House Dresses (& Building An Island!)

A little while back, my friend Jasmine requested that I sew her some “house dresses” in preparation for both the summer, and her imminent move to Australia in the fall. So… we went to a local fabric store, sat outside and drank chai and chatted for a while… and then finally got to work picking a pattern and fabrics. 😉

She wanted something that reminded her of her grandmother’s dresses – being very “old soul” minded (into gardening and quilting and the like). We decided to make one dress using Version B, and another using a modified Version A. First we took some measurements, then we bought the correct amounts of fabric, and then I went home to clean/pre-shrink it all. And then sew-sew-sew!

The first attempt didn’t go quite as planned…

Somehow, in spite of using the given measurements-size chart… the finished dress didn’t fit quite as well as it should have. The skirt was fine… but the bodice was way too small! I mean, we could have attached fasteners and “made” it fit… but it wouldn’t have been comfortable at all! Especially in the heat. So, I took it back and attempted a work-around fix.

I ended up sewing a panel to one of the bodice sides (we decided on the top, right teal) and then used fasteners to hold everything in place. I set the dress aside until I could try it on her again, and got to work on the second dress – using a much larger size (12 vs. 6), even though the measurements didn’t add up. I figured it was a wrap-around dress, so worst case scenario… I could always take it in if it was just too big and not working. Right?

Luckily, it worked out perfectly.

The new, larger size paid off – it required no fasteners to stay in place (except for the waistband tie), and it covered everything wonderfully. Instead of using seam binding to hi-light all the edges (see version A dress above), I attached the binding and turned it under, like a hem, instead.

We got together to try the dresses on… after consuming some sushi and white wine, of course. 😉 The second (apples) dress fit MUCH better than the first (quilty) one – even with the extra panel fix. *sigh* So… I took the first dress back AGAIN. =/

Luckily, I had used some “creative cutting” when I cut out the pattern the first time, and I had enough fabric left over to cut a larger bodice out of it. But I didn’t have enough for the arm and neck facings, and the collar… so I ripped out some stitches and salvaged those from the original piece. A little more sewing and… viola!

Another proper house dress. Sadly, Jasmine is kinda busy with selling her house… and getting travel documents in order… and trying to enjoy her last Canadian summer here with her family… so I haven’t had a chance to see the dress on her, but I’m fairly certain it will be just great!

Meanwhile, I had such a hard time saying goodbye to Version A of the dress (the one with the little apples) that I went out and got some fabric for myself! Mid-summer apparently means “time to get rid of all the summery fabrics”… so everything (see below) was under $7 per metre! I too am enamoured of the little house dress, and when I get a some hours to myself, I plan on sewing at least a couple! And yes, I even found the little apples again. =)

Well, aside from house-and-garden improvements, that’s been the extent of my “creativity” lately. I miss making funky stuff regularly, at times… but it sure feels great to be getting other stuff done around here!  Like building this:

I IKEA hacked a kitchen island together! I cut the legs off a 3-drawer Hemnes dresser. Put it on a base. Built some shelving on the back side. Put the whole thing on wheels… I still need to get some tempered glass for the top, but so far I LOVE IT!!!

Yes, those are little moustaches on the back of the shelves! I used Duck Tape to do that – two rolls, to be precise. Anyhow. I’ve been busy doing stuff like that. To get things back on track around here post ten-years-of -dealing-with-GERD-children… Whew.

Okay. Time to go do something else now. Speaking of which… what have *you* been up to lately? =)