My sewing machine came home from the repair shop JUST IN TIME for me to stitch up the March Project in my Carefree Clothes for Girls Sew-Along. :-) The Blouse with Crocheted Doily Trim.
I tried to finish as much in the pattern as possible ahead of time -- gathering, cutting, pinning -- so that I would only have the stitching left to do.
I even pulled out the Snørgaffel from Norway. Hey....when you don't have a sewing machine, making your own cording for the button loop doesn't seem that outrageous....
There was one yard of Nani Iro gauze fabric in my stash, and I had wide lace trim from The Cloth House in London. I made the bias-tape binding out of some fabric dyed experimentally with blueberry juice ;-) awhile ago. I almost did a cartwheel when I saw how the colors matched....
I decided to leave the bottom hem "frayed" like the pattern suggests. I felt like it connected to the fraying on the sleeve caps.
The fraying edges are still a question mark for me, and I'll be interested to see how I feel after a few washings/wearings. I'm not so loyal to the iron, after all...and the "deconstructed" look seems to depend on pressed finishing. We'll see how it fits in to the naturally-occuring ;-) deconstructed vibe we already have going.
Speaking of naturally-occuring -- I added stitching and seed beads along one side of the collar (tarnishy gold and silver) because I was a little uneven on the lace placement, and half the collar has slightly more pattern than the other. This was the most serendipitous part of the whole project: I would have never put those beads there otherwise, but am now really happy about them. Really happy. :-) I like how they remind me of little vintage-y machine bits and at the same time, they give the blouse an old-cedar-chest look.
Here, the front view (along with the neighbor's roof.... ;-))
In conclusion, that blouse would have probably been my last pick upon first glance in the book. But now, I love it. love it. love it. Which has to be one of the very best parts of a Sew-Along, after all -- giving all the patterns a fair shot and discovering the ones I'd have never known, otherwise.
:-)
8 comments:
Your blouse looks awesome! I love the fabric you picked out. I am almost finished with mine. Just have to finish the embroidery today. Your entry link is perfect too. Thank you for joining me on my sew along!
I can't wait to see this on Eliza. It is so lovely! How totally fun for both of you. Please post a picture of Eliza wearing this. :)
Love it!
I know how busy you really are, but I'm so glad you make time to do sewing like this...Some of my fondest memories are of making you little things...when Eric had problems I had to phase off, of course...but it was hugely important in my life to have made little things for you that we both loved. Your tiny raincoat when you were first walking, (with the ducks)...and your little pink parka with the fur ruff...Good times...Sweet, fun, good times..
I am really enjoying the "Sew Along" project. :-) It's perfect for me right now -- like a small and friendly therapy amid the normal chaos of each week.
Mom - too bad we're not in an arctic climate right now -- I think Eliza would like a pink parka ;-) too, don't you?
Your blouse is so cute!! I just found your blog via the sew along- Congrats on your win!
Thank you, Rebecca :-) - this is the first time I've "outed" myself with the blog. It has been pretty much for Grandparents living half a world away.....but, I just couldn't resist the Sew-Along. So, they will be reading some Carefree stories mixed in with kid stories now.
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