A Dress for Ansley's Friend

Ansley got invited to her first birthday party. She kept talking about it as soon as she opened the invitation. Then she got sick- runny nose, coughing sick. Poor thing (and poor us b/c I think we're getting it too).

Anyway, I made this little dress using a men's shirt that Ansley's friend's mom (who is also my friend) gave me last summer. I first got the idea from MADE.



I left the pocket on the front; partly out of laziness and mostly out of curiosity to see how it would look. It's totally functional, which is fun.



I used Simplicity 5695, like this dress. Instead of all of the tiers, I extended view c/d into an a line. I didn't want to add the ruffle b/c the buttons up the front of the dress are so cute! I think it turned out better than my first attempt at a shirt dress.



Did you enter my giveaway yet?

$30 Giveaway to CSN Stores

**This giveaway is now closed. Thanks for entering. Congrats to lucky number, 11, Meredith! I'm sending you an email right now.**


I'm happy to be able to offer one of you lucky readers a $30 gift certificate to CSN stores! With over 200 stores, they carry everything from flat panel tv stands



to kitchen storage goods



to furniture.



What would you use your gift certificate for? Click on the link above and look around. Please leave only one comment per person and a way for me to contact you. If you'd prefer not to post you email address, feel free to email me directly at emmillee(AT)gmail(dot)com. U.S. and Canadian addresses only, sorry. Random.org will pick a winner next Wednesday b/c mid week surprises are awesome.

Have fun shopping and good luck!!

Sewing Box

The perfect size for most of my threads.



I love its portability for when I relocate my sewing stuff from the kitchen table.

Valentine's Treat

We were missing the blueberries this time around but they were still delicious. I also had some of the scraps with nutella. . . . yummy!

Fruit Filled Pastry Hearts from Better Homes and Gardens

1 17.3 ounce package frozen puff pastry (2 sheets)
1/3 cup peach spreadable fruit or preserves (also good with raspberry)
1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel
1 cup peeled and finely chopped peaches (about 2) (or fresh raspberries)
1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
powdered sugar
1 cup blueberries

1. Thaw and unfold puff pastry sheets onto a lightly floured surface. Using a floured, 2 inch heart shaped cookie cutter cut pastry into about 45 heart shapes (do not reroll scraps). Place pastry hearts on an ungreased baking sheet. (number of hearts obviously depends on the size of your cookie cutter)

2. Bake in a 375 F oven for 10-12 minutes or until puffed and golden. Cool on a wire rack. If desired, store, tightly covered, at room temperature for up to 12 hours.

3. In a small saucepan combine spreadable fruit or preserves and lemon peel. Heat and stir until melted; cool. In a large mixing bowl combine peaches and blueberries. Add spread or preserves mixture and gently toss to combine; set aside.

4. In a medium mixing bowl beat cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy. (I've used powdered sugar instead of brown sugar)

5. To assemble pastries, with a serrated knife, cut pastry hearts in half horizontally. Spread each of the bottom halves with about 1 teaspoon cream cheese mixture. Top each with a spoonful of fruit mixture and a pastry top. Serve immediately or cover and chill for up to 4 hours. Just before serving, lightly sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Coastal Curtsy Skirt

More details from this post.



Here's my Coastal Curtsy Skirt! I love it! I used Katy's excellent tutorial. It was really easy to follow.



The ruffle fabric was a Christmas gift from my sister. It's super soft and gorgeous.



It also happens to perfectly match my tights from ballet class in college. (shirt by Shade, cardi from the Banana Republic outlet a few years ago, shoes from my friend, Katie's shop).



Now Ansley and I can be matchy. :)

Ansley's Valentine's Dress

Details from this post.


I like that the heart pattern is subtle. The bright colors have me even more eager for spring.



I actually bought these fabrics at separate times, over a period of about nine months. I love how they all go together.



I used Simplicity 5695. I really like the shape of the top and how the front is a little bit lower than the back.



I also love how poofy the tiers are.



Fleece coat from this post.

love

And an outtake b/c Ansley looks so cute:



More info on Ansley's dress and my skirt.

Cupcake Therapy

I can't stop making and eating these!









Divine recipe here.

Sweet Little Coastal Dress

While we were in Las Cruces, I won a Leila and Ben Sweet Little Dress pattern from Project Run and Play (which if you haven't been following, you should. Amazing stuff).


I finally got to try it out. I love the shape of the top and arms of this dress.



I have a serious crush on Katy's coastal curtsy skirt and got some ruffle fabric from my sister for Christmas. I'm still a little bit scared of cutting into that gorgeous fabric and messing it up so I did a practice run with cheaper ruffle fabric that I found at Hobby Lobby in Las Cruces. There isn't one near our house. The cheaper ruffle fabric is a bit sheer, so the dress is full length, like a built in slip.



I love how the ruffles drape in different directions!



It's pretty long since I cut everything out when she was sleeping; but it's okay b/c Ansley has a lot of dresses that fit her now.



I guess I'm ready to make my own coastal curtsy skirt!

Two Pillowcase Wonder

I made a few of these scarves last week and couldn't stop thinking about the delicious pleats. I wondered what they'd look like in dress form. . . .







Side view:



Dress (and Ansley) in motion:





Want to make one? (Mine turned out pretty large for my average to short sized 21 month old).

I used two full sized jersey knit pillowcases from my stash (they might actually be the same size as queen pillowcases, since queen beds are only about six inches wider than full beds), a dress or shirt that fits your wearer well (preferably one with a similar amount of stretch), and usual sewing stuff (matching thread, pins, seam ripper, sewing machine, etc).

1. If the edges of the pillowcase are a bit wonky and/or if you want the extra three or four inches, unpick the top seam of one pillowcase.





2. Use your existing shirt or dress to make a pattern for the bodice at the top of the pillowcase (the part you just unpicked), adding your seam allowance. I added about an inch on each side of my dress and drew it on the fabric with pencil. You might want to do it the "real" way by making a pattern and using appropriate marking tools. Never made a pattern? Check out Dana's awesome tutorial. In this [awful!] picture, the sleeves are tucked back so I can draw the curve of the bodice/top of the sleeve. (any advice on how to fix these seriously washed out/weirdly shaded pictures?)



3. Make a pattern for your sleeves and cut out the sleeves from your other pillowcase. I positioned the outer edge of the sleeve on a fold I made in the pillowcase and chose to use the finished existing seam of the pillowcase as the bottom of my sleeve. Cut two sleeves.



4. Trim excess scraps towards the top of both pillowcases. Starting at the bottom (the end that's sewn shut) of the pillowcase, pin pleats, following the directions in the scarf tutorial. Remember to pin both layers. To help keep the pleats approximately the same length, I alternated between pinning pillowcases- ie I pinned the one on the right, then the one on the left. Then I pinned the one on the left and tried to copy the same distance on the right.



Notice they aren't the same length at the top opening. (which is the bottom of the picture. Sorry). It's okay- I just trimmed them later.

5. Sew the bodice pieces together, right sides together (rst), at the top shoulder seam and the side seams. I used a little zigzag to allow for some stretch in the knit fabric.

6. Sew the sleeves, rst.

7. Carefully pin the sleeve so the right side of the sleeve is pinned to the wrong side of the bodice and sew. Repeat for the other sleeve.

8. Sew one pleated panel of the skirt. I sewed five lines but in hindsight wish I'd sewn six or seven. I switched to a straight stitch for this part. Repeat for the other panel.

9. Line up the closed portion of the pillowcase (the bottom), rst. Do your best to line up each pleat as you go. Sew on both sides. (I used a small zigzag stitch again). Go slow! You have to sew through a lot of fabric and don't want it to get caught in your presser foot- ahem. Anyway, trim the excess fabric on the outside of the seam, if you have any. Be careful not to cut your seam. The beauty of knit it it won't fray so you don't have to finish it. You just made the skirt portion. (and the sun went down).



10. At the top of your skirt portion, sew a basting/gathering stitch. Use a straight stitch, not a zigzag. Do not backstitch, as you want your bobbin thread loose. The longest stitch my machine has is a 4. If you're a bit more cautious, sew a second basting stitch (in case the first one breaks).

11. Gather the skirt portion so it's the same width as your bodice. I tried to line up the side seams from the skirt with the side seams from the bodice.

12. Pin the skirt to the bodice, rst. Carefully sew them together. I used a zigzag stitch here too. Trim any excess bulk outside of your seams.



13. Finish the collar in a method of your choosing. I haven't decided if I want to fold it down and hem it or if I want to use contrasting fold over elastic. What do you think?






Linked here!