Carefree Chemise and Headscarf

July's project in the Carefree Sewalong For Girls was the Sweet Chemise....which was a new venture for me, since it required modifying an existing pattern in the book.

Just follow the diagram, follow the instructions, measure and draw your own lines!  Patternmaking made simple....irresistible. 

I'd had big plans to use leftover muslin for this -- and was basking in how wonderful it would be to make my daughter this 'old fashioned' undergarment -- why, she could have several!  It would all be so vintage and so wonderful.   

Wrong.    The experimental patternmaking turned out to be a lot more complicated than I thought it would be.  The muslin ended up being used for a failed first-try.  Plus, it was way too thin.....and Eliza didn't like it as much as I did for her collection of  "unmentionables" -- ha ha!

Linen / cotton blend to the rescue then -- this fabric choice turned the pattern straight into a summer blouse.

I used old fabric from a previously-sewn Nani Iro skirt for bias strips to trim the neck, arms and lower edges. 

Three buttons on the front & the signature Carefree hand-stitching in silver.

There was a small piece of yellow flower ribbon from a scrapbooking pack, which I stitched around the neck.  The chemise was supposed to be trimmed entirely with lace - and only lace - but I try to avoid stepping into 'scratchy' territory. 

I had a long-saved button from Oslo -- it means "darling" -- which I sewed onto the back of the blouse.    Also there is a tab on the one side....

... I have been wanting to try something like this for awhile.  It's an extra piece of gauze and one of the little trim flowers sewn on. 

I'm happy with how it all worked out....after a second go at the drawing board, this one is roomy enough I might even make another ;-).  

There was also an optional July project this month from the book: 

Babushka-Style Scarf

For this, I used a fat quarter of periwinkle fabric from Basic Grey, thin taupe lace from Hancock Fabrics in Chesapeake and a small strip of Indian Sari Silk from The Cloth House in London.  I stitched it all together in about 30 minutes, and used a piece of grey foldover elastic attached to each end, instead of lace ties.  There is a free pattern for this headscarf on the publisher's site.

The foldover elastics makes it more of a headband.   It also makes it more likely to be worn...

....although, she might be distracted here by the bubbles.  :-)