Rainy Day

We are suppose to be at the park for a playdate, but a storm was rolling in and we cancelled. We're a bit bummed, but the up side is I get to spend all day sewing and I only have one child here with me today!! The guys are heading out to the pond to do some fishing. Every year my husband takes his dad fishing for Father's Day. Last year I think was the first year our son joined them. They said he ate ALL day, but he had fun and is joining them again this year. Hope it doesn't rain too much for them!!

Off to get a LOT of sewing done!!

A Skirt and Pillowcase Dresses - Custom Order

I've been trying out some new style of skirts for my daughter to use as samples in my Etsy shop. I made one in white with some watermelon fabric first, then this week I finished this little one. They are so cute and and great for summer. I got the idea from the Made blog.


One of the moms from my son's preschool ordered three pillowcase dresses for her daughters (ages 5,6 and 13) to wear father's day and then on their vacation. The a friend from high school contacted me wanting to order a pillowcase dress for her daughter (age 9) to wear in a parade the end of the month. They younger girls have a ruffle on the bottom, but for the 13 year old we thought a band would be more appropriate. I also added a tie for her so it gives it a more grown up look. I can't wait to see her in the dress. Instead of using ribbon like I do a lot of the time for the pillowcase dresses I made fabric straps and love the look. The dress can be made to tie at the shoulder or in the back. For the 13 year old it ties in the back.

Pillowcase dress with a band on the bottom and tie in the back for a 13 year old.

Same dress as above, except this picture shows it with a tie around the waist.

Custom Order - Monkey Hooded Towel

I've been so busy with orders, testing patterns, hanging out with the kids and everyday chores! I've had this order for a few weeks and finally got it done today.

Tonight I'll be working on two orders for a total of 4 pillowcase dresses. I may also work on a pillowcase dress for my niece for beach pictures, maybe something for my daughter and finish some that have been unfinished in my room for a while. We'll see how much I actually get done, but will definitely get the orders done so I can concentrate on sewing for me and the kids the rest of the week!

Christening Gown and Accessories

A friend of mine asked me a couple months ago if I would make a Christening gown for her daughter's baptism this coming Saturday. She wanted it made out of her wedding dress. No hesitation on my part, it was a definite yes!! I love creating!! This set was to her specifications, but I had the opportunity to create it. It was fun thinking about the possibilities and then figuring out how to put it together. When she brought her wedding dress I was a little nervous at first. The thought of cutting into somebodies wedding dress is a little scary! I first sent her some links to some patterns and she responded with what she liked and didn't like. I then looked through my patterns to see if anything I had in my stash of a million patterns would get me started. I started off with the top from one pattern, lengthened the skirt and then took the sleeves from another pattern. I did a test run on the bonnet, shoes and gown for her to try on her daughter. They live 2 hours away and I haven't even seen her daughter in person, so hopefully with the test run and alterations everything will fit just right!!

The test run had binding around the neck, but we both liked the way I ended up doing it much better (the idea at the time, since she hasn't seen the pictures or seen it in person yet). I added little tucks around the sleeves (around the shoulders and the bottom of the sleeves). She wanted the band around the bottom of her wedding dress on the bottom of the gown as well as incorporated into the top of the dress. I couldn't figure out a way to cut out the skirt pieces with the band on the bottom, so I had to take off the band (and then reattached it later). I couldn't use the entire band around the waist because it was too wide and couldn't figure out how to sew it into the waist and have it looking right, so I made a separate sash to tie around the waist. What do you think? I LOVE the way the sash looks around the waist and it really added to the look of the gown.

A drawstring bag to hold the gown and accessories.

Gown with sash.

The buttons on the back of the dress are from her wedding dress. I also added a button to the strap of each shoe, but I don't have a good picture of the shoes. Hopefully my friend will send me a picture of the the shoes on her daughter's little feet (I'm sure they will look much cuter on her feet).

Without the sash around the waist.

The bonnet made from another pattern (an actual Christening gown pattern). It's simple, but beautiful!!

It's Raining It's Pouring

I'm sitting here at my desk trying to motivate myself. It is pouring down rain outside!! When I checked the weather about an hour ago it looked clear for the rest of the day, but we all know how wrong the weather people can be sometimes!! I'm really glad I spent 3 hours outside today raking the garden to loosen up the weeds, pulling the weeds and then adding Preen in hope that the abundance of weeds will stop!! I thought I might head out more later to do some planting, but don't think that is going to happen now!!

I spent some time this morning (before heading out to the gardens) cutting out pieces for the Christening Gown my friend is having me make for her daughter out of her wedding gown. I spent several hours last night trying to determine the best way to cut out the skirt and realized I needed to take the trim off the bottom (and then reattach later). Now that I have most (or all.....need to double check what I have cut) pieces cut out for the dress I need to cut the rest of the pieces for the bonnet, shoes and bag (for storage). My friend is hoping this dress will be passed down through generations and I feel so privileged to have the opportunity to make this for her. She hopes their next child will be a boy and hopefully I'll get the opportunity to make the boy outfit as well!!

Off to take a short nap and then sew, sew, sew......need to have the gown and accessories in the mail Saturday or Monday since the Christening is next weekend!!