Quick Baby Dress Project

Last week I had some fun making a little outfit to give as a baby shower gift.  While I like the surprise of hearing the answer to "boy or girl" when the baby is born that surpise rarely happens now, I think in the past year I have only known one family that waited for the big reveal.   For sewing it is useful to  know in advance, but I always think the suspense is fun.  Oh well, when I hear baby girl I know it is time to get sewing.


Here is the 2-piece outfit.   Simple dress from a New Look pattern. The dress is a cotton T-shirt knit with pink flowers, lemons and oranges.  The jacket is a T-shirt rib knit.

I used bias trim on the dress neckline and then made bias strips of the print fabric to bind the jacket edges.

The flower is the selvedge gathered into a flower with a fabric covered button. For the jacket I used a the front and back pattern pieces for a shirt in a vintage baby pattern, mostly to get the sleeve opening right.  I know there are zillions of cute baby clothes to buy at stores from Target to Saks, but it is fun to whip up something handmade.  

However - fabric shopping for childrens' clothing in a hurry - not so easy.  This was the only cute t-shirt knit fabric at the local Joann's store.  I always vow never to return but of course need something quickly like a zipper or thread. But really - their selection is so limited.  

On the fabric front - I just ordered a few things including a blue silk charmeuse to use for the shirt I am planning, as well as some black denim and olive corduroy for skirts and a couple of jersey knits. Yesterday I started playing around with the sloper from the Pattern Magic book, as I really want to try the twist top for starters.  

Now can I vent about Project Runway?  I alway watch every episode of that show but I think this year I am not feeling the love for any of the participants so I am not wild about them or the show. The challenges have been so strange. Clothes for guys in a band?  Really?  Although the judges have had some hilarious comments this season, thank you Mr. Kors. The finale . . . of course I will watch but not exactly inspiring.  On to Project Runway All-Stars in 2012, hope that is more entertaining.

Using my feet

Last week I pulled out some vintage fabric and sewed up a little dress to give as a gift to a friend who just had a baby girl.  A new baby is always nice but a little girl sets my mind going with the ruffly and pink possibilities.

Also I made a matching diaper cover - with ruffles of course.


I used New Look 6925 which I have sewn a few times before.  I find it very satisfying to make children's clothes - no fittiing, just cut the size and go.   I had an idea for some gathered ruffles so I used my 1/4" narrow hemming foot.  I have a love/hate relationship with this gizmo, I really can never get it to work consistently.  













Actually, it works fine, it is me that is the trouble.  Have you used this foot?  I can be sewing along, marveling at my nice tidy little hem, feeding the fabric steadily and zing, one little milimeter is not fed into the folder area just right and the narrow hem gets messed up.  Somehow I got enough fabric to be narrow hemmed to use for the neck ruffle.







I used the gathering foot for all the ruffles - that foot is fantastically useful and gives me no trouble.    The fabric is some very soft vintage gingham that I found at a garage sale last year. I have a lot of the green and I keep thinking I will make a women's vintage style dress for my Etsy shop - one of these spare minutes.  


Here is today's SunnyGal garden photo, keeping the pink/green theme going.  Apple blossoms, which by now have all dropped and need to be swept away.  Can you spot the bee?