A Spring-Time Apple-Picking Dress

Everytime I make a new Oliver & S Pattern, I wonder why I ever bother with other patterns.  Everything always comes together so perfectly and the fit is always right on, not to mention that the directions are clear and is supported by concise pictures and diagrams.  The Apple -Picking Dress is no exception. 

I've hoarded this fabric in my stash for quite a while until this pattern came along.  It's called Bliss by Bonnie and Camille for Moda.  I just love the combination of aqua and red.  Looking at this fabric makes me happy and reminds me of springtime and sunshine.

 

The Size 3 on my 4 year old is a teensy bit short but fits perfectly everywhere else.

 

She loves the dress too because it is twirly with the double flounce on the skirt and has a big bow, not to mention the little red flower buttons that perfectly match the flowers on the fabric.

 On to my next Oliver & S creation.

Mad Hatter Birthday Tea Party

As promised, here are the pictures I managed to take of S's Mad Hatter 4th Birthday Tea Party.  First up is the Queen of Hearts, otherwise known as B.

I made a simple apron to go over a red ricing hood costume dress that we already had.  The apron has ric rac trims on the neckline and skirt and a heart pocket on the bodice.  The waist is trimmed with the same fabric as the heart pocket.   

The crown is red wool melton left over from S's school days coat.  The buttons have sparkly diamond centers framed by a four leaf clover shape that reminded me of the clubs symbol in playing cards.  Can you believe I had those buttons in my stash?  The maribou trim was also in my stash as was the white wool felt.   

Now on to party picture!

The runner is made from Michael Miller's Put a Lid on it in Electric.  I simply folded the fabric to hide the selvedges.  No sewing required and I can re-use the fabric for another project.  The centerpiece were teapots and teacups that I found around the house.  You can see the Dormouse peeking out from a teapot and the Cheshire cat hanging from the pompom flowers.

Feather boas for the girls and suspenders for the boys to wear and take home.  I didn't get a close up of the suspenders but they were fun to make.  I used this tutorial from Make It and Love It.

The centerpiece for this table are Alice play figures I bought from Amazon on top of a sample piece of fake grass that I had lying around the house.

These are fairy/butterfly wings I found at the dollar store.  I also hung them from the chandelier along with the pompoms.

Googly eyes glued onto some gerbera daisies.

Tea Pot cake made from a small local baker called Sweet and Sassy Sugar Shop.  You can find their info here.  They can also be found at the Orenco Farmer's Market in the summer; the rest of the year they do custom orders and their cupcakes can be ordered by the dozen.   Did I mention that their cupcakes are to die for?

We had salted carmel
carmel, red velvet and vanilla cupcakes. 

The birthday girl with her own special cupcake.

and B eating hers.

The kids decorated straw hats.

and painted teacup planters.  I found most of the craft supplies at orienatal trading company.  Other activities included a croquet game, pin the grin on the Cheshire Cat, and the Queen of heart says...

If you're interested, you can find the original inspirations and ideas for this party on my pinterest board.

The Wonderland Dress: PRNP SIgnature Entry

Today is S's 4th birthday.  I must admit I got a bit teary-eyed when we sang happy birthday.  How did that little tiny baby that we brought home get so big?  Anyway, we celebrated with a Mad Hatter Tea Party for S and all her friends.  It was well worth all the hard work and planning to make her day special.

This is our interpretation of Alice in Wonderland.  The apron was made from Carefree Clothes for Girls in linen and a target liberty floral print that Kristin of Skirt as Top so generously included with a fabric swap we made a few months ago.  Thanks Kristin.  I hope I did the fabric justice.

The dress is a luxurious purplish-blue velveteen.  I'm proud to say that I  drafted the pattern myself.  The bodice was based on a fitted tee and the skirt is composed of two widths of fabric, box-pleated and slightly gathered.  The most difficult part was the sleeves.  I knew I wanted slim sleeves with fitted shoulders.  Originally, I    had envisioned wrist lenght sleeves with white french cuffs, but when we went to try it on S she complained that the sleeves were too tight.  So I cut off the sleeves to just above the elbow  and added a slight inward curve.  The peter pan collar has one sparkly diamond button and each sleeve has the same button on top of the curve. 

The dress is short (a deliberate decison cause I love that look) and high waisted.  I added a glitter belt that I made out of a rtibbon.  The outfit is completed with sparkly shoes and a matching headband.

Mismatching buttons in the back.  Yes, they sell mismatching buttons in packets now.

I'm entering this outfit onto the Project Run & Play because I love it that much.  Wish me luck:).

Happy New Year!

Well, it's not too late to say happy lunar new year, otherwise known as Chinese new year. So far in January, I've been obsessively planning this little girl's 4th birthday.

These invitations were inspired by some I found on Etsy--they were $4 per invite so I thought I'd better make my own.

I did manage to squeeze in some sewing.  I made the this diaper bag for my friend in :San Diego who is expecting her second baby any day now.  The pattern is from Amy Butler's Little Stitches For Little Ones.  This is the 6th version of this bag that I've made for various expectant friends.

It's a big and roomy bag.  Here's a look at the inside:

It has 4 elasticized pockets for diapers and such.  I omitted  the central divider just cause the bag doesn't really need it.  I did add a key fob though.

  I hope to be back soon with birthday party photos.  Wish me luck!

Teacher Presents and Pajama Day

Yeah, I know, not a very creative title.  I've been laid low by a cold that is seriously sapping my crafting energy.  I did, however manage to make handmade christmas presents for s's teachers.

I made these bags from home dec fabric I had laying around.  The pattern is the sweetheart shopper by Keyka Lou.  I simplified the pattern by ommitting the lining and button closure.  It's more of a grocery tote than a handbag as I was going for cute but functional. 

The last day of school before winter break was Pajama Day.  I asked S the night before which PJ she wanted to wear and she told me she wanted the purple one with the princesses on it.  Apparently, while I was moving my fabric stash to their new home, she had spotted some purple princess fabric that I  had purchased a while ago, probably to appease her so I could shop in peace.  And so it was that I found myself making pajamas at 9:00pm the night before they were supposed to debut.

The bottoms are from a simplicity pattern in size 2.  It was a perfect fit except for the length but that was all the fabric I had to work with.  The top is the The Sweet Little Dress by Leila and Ben.  I used a fold over elastic for the collar.  The sleeves and hem are serged using a rolled hem.  It was over and done with in a couple of hours.

S was super excited about her new jammies.  She wore them all day and that night.  The next morning she woke up and very sincerely thanked me for her princess jammies.