Sewing: "Madeline" Dresses for Once Upon a Thread

Oh, Once Upon a Thread! I love this series. Did you catch "Chapter Four" earlier this summer? I had been thinking about it for well over a year because an idea popped into my head... I had to drop Katy a line and let her know I was ready to go if she ran the series again and had room for me. I'm so thrilled she did! 

Thank you Katy for inspiring me with everything you do--as a mother and artist. Your eye for detail is as remarkable as your design flair and your ability to nurture your houseful of beautiful children. Since participating in Once Upon a Thread the first time I find myself repeatedly thinking of children's books as sewing inspiration. (You can see what I did the second time here.) Such a great way to combine two of the things I really love doing for my children: reading and sewing.

So, this time I sewed a pair of dresses inspired by Ludwig Bemelmans' "Madeline." The book, not the 1998 movie (which isn't as true to the original when it comes to the girls' costumes....) Though it's hard to say where the inspiration started.

I collect vintage sewing patterns and came across this old Simplicity pattern (#5427) for a darling double-breasted a-line dress with capelet and it reminded me of the yellow coats with capes the twelve little girls wear in the book. I just needed the right yellow fabric. I love pique, and I love the way European clothing uses it for babies and children, so I thought it would be perfect, but it's difficult to find... I did however find the fabric I was dreaming up for the lining: Lloyd + Barton's Paris map fabric for Timeless Treasures (via Etsy)! And then in the nick of time I found some vintage fine wale Madeline-yellow pique on eBay. Amazing.

We love classic children's books at our house and "Madeline" is a favorite. How can you resist this petite little girl who is kind and brave and creative? My girls giggle every time Madeline says "poo poo" to the tiger in the zoo. And I love reading aloud the rhythm and rhyme of this prose, even when it isn't quite perfect. 

We have a few of the Madeline books, but I think the first is the best. Though we feel a bit sorry for these twelve darling girls for being sent away to boarding school--they wouldn't even see their parents at Christmastime if it weren't for a bit of magic (see "Madeline's Christmas.") Miss Clavel does seem nicely firm and plenty concerned about their well-being but still, it must be difficult to be away. 

If only life were as ordered as these two straight lines...

There is some entertaining non-fiction to this little story. I love the Paris attractions that serve as the background for Madeline's adventures. It was nice of the publisher to include a list of the locations in the back of the book.  And I discovered that Ludwig Bemelmans married a woman named, "Madeline," who I imagine was the inspiration for his main character.

It would have been fun to whisk away to Paris for a photo shoot in the Jardin des Tulleries by the Louvre, but we settled for a quick morning field trip to some local wrought iron before a morning of summer camps. And a challenge to see who could name the Paris locations appearing on Audrey's and Tess's covered buttons.

If our only zoo had wrought iron cages (purely an aesthetic wish, nothing else) so we could have visited the Tigers. The more I think about it, "Madeline" includes many of the things that continually inspire me: European children's clothing (reminded of this skirt), little girls (foremost my own three), Parisian wrought iron (was thinking about it for this party), art, and classic literature. In that regard these yellow dresses are long overdue!

My plan was to sew the caped dress for Audrey and end there, but I enjoyed the combination of the bright yellow and the black and white map print so much I couldn't resist making another. So I made a dress for Tess with a double-bow collar inspired by some of my favorite European children's clothing.

 Then Scarlett asked, "why don't I have a dress?" So it may not be the end of this theme...

...but it is the end of this post. 

Thank you again, Katy!

(Maybe Audrey should wear the cape with the map print out sometime? It's a fun modern look...should have snapped a photo...)

(Still thinking about that dress for Scarlett...)

Sewing: Lime Daisy Ruffle Neck Dress (Ugly Pattern Party)

It is fair to say I've never seen a vintage pattern I didn't like. When I was invited to join Simple Simon & Company's "You Can't Judge an Ugly Vintage Pattern by Its Cover" party I thought it would be simple to find something ugly in my stash. It didn't seem right for them to send me another pattern when I'd been snatching up so many. The party was a good motivation to sew with one. But as it turns out, they're all heartthrobs. Most are from the 40s, 50s and 60s, and seriously, the cover art is beautiful and it's hard to imagine improving on what is illustrated there.

I managed to go forward one decade to the 70s and landed on this sweet thing. But can you really call it ugly? Maybe it's the ponytails that get me...

I found this pattern online but it very well may have been used by my own mother. It's the type of simple ensemble she loved to dress her girls in: gathers, ruffles, gentle a-line, and pinafore! There were many pinafore dresses in our closets during the 70s and 80s and I kind of wish they hadn't been given away. Truth told, I would probably sew with this pattern as is. I'm convinced with the right fabric it would be adorable. The pinafore and bloomers alone are a no-brainer. In fact, one of my own patterns looks a bit like that combination...

But I decided to give this pattern a more modern vibe. Actually, it may be more of a mod vibe, but in any event it was fun!

 

I pulled one yard of Robert Kaufman Cool Cords Lime Daisies fabric from my stash and managed to cut out what I needed for this little dress. The pattern says "quick and easy" but by the time I added a few things it was less quick and easy! One of those, "I can do this in a couple hours," which actually took a few more hours.

 

 

Since I made the dress without the pinafore I decided to design a little piped patch pocket to add more interest. This is a fun shape: oblong but squarish and with a half-circle cut out for the opening.

I also eliminated the ruffle at the bottom of the sleeve and opted for a piped band instead.

Instead of the zipper the pattern called for I decided to create a button placket. I don't really like the look of zippers on most dresses and I thought this big bright yellow buttons (La Mode purchased at Joann) would be fun. They are, right?

I lengthened the dress a bit too by using seam binding to finish the hem. Such a great trick! I probably would have made it just a little longer if I hadn't been so short of fabric. But it's cute to see Tess's toddler legs. I think this dress suits her.

And there you have it. Some lime daisies in a soft baby cord to brighten up our Spring. I can't wait to see what other "ugly" patterns appear these next two weeks.  Thank you liZ and Elizabeth for inviting me to play. I just can't say no to a vintage pattern!

Sewing: Scarlett's Christmas Dress

Oh, the Christmas dresses. I love to sew them! And every year I vow to start earlier the next. I guess I succeeded this year somewhat because they are finished--but it felt a bit late for the purpose of a Christmas card photo. Oh well. There's always next year!

Early or late, I think this dress for Scarlett is just right! I love it on her. I think the princess seaming and fit-and-flare suits her. The collar--peter pan in front and sailor in the back--is too perfect! I also love all those buttons, which I finished sewing on after the photos. It's a story...

The tailored look seems just right for Miss Scarlett who is all about being in charge right now.

The pattern is a another vintage find (I find most of them on Etsy). Isn't it darling? It's a coat pattern, and a size two, so there was a bit of adjustment involved, including overall lengthening, taking in some seams, keeping the armholes a bit higher, and adding more buttons. 

It's made with more of the red-and-white gingham I've fallen in love with. I actually started out with the dress for Scarlett's birthday but then decided to do something more casual, thinking this would be perfect to save for Christmas.

All the cute details took time of course. And time has been scarce. But hopefully this is a dress that will be worn by more than one girl. That is if my covered buttons hold up. I've been disappointed to find a couple of them popping off their shanks on other dresses I've made. Such a bummer! Any ideas?

Scarlett was the best sport of the bunch for our Christmas card photo shoot, which was the usual comedy. Maybe it was the new dress.

Party: Tess's Vintage Book First Birthday (Printables)

Somebody asked me how long I spend planning a party. It depends..., mostly on how much notice I have as the ideas tend to fill the available time! This first birthday party for Tess has been bouncing around in my head for many many months. I wanted it to be extra special--she certainly is!

I had so much fun with the Golden Books Baby Shower that for Tess I wanted to do another spin on vintage books. I wanted it to be more feminine and I wanted to use the idyllic illustrations that characterize the vintage books I love: puppies and kittens and flowers and other sweet and domestic things.

I realized this style of illustration also characterizes embroidery patterns from the same era. I have a few kitchen towels my grandmother made--I'm sure you've seen the days of the week or nursery rhymes. I love them, and I decided to incorporate vintage embroidery along with vintage books, my own illustrations, pom poms, and calico with a vintage feel. All things genuinely sweetness and light for my little Tess.

  

So at summer's end, tables were set with runners, which I appliqued with vintage embroidery panels and trimmed with pom poms. I created the embroidery panels from old and new embroidered flour sack kitchen towels I purchased from Etsy and eBay. Maybe I'll repurpose them again and turn them into a quilt--wouldn't that be so sweet?!

Click to read all the details...

Sewing: Vintage Zoo Dress

I am sewing, madly sewing...

I hope not too madly really, but I am working on outfits (among other things) for Audrey's upcoming birthday party and the effort just happens to coincide with Elsie Marley's KCWC. Her challenge was the boost I needed, though not such a boost that I managed to sew through the night. I wish I could! But I don't get enough uninterrupted hours of sleep as it is so this dress for Audrey is finished later in the week than I hoped. But still finished!

This little dress is the result of combining two vintage patterns. I loved the scalloped collar on McCall's pattern 7656 and couldn't resist the puffy short sleeves and inverted pleat on the dress in Simplicity 5683. Seems they would combine fairly easily, but, (always a "but") the necklines and shoulders are pretty different, and I needed to enlarge it two sizes, so I pulled out my roll of examination table paper (such a great thing to have!) and drafted a new pattern with elements of each. Oh, and I skipped the zipper (as I am wont to do) and changed the back to buttons. Much easier putting in the work on the front end than to have tried pinning and cutting with multiple pieces. 

So here is Audrey's Vintage Zoo Dress. For Scarlett's birthday last Fall I was unsure about a bow but this dress was begging for it. I made it extra large. Audrey provided her opinion on that and I agreed. (She's come a way on the bow thing. A year or so ago she certainly would have said, "no bow.") Oh, and that's a dickey in the front. A dickey! A first for me. It required hand-sewing.

The fabric for the bow was totally serendipitious! I was at Joann buying rickrack and other notions for party making and the woman next to me was having this polka dot fabric cut. It was difficult to remain calm and hope she wasn't taking the entire bolt because it was the perfect match to the fabric I had brought along! I felt like high-fiving the cutter when the bolt was set aside with enough left for me! It is in the line DS Quilts Collection for Fabric Traditions, which I believe is a Joann exclusive and reportedly a big seller.  

It looks just perfect in the pleat on the sides. But I thought the dress needed a bit more of it to go along with Michael Miller's "Kid Zoo" fabric.  So I took some inspiration from No Big Dill and added a polka dot placket for the buttonholes on the back.

I was a bit nervous about it but I love it!

This also provides a bit of a sneak peek for Audrey's fifth birthday party. We're so excited!

Sewing: Easter Dress for Audrey

I am finally switching gears to Spring sewing, and Easter dresses in particular! Easter is one of my favorite holidays. There is nothing more welcome than a rebirth--of flowers and trees and all living things. My mother always made new Easter dresses for my sisters and me and I love the idea of doing the same thing for my girls. Three dresses is certainly more work than two were, and I seem to have made it a bit difficult on myself with the outfits I chose, but I'm getting there!

For Audrey, I chose this vintage pattern (Simplicity 4327). I love the classic girl's suit. I especially love the scalloped hem on the view in the middle. But for Audrey's dress I went with a straight hem, thinking that would be better with the plaid skirt. Maybe I'll make the other view for her another time. I don't often go back to the same pattern--there are so many others to make--but this pattern is at least a full size too big for her right now so I'll have time. Which brings me to one of the ways I made this difficult for myself: I used a too large pattern, which of course could be adjusted, but I rushed to cut and then realized I hadn't adjusted and tried to do it after, which worked o.k., but hindsight is everything. Oh well. That's what I get for trying to squeeze in too many things!

I love this pink and cream plaid! It is a silk dupioni I believe (very practical for little girls, don't you think?) and I can't remember where I purchased the fabric but I think it was a designer/home fabric store of one kind or another and I think it was not much after Audrey was born. I thought it would be fun to make three dresses with this plaid, and some pink and cream linens. I bought a pretty light pink linen but decided to go with the darker pink for Audrey. It's a great color on her! I only had a yard of the silk but luckily it was 60" wide and I've managed to lay out all the pieces I need with a bit left over. At least I had that going for me!

This skirt is a great design. I love the less common combination of a gathered waist and pleated skirt. I especially like the box pleats, which I didn't iron all the way down because the fabric doesn't lend itself that well to strict pleats. Easier to wear I think. The pattern indicates suspenders for the skirt. I thought, "cute, but why the trouble when they don't show?" As soon as I had Audrey try on the skirt I realized suspenders were a brilliant idea--they keep the skirt at the waist, which is a feat on little girls. So I made some button holes in the waistband and maybe I'll add the suspenders. Or, sew buttons on the blouse she's wearing underneath the jacket to help keep up the skirt that way. With the cropped jacket having the skirt hang a bit low will not be such a good thing. Suspenders. Who knew? They obviously were on to something a few decades ago. I think some of that practicality and attention to detail has been lost.

So one of three Easter outfits. And on I go...

Sewing: Modern Farm Birthday Dress

Phew! One more thing finished. I have to laugh at my rollercoaster evaluation of projects as they progress. I go from thinking something will be quick and finished in no time at all to feeling like I'll never find the time to work on it again.  So I try to prioritize. After getting the invitations out for Scarlett's second birthday party I started on her birthday dress. Every party needs a new dress! And the effort just happened to coincide nicely with KCWC, so I felt I was in good company trying to find an hour or two to move this project forward.

I had a few ideas for Scarlett's second birthday dress, including designing my own fabric, but I decided on applique farm animals as something more achievable in the time frame. I love the result! I don't do a lot of applique but once I started thinking about it I came up with more ideas than I'll have time to execute for the party, so I may be in the Modern Farm mode for a bit afterwards.

I have wanted to make this dress for some time. It would be cute in so many fabrics--I chose this natural linen which has the most gorgeous hand. I love linen and think it is just fine for it to be wrinkled! I also went with fabric covered buttons, which I prefer for most things.

I almost made this for Scarlett for her first birthday, but opted for something simpler last year. It's always nice to use one of the vintage patterns I've purchased--I am such a sucker for them. This one didn't even have the envelope, which is too bad because the pattern illustration would be darling in color. I love this artist smock look! Too cute!

It would have been fun to put Scarlett in this dress and get some photos but she has been under the weather so those photos will have to wait...

It was fun designing these appliques. Cutting them wasn't as fun, but I used HeatN'Bond, which made it much easier to cut the fabric.  I think these would be darling in a small calico print too.

I wasn't quite sure how to stitch the appliques--zig zag, blanket stitch, stitch by hand.... Not surprisingly I decided to machine stitch (a time saver I thought) and used a straight stitch so as not to muck up the detail in the silhouettes. Though it may have been faster, it was a bit tricky to see through the sewing foot but it improved as I went and didn't take as long as I feared.

 

Now the question: with bow or without the bow? The bow makes it look more like a vintage artist's smock, which I like. But the dress certainly doesn't need the bow and the bishop's yoke with peter pan collar is so sweet on its own. I'll have to take some votes...