Kids Clothing Week Challenge: My Secret Mission

KCWC

Last week was kids clothes week challenge!

I was excited, but tried not to be.  :)  Some weeks I'm super productive when it comes to sewing... but some weeks I'm lucky if I get a pattern traced and cut!  So I decided to follow KCWC in secret, just to see if I could do it.  The commitment?  One hour of kids related sewing a day for 7 days.  Seems pretty attainable... but things happen.  (Like no naps, babies pulling all nighters, spilled toddler potties, grocery store melt downs, Dora movie-thons... you get the picture!)

Somehow, though... I did it!  One hour a day, and I came away with 6 completed sewing projects, one nearly complete one, and a finished quilt that had nothing to do with kids clothes.  :)  I'm feeling pretty accomplished!  

One day I spent as much time battling with my sewing machine as I spent sewing.  

One day I fought with a seam ripper.  

One day I sewed while a handyman played under my kitchen sink.  

Many times I sewed while Lucca jumped to her heart's content in her jumperoo.

Many times I drank too much coffee and didn't sleep enough.  :)

EVERY time I was so thrilled when I was finished that it didn't matter!

Raina's Gigi Dress

The rainbow gown

treasure pocket pants

Snow White raglan

Lucca's Gigi Dress

strawberry shortcake popover sundress

(all except Lucca's Gigi dress have posts up about them... watch for the last one this week!)

It's been so much fun getting inspiration from the host blog and from the KCWC flickr pool.  I have a million and one more things I want to make now!  

...and now, in the wake of all this kids sewing, I've realized that while I do loads of sewing, I've never made anything for myself!  So my next project, out here for everyone to see and call me on if I stall... is to make something for ME!  I started a pinterest board with ideas... if you have any you think I need to add, please leave me a comment!  I've got some fabric stacked, some ideas in mind... now it's time to put my nose to the sewing machine and get going!

Strawberry Shortcake Popover Sundress

A couple days ago, Raina pulled a piece of fabric out of my stash and asked with the bluntness that is only adorable coming from a tiny person's mouth, "Mumma!  Is this for my strawberry shortcake dress?!" What else could I say but, "Of course it is!"  (She likes to go through my fabric from time to time and drag pieces out as "blankets" for meow.  This is the first time she's envisioned fabric as a finished sewing project.  Yay!)

The pattern I used is a free download on the Oliver & S website... the popover sundress.  It was incredibly simple and a quick sew.  I rarely finish a project in one day these days, but I managed this one pretty easily.  Of course, it helped that Raina was really into it and wanted to help.  :)  Here we are cutting and taping our patterns while Lucca napped.  I can't wait to see what Raina makes from her pattern!

And here, the finished dress!  That there under the arms?  That stuff that goes all the way up into those amazing straps?  That's bias tape.  That I made.  Yup.  Another fear, conquered.  And way easier than I had imagined.  I can't wait to try it out on future projects now.  Also, the pattern gives "hints" like a for realsies Oliver & S pattern. and one is to add piping or lace under the yoke edge.  It sounded like a marvelous idea to me, so I made a ruffle... and decided that while I was at it, I might as well add a ruffle to the bottom as well!  Adding the ruffles definitely added time onto the project... it makes me a little excited to think about how quick this would have been without my added details!  I think more of these easy peasy dresses will be part of the summer ensemble!

p.s. - it also includes a pattern for a coordinating doll dress!  I haven't made one yet, but Raina insists that it is the next thing "we" sew!

p.p.s. - the Snow White Raglan fit!  It is snug going over her head.  SO glad I cute the neckband a size up... but next time I would go even larger, or maybe figure out a way to adapt it a bit and give it a "v" or do some buttons down the shoulder...  I tried to get a picture of her in it, but this was the best I could do :).  "Raina, can you stand still so I can take your picture in your new shirt?"  "Nope!  Sowwy!  Too busy!"  (Too busy until I turned on Super Why, which is where the zoned out look in the last one comes in to play!)

The Ice Cream Dress, a pattern by Oliver & S

This is the first piece of clothing I've sewn from an honest to goodness-came in a little paper envelope pattern!  I opened one up once.  Once.  But I got overwhelmed and folded it back up, and now it's in the attic somewhere.  Since I loved the patterns in the "Little Things to Sew" Oliver & S book, though, and since my sewing skills have been vastly improved since I opened that last pattern, I figured I'd give this pattern a try.  And now, in true form, I'm tempted to make 2 dozen of these dresses.  Yup, I'm in love.

Since the pattern is called the "Ice Cream Dress," I thought it would be only right to use ice cream print fabric.  This fabric is form the Lisette line, which is designed by Liesl Gibson... who is also the creator of Oliver & S.  Go figure!  It's cotton, but lightweight, soft, and hangs so nicely.  It seems perfect for warm weather, and more importantly, it seems like a fabric that Raina will actually let touch her skin.  (Right now she is partial to fleece and jersey, and that's about it!)

The first thing I did was fold the fabric in half and pin down all the pattern pieces.  Wait, no.  The FIRST thing I did was give my husband the giant pattern pieces so he could take them to work and photocopy them :)  Then I cut the pieces out. So I guess the third thing I did was pin the pattern down.  Do you see what I did wrong?  I was impressed that I was able to fit all the pieces onto one yard of fabric... but the pocket pieces are sideways!  I did realize it before I cut... but after a quick look through my stash, I did find any pocket fabric alternatives I was happy with.  I did turn the fabric back over and see how I felt about the fabric lying sideways for the pockets, and I decided I liked the way it looked.  So onward I went!  Pin, cut, pin, cut, pin, cut, pin...  Until all the pieces were ready.

Then I started to read the directions at 11 PM.  Mistake.  I was pretty sure I was reading latin!  They made much more sense during naptime the next day, though.  Phew!  I did search the interwebs and find an old Sew-a-long that was incredibly helpful, though!  The directions are actually really easy to follow, but there were a few times when a picture was truly worth a thousand words!

Specifically, the pockets.  This is my first really real pocket.  In the past, I've created a pocket like shape and tacked it down, but this is a for realz pocket and I am oh so proud of it and it's oh-so-cute notched V!  (Even if one is puckered a bit.  But honestly, if I had clipped in any closer I would have gotten the seam!)

It got to a point where I could see the pieces becoming a dress, not just weird shapes and seams, and I got SUPER excited.  No lie.

And then, 4 days later (hey, my sewing time is limited to bedtime and naptime!), I did a happy dance as I topstitched my last seam!  Hooray!  

Raina, Lucca, and I made a quick trip to the store to get an ice cream button... and ended up with this :)  It is really large and obnoxious, but the only other option was teeny teeny teeny tiny.  Jason pointed out that Raina wont be able to sit in a carseat with this button against her back.  We'll see.  The button I would really love is from Etsy...  Yum Yum Ice Cream Button  But I'm all about instant gratification, and I can walk to JoAnn's in 5 minutes.

So there it is.  My first Ice Cream Dress!  I'm thinking one for Lucca with matching bloomers next.  And I would love to make a blouse length one for Raina from some cute print fabric.  Oh, the wheels are turning!!

Red Riding Hood Cape, by Oliver & S

This cape is the reason I wanted the Oliver & S book "Little Things to Sew."  I fell in love as soon as I saw the little illustration on the cover... but I was sure the pattern would be too complicated for me.  Turns out I don't give myself enough credit :)

If you've read any of my previous sewing posts, you'd know tat I don't follow patterns well :)  For this cape, which I wanted to come out perfect, I tried my hardest to stick to the pattern.

Some things I changed:
*I left out the armholes.  I don't think Raina would like them... she gets easily annoyed by sleeves she can't pull down to her wrists!
*Topstitching most edges.  Not in the pattern, but I like topstitching and the finished look it gives.
*Pom pom trim.  Why not?  I added this between the layers when they were sandwiched right sides facing.  It adds a really fun touch!

 *Instead of a button, I used a small butterfly patch, sewn just in the center.  It functions as a buttun without being a button!

Next time:
*I would add pockets inside for treasures!
*I think a drawstring feature might be nice for the hood.  Or some elastic (but not too much).  The hood can be floppy, and while it's really cute, I think giving it the ability to pull a bit taughter would also be cute.
*I'm thinking about adding a ruffle to the hood, like I do on my bonnets.





What I used for fabric:
*Lining - quilting cotton
*Outside - Red wool suiting
*I'm pretty much in love with the fabric.  The suiting wasn't inexpensive, but it was worth it.  The color is great, and the drape is exactly what you want from a cape.  (rhyme!)
*Just as a note... I'd like to give this pattern a try in a variety of fabrics now!  I think a fleece one would be a cute and cozy play cape!

Pattern pros:
This is actually a pretty simple and easy to construct pattern.  The instructions are clear.  I have no complaints about following the pattern.  But...

Pattern Cons:
The book comes with a giant sheet of patterns for every project in the book, and they are all printed on top of each other.  I was totally overwhelmed by the pattern sheet when I first opened it.  I had NO idea what to do with it.  First I had to decipher which pieces were for thecape, then I had to figure out how to use them without ruining the rest of the patterns.  I ended up using a roll of Raina's easel paper, tracing the pieces out one at a time, copying all markings, notches, etc over, and then cutting them out,  It was a lot of work.  I'm interested to see if anyone has a better solution for this kind of pattern!

I wish I had some pictures of Raina in her cape to show you.  Every picture I've attempted is blurry though. That girl cannot stand still!  She does love it, and she's sure that this is the witch's cape from Snow White!  Her favorite thing to say while wearing it?  "Here's an apple, dearie!  Now go to sleep!"