Sunday 4 May 2014

First the nightie, now the dress



A winter dress for R, using pattern J from Girly Style Wardrobe; the same pattern I used for her flannel nightie. This time I made it with the buttons on the back, the way they are in the book. I used a babywale corduroy that I found on clearance some months ago - it's a very dark purple, so dark that it looks brown under artificial light (hence the colour disparity in my indoor and outdoor photographs). The dress is meant to be unlined, but in the interests of staying warm I lined it fully using some voile that coordinates beautifully with the little green spots on the fabric. I also added some in-seam pockets for warming hands, storing tissues and keeping treasures. Because I find pockets terribly confusing I used this tutorial, which was most helpful.



Today was a shocker of a day in Melbourne, with torrential downpours punctuated by moments of sunshine lasting just long enough to lure you outside, only to be drenched yet again. We had K's footy match to go to in the morning (sodden, windswept) and an afternoon event at my old school (wet, freezing) - and I'm pleased to report that R's new dress kept her nice and warm all day.



Getting R to pose for pictures was difficult. Her expressions ranged from the unenthusiastic (mouth hanging open, eyes half closed) to the unimpressed (mouth pursed, eyes glaring). Later in the day she was in a better mood, but ran away whenever I tried to photograph her, with the exception of the one shot above, which is slightly blurry. So you'll just have to take my word for it that this is a very sweet dress that looks a whole lot better in real life!


6 comments:

  1. It IS a lovely dress, and I totally agree about the weather. Sick of it already. I dread the day either of my kids express an interest in playing footy. Surely I could persuade them to take up Table Tennis, or Badminton, or anything indoors ....

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    1. Thanks Shelley. As someone with a lack of interest in team sports and an aversion to wind and rain, I find being a footy mum extremely unpleasant. R's gymnastics and dance classes, on the other hand, are a pleasure to attend... so yes, encourage the indoor (or at least, summer) sports. And avoid those that start early in the morning, while you're at it!

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  2. The dress is gorgeous! I have a difficult time getting pictures of my kids modeling and I bribe them too. The weather where I live stinks but I don't have to go outside. I kind of like the excuse to stay inside and sew.

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    1. Thank you Christine! Yes the bribes are essential, aren't they.

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  3. Beautiful dress, this book is on my wish list. I usually bribe mine with sweets to pose nicely for blog photos! I love the picture with the giant rope!

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  4. It's a great book, I really recommend it. Some of the patterns are a bit thin on instructions, but if you've done a bit of sewing before it's usually not too difficult to work out what to do.

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