Nani Iro Vest

I got this adorable Nani Iro Pocho quilted double-gauze fabric from Miss Matatabi and decided to make Lucy a vest. I copied the measurements loosely on a size 3T t-shirt I had, and took instruction from this post by Sewing Rabbit and this post by Sew a Little Seam. Both were super helpful! This was also one of my first attempts using bias binding, and I love how clean it looks! I used the pale pink at the arms and neck to make it look more feminine, but in retrospect I wish I had used orange for all of it because then it would be easier to pass down to George. Live and learn!

Liberty Print Dress

As a beginner sewist (Seamstress? Sewer?), I am very excited about my first attempt at making something for my niece! I was recently at a tent sale in Westerly where I was totally inspired by the dresses made by Sailor Rose. They look just like more professional versions of what you see here: knit stripes on top, Liberty of London fabric for a skirt. Sadly, I couldn't afford the dresses they had at the tent, but I was determined to try my own. I started by sewing a rectangle of the Liberty fabric into a big loop, then folded the top over twice to make a tunnel for an elastic waistband. I sewed this to a store-bought tee shirt by hand (really hoping this will stand up to abuse!)... I need to learn more about how to make things stretch with machine stitching. I hemmed the bottom, added a couple patch pockets, and that's it!

There was extra fabric so I thought I should probably make myself a matching circle skirt. Because every little girl should match her auntie, right?

Then I got a little bold and tried again using fabric left over from the guest bedroom duvet covers. It was my first attempt at gathers. Will have to work on this skill!

Now, of course, comes the hard part: getting my 2-year-old model to stand still for a photo!