Spring & Summer Clothing, Part One

As I elaborated in my guest post this morning on Designs by Sessa, I spent the weekend sewing spring/summer dresses for Taylor.  It’s been very satisfying to watch my pile of fabric shrink, while the pile of clothing grows. I’m up to 6 dresses, 1 skirt, and 1 shirt.

I don’t have enough of many fabrics to make some of my patterns. It’s been a fun challenge to play around and figure out which fabric I can eek out enough of for each pattern. I was disappointed after sewing one dress today to discover that I had only cut out one bottom ruffle, and was out of fabric. So after two hours of sewing, that dress became this longish top.

(Note: I’m sewing all of these patterns in a size 7, while Taylor is currently wearing a size 6. By the time she wears these in late May/early June, I’m guessing they’ll fit perfectly. For now, they’re a tad big.)

This one is from McCall’s M6065. It’s fully lined – even the skirt portion. This is one of the more well thought out patterns I’ve sewn this time, in terms of hiding seams and looking finished both inside and out. I wish I had enough material to add the bottom ruffle to make it a dress, but it’s a cute shirt too.

This one is from another McCall’s pattern – M6315. The girls on the package looked a little too eighties, with fluffy side ponytails. But I went for it anyway, and I like the assymetrical shoulders. If I sew it again, which I think I might, I’ll be lining the bodice. The directions simply call for a narrow hem, and I don’t think that’s very easy to do on arm holes. I managed it, but it would be tidier if it were lined, and not too difficult.

Okay, ignore the fact that my ribbon doesn’t line up on the back on this one, please. She was swimming in the dress as it was, so I had to take in the back a lot at the end. I should unpick it, and I probably will. This is McCall’s M4817. It called for a zipper on the back, but when the little tie is undone, it slides over her head just fine. I’m trying to be frugal by using patterns and fabric I already have, so when I can avoid spending extra on a zipper, I will.

This dress took a lot of fabric, and I didn’t have enough of any prints to make it. So I just went with pink. And while it looked really boring before it was all sewn together, I really like the simplicity of it. The pink grosgrain ribbon adds just a little bit of shine and fun.

Can you tell she was getting chilly by the time we took these photos? This is a Simplicity pattern – 2377. I made it again in a striped fabric and added a tie cinch it up a bit. I’ll post photos of that one in part 2. This is my favorite pattern so far, in terms of ease of construction. It’s a good little peasant dress pattern.

It was near 60 degrees, but getting dark, so this is all the summer dresses we got photographed. There are more! I’ll post a part 2 later.

So far, I’ve spent nothing on her summer wardrobe. Well, I did, of course, but those purchases were all more than a year ago. I got the patterns on sale for 99 cents. The fabric was mostly $1.99 a yard. So even if you figure what I spent way back then, this is a very cost effective way to go. And it’s been so much fun for me, and for her.

I actually thought that I’d have an excuse to buy a few yards of new prints after I’d used up all my old fabric. But I think that by the time I get through everything I already own, her spring/summer wardrobe will be complete.

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