Thursday, September 5, 2019

A Yellow Dress for Rose

I planned to get started on sewing up Rose's new material next week, but I've found a little bit of time this week to begin  at least one project. So, we picked out the yellow woven cotton and she looked through my patterns for one she liked and we got to work!

For everyday wear, woven mid weight cottons are less desirable for me than they were in the past. I really like knits now! They are soft and comfortable and don't bind or pull since they stretch with the movement of your body. On loose garments, knits can flow so prettily. Mid weight cotton wovens also tend to fade with much washing and drying in dryer. However, this yellow caught Rose's eye and she had to have it! It's a bit on the heavy side but it's made of pretty fine threads and is smooth and soft. Hopefully it will wear well as she puts it through regular rotation in her wardrobe. We will see!

Rose picked out a cute jumper pattern that was in a lot of patterns I was given last summer. I always thought it was cute but never made it. It's good we are using it now since it only goes up to a size 4 and Rose is currently in a pattern size 4. 
I modified the pattern to make it into a dress instead of a jumper. To do that I had to raise the neckline, raise the armscye and come up with a sleeve. I raised both the neckline and the armhole by eliminating the separate shoulder strap piece and extending the shoulders of the front and back up 1 and 1/4". It worked out almost perfectly! I did have to shave a little extra out of the bottom of the armscye to make it roomy enough for my preference but otherwise, this was a good fix. For the sleeve, I drafted a slightly gathered 3/4 sleeve that should be nice for slightly cooler days.

I had one moment of terror when I realized that the yellow fabric was only 1 yard in length. I had thought I bought a yard and a half but apparently not. By cutting the back in two pieces instead of 1 I was able to cut out the front,  back and two sleeves. Out of the tiny scraps leftover I had enough to make some bias binding for the sleeves and the neckline. There was just enough binding left over to make a tiny bow sewn to the front of the dress. And from my very, very last scrap I had juuuuust enough to make one gathered pocket. Because Rosie must have that! There is almost nothing left but a few tangled threads from the yardage! 

It's almost all machine sewn and all the seams are sewn with french seams, even the sleeve heads, which is only the second time I've done that. I like the clean inside finish and it should hold up well in the wash. The back of the dress closes with two fabric loops and buttons, but you can't see that in these pictures since Rosie's hair is in the way. 😊 (her desire is to grow her hair "as long as Rapunzel!")

The length is good, I think. It's long enough to be a dress on warmer days and short enough to be worn as a tunic on cooler ones. It's been pretty warm this week although the nights are cool and getting cooler. We went to the fair this week and by 7 we were already starting to get a little chilly! I strongly desire to crochet Rosie a little sweater but I promised myself I'd finish sewing her new clothes before starting any new crochet projects! 😂

Much love,
Sarah

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