Recent sewing

In an unprecedented occurrence, the kids' Christmas outfits were completed before Thanksgiving. This will probably never happen again. My only stipulation in picking out the patterns and fabric was "must be easy". I chose a lime green corduroy embroidered with reindeer. Caroline got a very big-girl skirt (can't wait to make some of these for spring/summer). Helen got a jumper. And Peter got a Johnny. I was really enthusiastic about these projects because they were each unique. I'm fairly certain the girls will be able to wear theirs again next Christmas. Peter, however, will not and that makes me a little sad.

In non-Christmas sewing, I finished 3 easy daygowns for my dear friend Nell, who recently delivered her first babies - triplets! She is awesome. The girls are identical twins and I thought two unique gowns would make telling them apart a little bit easier. I did some shadow embroidery (my favorite part!) to coordinate with the trim. This is my favorite style of infant daygown - poly-cotton blend for no ironing, buttons in the front for easy on and off, no fussy collar or itchy trim. I hope Mom, Dad, Camille, Ann Fisher, and Rob love them, too.

 

Summer outfits

I needed some fun sewing after spending so much time on the flower girl dress. I picked out a blue floral print that coordinated with a blue linen gingham. For Peter's, I used Creations by Michie's romper pattern, made in the linen. And the girls got Michie's suntop with shorts. I used the white yoke to display some embroidery. After using so many bullion flowers on the white dress, I decided to go ahead and use more bullions. I think it's safe to say that I am proficient at the bullion stitch. The girls got bullion violets and Peter got a bullion dragonfly. Peter's outfit is big for him, which makes me hopeful that it might still fit next spring and summer.

THE dress

After some encouragement from my biggest fans (Kevin and Caroline), I decided to enter my white heirloom dress in the Delta Fair. To my surprise, it won first in its section (adult or child heirloom item). It also won Best in Show for its category (French heirloom sewing). I had no idea whether it had won or not, so it was a lot of fun to find it in the Best of Show display case. I was already so pleased with the dress. This is just icing on the already-frilly cake!

The details

I had so much fun making Caroline's flower girl dress. I loved every bit of the process - planning the design, selecting the lace and fabric, picking out the embroidery pattern, constructing the dress and lace bands, drafting the slip. I took my time with this project and it was well worth the time and effort. I documented some of the process it took to get to the finished dress.

I had been thinking about what kind of dress I wanted to make for almost a year before I made my final decisions. The "problem" with heirloom sewing is that the choices are endless! I bought all of my fabric and laces in January of this year and began work almost immediately. I chose to borrow an out-of-print (vintage, I suppose?) Children's Corner pattern called "Grace". I wanted a pattern that would showcase a lot of embroidery because I love to embroider.

Looking at the lace and experimenting with embroidery design options

 

Go big or go home. I opted for a more intricate design. I was glad I did.

I used tape, a window, and a water-soluble pen to mark the design on the dress back, front, and sleeves.

Practice equals consistency with embroidery. Here I'm working on my bullion stitches (in green).

Slowly but surely, it's getting done. Sometimes I was sure I was crazy for choosing something with so. much. embroidery. But if I had 5 minutes, I'd sit down and make a few stitches. I brought it with me in carpool line. Most of it got done while watching TV with Kevin.  I couldn't believe it when I took my last stitch. There might have been cheering and a happy dance.

Marking how much to cut (yikes) off the top of the lace edging

Slow and steady is the key to joining lace. I couldn't believe how smoothly this part went. I kept thinking, "I'm doing it! It's working!"

This day I had a little helper who wanted a project of her own. A yarn needle, some thread, and a pack of wooden beads kept her occupied for a very long time.

I also had to make some significant cuts (yikes again) into the sleeves for a strip of embroidered insertion. This sleeve is ready for the gathered lace edging.

Speaking of gathered lace edging, I prefer to attach it by hand.

This is one of the last steps - attaching the lace border to the bottom of the dress. I measured Caroline and marked the dress in January. I mistakenly did not have Caroline try on the dress in May before sewing this band on and cutting the fabric. Caroline had grown almost an inch! Luckily, it didn't look too short. I had some bad dreams about it being too short. Lesson learned.

Almost done! I couldn't wait to soak that blue marker off!

I used the dress pattern to customize a slip for this dress specifically. I finished the arm and neck edges with a tiny hand-sewn French rolled seam.

I chose not to do buttons and buttonholes on the back placket. Instead, I used a vintage Victorian bar pin. It got lost in the graduation craziness. I didn't feel too sad about it because it wasn't expensive, nor was it a family heirloom. I need to get some little beauty pins.

I starched and ironed this thing 4 times before graduation! Kevin said the whole house smelled like starch. That fabric was stiff!

I couldn't be happier with the finished dress. It was a really special moment for me when Caroline put on her dress for the first time. It fit her perfectly (except for the tiny length issue) and I felt like the delicate details of the dress reflected her sweet personality. Caroline was so pleased with it and said she felt like a princess wearing it. I thought she looked absolutely beautiful!

So that's the diary of my first big heirloom sewing project. It sounds crazy, but I'm already looking forward to the next one!

Easter outfits

I know! It's been almost a month since Easter. I just today took pictures of the girls in their dresses.

For the girls' dresses, I used a Bonnie Blue pattern called "Jenna Leigh". It's a wrap dress that buttons in the back. I've made this dress a couple of times before (my goodness - Helen was little!), but hadn't done the smocked yoke version. I'm hoping this floral print will make a good transition into the fall and winter months.

For my sweet baby boy's outfit, I made a bubble (Maja's Heirlooms). The pattern has 2 inches of smocking, which takes no time at all. I decided to mix some embroidery with my smocking and created a little bullion stitch bunny. I'm completely obsessed with how cute the bunny is. It's a Peter Rabbit for my Peter!

I had so much fun putting this boy outfit together. Isn't it adorable? I love it. I'm so happy there are more little boy outfits in my future!

And it just wouldn't be a photo shoot at our house without some drama and silliness.

Pumpkin dresses

I love to sew. You'd be frightened by how many of my thoughts are about what I am sewing or what I'd like to sew. My sewing time is a bit limited these days. While making a red and green dress smocked with Santas would be fun, it's just not very practical. I try to make dresses that will last several seasons. That's not easy to do with baby clothes, since babies grow so quickly, but the girls are at an age where I can add extra length to the hem and they can wear the dresses for a year or more.

Last year I made green tattersall dresses that were finished just in time for Christmas. I sewed two buttons on the front of each dress and embroidered a Christmas tab that buttons on and off. Here's a picture of Caroline's.

I also had a friend machine embroider the girls' monograms on some bibs that I made. This is just a generic look for any season of the year.

So now it's time to debut the fall look for the green dresses. I embroidered pumpkins on the new tabs.

I'm very happy with the fall look. The Christmas tabs are ready to be buttoned on right after Thanksgiving!

Peter: 2 months

You are surprising. Nothing about your life thus far has been expected. We didn't expect to have a third baby. We certainly didn't expect to have a boy. I never expected that you wouldn't hurry into the world like your sisters did. I'm so very thankful that God's plans for us far exceed our expectations.

Your sisters adore you. And nothing entertains you longer than your sisters' antics and silliness. I can't wait for you to start laughing out loud at them.

Your little head is so round and perfect and fuzzy. You are a beautiful baby. We sit around and stare at you.

You are a snuggly baby. Daddy always wants to know how I get anything done around the house because you are so fun and easy to hold. The truth is, the housework gets left undone many days because I spend them holding you. It's an easy decision.

You love your Daddy. He knows just how to hold you that makes you feel safe and secure. His arms cradle you and you are instantly soothed.

You love your Mommy, too. Other mommies told me I would love having a boy. They were right. I'm very enamored with you.

You are my best eater, but my worst sleeper. That's not always a good combination. The first few weeks with you were hard. Really hard. Several of those early nights we saw you every hour and a half to two hours. It was exhausting. Things are moving in the right direction now. You are up once - usually around 2 - and then we can convince you to sleep until 6 or 6:30.

I was concerned in those early days that you would not be the easy-going, laid-back baby we needed. You don't cry nearly as much as you used to and we can almost always identify why you are fussy. You are becoming a very easy baby. We are always driving somewhere - school, church, errands. I'm so lucky that you are content in your carseat.

You love to be swaddled. You are strong, so we had to devise a "super swaddle" to keep you tucked in for longer periods of time. Daddy calls it "maximum security prison".

Your smile is easy and so very sweet. We get to see a lot of it these days. It melts my heart every single time.

You love being sung to. Your favorites are "You are My Sunshine" and "I Love You a Bushel and a Peck". Sometimes you sing your own little songs back to me. Then my heart melts again.

Your eyes are big and bright and inquisitive. You are absorbing all the activity around you.

At two months, you weighed 12 pounds and were 24 inches long. You are long and skinny according to the charts. Just like the girls were. You cried for 10 seconds when you got your vaccinations. You were perfectly fine once I picked you up. You are brave. 

We are so glad you are here, little Peter. We are so excited to learn about you and see who you are becoming. You are a perfect addition to our family and I already can't imagine what we did before you came into our lives. We love you very, very much.