Simplicity 4520.Toddler's dress with matching handbag. Very Sex and the City.

A bit off topic, but made the cutest dress for a 2 year old whose Mum I used to work with and now lives in Dubai.

Thanks to Tanya for the pattern.  I love being able to share the love  -  pattern wise. 

We got so excited when we saw the handbag that matches the outfit!  Talk about an ensemble!

I pinned it to the dress for the picture (I am tragic)!

and although the pattern had a zipper down the back I changed this to buttons so I could bag the lining and finish off quickly.  Hey, still looks gorgeous.

Jacqueline, I miss you, and big kisses to Carmel.

Lore
xx

New Look 6933 - Girls cape

My daughter has been invited to a ghost party at Quarantine Station.   What to wear?

hmm

After a bit of brainstorming we decided that any great costume may end up being covered up as its late at night and they have to wear something warm.  So how about a huge cape?  Black ?  With red lining ??

 

I posted this to pattern review:  

Pattern Description: Girls dress and cape. I made the cape.

Pattern Sizing: Multi size from 3 to 8. My daughter is 10 1/2 though, so I upsized and altered a little.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Its such a great cape - I couldnt have bought anything like it anywhere.

Fabric Used:Panne velvet. Lining is polyester.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I lengthened it as we were going for a floor length cape. I simply used 1/4 inch seams rather than the 1.5cm seams on the pattern. This upsized it big enough for my daughter. I stinged on the fabric and only bought 2.5 metres of velvet. I knew I was making it far longer than the pattern and even though I made a toile and measured it I got it a bit wrong. The inside facing is supposed to be the same fabric as the cape, but I just used black cotton from my stash.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?I'm sure I'll get a request to make it again from my happy customer (daughter)

Conclusion: Even though this pattern is out of print, I did find it still available on the internet. Its a great pattern for a fancy dress party.

We're loving twirling in it !

Isn't it a great cape?

Now I just have to hem it and finish off the armhole slits.   And make something nice for underneath!

l
x

PS This is the pattern:

Pattern love - Kwik Sew 2705 - dressing gowns (bathrobes) for kids

I've made this pattern a gazillion times and I just added a review to patternreview.com. (you may have to join... but if you're not a member already - why aren't you ?!   Its a great resource for getting tips on commercially available patterns.  Sometimes I've looked at the results of peoples attempts and said 'um, I don't think so!')   But this is definitely not one of those patterns:

I mean bathrobes aren't high art, but they are functional and my kids love 'em.  I have made this out of fleece:

and satin

and assorted cotton prints / broderie anglaise... unfortunately no pix.  Made it in one of those awful slippery hologrammatic sequin shimmery fabrics.  Now THAT was a disaster!   Daughter who requested it hated it and it was like sewing deflated balloons.  NEVER AGAIN!

But if you've got any young children buy this pattern now and trace it off however you like to do it.  Kwik Sew patterns don't come on that flimsy brown tissue that every dressmaker has learnt to despise.   No way, these suckers come on full on hard white paper that is meant to be traced.  They know you want to use this pattern over and over again or their very reason for being is called into question.  That's why I love Kwik Sew so much.  No multi sizes like 4,5,6, then 6,7,8 tthen 8,9,10 then 10,11,12, then 12, 13 14 for them.  Nuh uh!  You get the whole lot on one pattern 4 (toddler) through to 14 (young lady or it happens, my very petite favourite fiend Ngaire).   Now that's value for money.

Personally - I trace onto sew in interfacing.  Its stiff and sits on the fabric nicely to rotary cut around the pattern pieces over and over.  I do this with all my patterns.  What if you cut into size 10 and you're a 12 in that pattern?  Too late, you've cut off the variations.... drama.    I bought a 50 metre roll of the cheapest nastiest interfacing for $50 from mrecht.  You don't want anything hard to work with.  This stuff is stiff, easy to see through and INDESTRUCTIBLE!!     

But I digress.

The pattern lasts until 14 years old and [maybe] too cool to wear a dressing gown that mum made.  I doubt that though, you can do this in so many gorgeous fabrics - unlike your choices in the shops.

It occurs to me now that a glamorous version for a young lady to wear would be this done in a red silk with black silk bindings and cuffs?!  Oh my girls are growing up... cue adolescent tantrum.  Well hopefully 2 more years before then.

l
x

Enough sewing... lets bake biscuits, ahem, cookies

Vegan cookies that is...

My favourite cupcake book of all time has been joined by a cookie book: Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar.  So I'm going to turn all yankee and call 'em cookies for this post.

Anyway,  I already had picked out Mexican Chocolate Snickerdoodles to make 'cos they sound unreal.  But Daughter2 chose NYC cookies.  The picture looked like a Neenish Tart and I thought - OH NO I hate them!  But thankfully it just looked like one.

Its some little flat pancake of a biscuit with icing on the back.
OMG they smells so good.  This is the three stages of biscuit [can't help myself!] making: dough on the tray/ finished baking / flipped to cool.

  And the book has been christened with my first annotation.   

Time for icing.  But thanks to impatience and stupidity - it's too thick.  And far too sweet.   Another annotation required.

And as ever, kids get off on baking. 

Verdict:  Yum.

Hubs enjoying one with a coffee.  And Slinky eyeing off the activity wondering if its anything she'd like.  Alas, no.

So if you fancy some great bikkies away from the norm, and with the added bonus of being dairy free and animal friendly, come to my house!   I'll invite you to share a cuppa and an NYC black and white cookie.

Stay tuned for the snickerdoodles...

Kanzashi flowers - filth wizardry style !

Thanks to this fantastic craft blog  filthwizardry we made some cute kanzashi flowers to alleviate this boring rainy [and cold] Boxing Day and to brighten the house.

our kitchen towel was the wrong kind :( and sagged

but the baby wipe ones were UNREAL

 

I had to do me a frangipanni - even though its rainy and cold - it is supposed to be summer after all

Still have to finish these off with beads/buttons in the centre as they are damp and I just couldnt wait to share.  Get out there and make some.  But use the filthwizardry tip and staple without the extra fold - I mean this is a quick kids craft.  This tip makes the whole process quick and problem free!

We had great fun, and I can see myself making heaps of the frangipannis and making a garland.

YAY

Bring on the sunshine

l
x

Size 8 skirt.

We did this yesterday, daughter 2 asked me in the morning if she could sew something up... We decided on a skirt and she traced a kwik sew skirt.

I'm actually surprised I have such a simple pattern, maybe I got it for the top!   Anyway, we were off:

At the machine

Disaster strikes when snipping threads

 

So finished by mum

Still an achievement. Pattern traced, fabric laid out and cut out and side seams sewn.  More than half her own work.

Wore it to a birthday dinner for friends, but unfortunately ended up spilling food on it halfway through.  oops

l