda magazine from June 2009 (dress 128) and found this dress.

So, after tracing, cutting fabric, and trying to figure out for the life of me why it wouldn't go together...I realized I had missed a whole part of the dress bodice.

So, mistake corrected, bodice piece cut out - and - she had a new dress!

Doesn't she look happy? She chose the fabric - an orange and white small gingham with white bastiste for lining (she hates wearing slips so I tend to line all her dresses and skirts!).

This was the second thing I have made from the Burda WOF magazine and I do love their patterns! So do my children!

Most Prettiest!

I won!

There were 6 categories, plus Best of Show. I won Most Prettiest! I won a $50 gift card plus free entry ($25) into next year's competition/convention!

without further ado.....

the back of the apron (from either side)

front of apron and then the detail of beading on 1 of the panels

This apron was a fabric panel that I could do anything with. I felt that it would be perfect for a hostess apron. My grandmother used to have these elaborate, but never wear while actually cooking/cleaning, aprons. She would take off her dirty apron and wear one of the elaborate aprons for when she had dinner parties or other guests over.

I beaded 5 of the 6 18" panels over a layer of cystal organza, in various colors. I cut away the center of each flower after beading each center. I lined it with a cotton and then used the 6th panel to make the waistband, waistband lining, and covered the buttons with it also.

I cut each panel to reflect the flower petals and then appliqued the edges with off white thread.

The sewing part only took 1 day. The beading took about 6 weeks - working at nights while watching tv.

We had an ice cream party tonight to celebrate!

Whew! All done!!!

I finished the vintage apron for the sewing competition tonight. All I have to do is iron it tomorrow.

I will take pitctures of it when it is on my mannequin (Susan is her name) tomorrow. After I have enrolled DS1 and DD1 in high school tomorrow. And did the grocery shopping.

Why am I so busy?

probably because I have started back at school to finish my BS in Health Informatics! So right now I am concentrating on studying for the CompTIA A+ certification exams in both IT Tech and Networks.

After that I slide into the healthcare management part of my degree work. I decided to do the hardest classes first - which turned out to only be 2 - the CompTIA A+ certifications!

The other reason I am so busy is that I have been trying to finishing an sewing art project. I have entered a sewing convention contest that gave me a fabric panel, which I can do anything with, and I have been turning it into a vintage dinner apron. I have been beading this project for several weeks now and seeing the convention in on the 25th....

More later - after the apron is done!

The start of previous sewing projects.

I know that I don't sew projects. I sew clothes. Clothes for me; clothes for my 3 daughters (ages 14, 12, and almost 4); clothes for me 3 sons (ages 17, 9, and 7) clothes for my husband; clothes for my mom; clothes for my dad (on occasion) and sometimes I get to even make clothes for others.

I do make home projects at times; you know, things like pillows, curtains, blankets, embroidered kitchen towels, the like. I also sew accessories at times for my daughters and myself.

But mostly I sew clothes.

Here is a dress I made when the youngest daughter was 2 1/2. This was Vogue 7435. I used view A. It was cut to be a 3. (It still fits her - it is just shorter on her now - can you see how petite she is?).

It was first attempt at smocking and I think I did rather well. A few lines are not completely straight on my embroidery, and to this day I am not sure why. A friend from California pleated the dress front for me. I made my own piping to match and the buttons were vintage flower buttons my mom had in her stash!

PS - don't even pay attention to the dates on my photos! This was from our previous camera and every time the batteries would start to die, the dates would be all messed up! How do I know this for certain? Because this daughter was born until 2005!

There is more coming!

I have more to share...

with bad pictures (time to have Mom teach me how to take better pictures!)

My Sewing Blog

I love to sew and create clothes for everyone. Here I will share everything I know and create.