Pink Floral Dress

 Here is a dress that I made earlier in '17.  I can't remember which month it was.  I picked out the fabric from Joanns and used the Odette Pattern from VFT.  This dress kicked my butt. It was the first time I used the burrito method and lets just say my seam ripper and I are were well acquainted in the making of this dress.  I do love the was this dress turned out.  The pattern calls for it fully lined, but I didn't have that much fabric so I just lined the bodice.  These are the only pictures I have, so you can't see that the back is a keyhole opening with ties.  There are also ties on the sides.  They are adorable, but kind of annoying because they get untied fairly often. As much as I love this dress, I'm not sure I have the courage to make another.  It was a very time-consuming dress to make.  Here is girlie wearing her dress in Hawaii!

Matching Cousin Dresses

 Every summer, I make matching dresses for Eesa and her cousin.  This year's dress was made from inexpensive (but still nice and pretty) Walmart fabric using the Cosette pattern from VFT. I think they turned out adorable! The dress looks so pretty when worn with pearls.  I also made their dollys matching dresses.  I wish I would have taken a picture of the doll dresses.  And pictures the back of the dress too, because those ruffles on the back are gorgeous! Girlie gets lots of compliments while wearing this dress. Here are the beautys in their pretty new dresses:

Moana Outfit

   

I made this Moana outfit back in June '17.  I made the pants first, with no intention of making the top. I just liked the trim! I used the Lilly shorts pattern from VFT.  She wore them with regular ol' shirts for a while until I made her the top. 
I made the top using the now discontinued Fiona pattern from VFT.  I used plain cheap-o broadcloth with the same trim, just trimmed shorter.  I trimmed the trim, haha.  Anyway, the design was done using fabric paint and freezer paper transfer.  It turned out quit well.  Eesa has only worn it once, I'm thinking about selling the top.  Here she is modeling her outfit:

Red & Teal Dress

Here's another knit dress, made back in April '17.  I think I used the VFT Maisie dress pattern, sized down to a 4 do accommodate the stretch of knit fabric. I used all thrifted fabric, so I probably paid about $3 to make this dress, yay for me!  I love how this dress turned out.  It is perfection.  Girlie wears it a lot, and unfortunately has somehow got a few holes in the bottom ruffle.  Grrr. 

Pink Harlow Top

And yet another great Violette Field Thread (VFT) pattern: The Harlow Top! It features a fitted top, a ruffled neckline, and a peplum skirt.  I've only made one but I'd like to make more.  Eesa wears this shirt quite often, mostly because her favorite color is pink!  I used about a yard or so of pink Walmart fabric I found in the remnant section for a couple of bucks. Here is Eesa modeling her Harlow Top.  Isn't it so pretty on her?!  I love it!  I made it back in April '17.  It was almost too big (I made a size 6), but she's grown into it since:
 

June Dresses

Here are some dresses I made using VFT's June dress pattern.  Oh how I love this pattern! The dress sews up fairly quick and I love how cute and unique it is! I think the open back is just gorgeous.  I even bought the 18" doll pattern so Eesa's dolly can match her! I've made Shimmer & Shine and two Shopkins dresses.  The pockets are perfect for storing Teeny Genies or Shopkins. Here are all of the fun June dresses that I made early summer '17:

Shimmer & Shine.

 Shopkins!

 Dolly Shopkins!

Isn't the back just the sweetest? Perfect for keeping her cool in the summer.

The three June dresses that I've made.  The pink Shopkins dress was made for her cousin.

  Eesa Modeling her Shopkins dress.  It must have been silly sock day!

Girlie in her Shimmer and Shine June dress.  It's shorter than the Shopkins dress only because I didn't have enough fabric to make it the length the pattern asked for.  I actually like the shorter length too.

Swimsuit

 I made my first swimsuit! Usually I just buy girlie's swimsuits since I don't want to deal with buying expensive dancewear material and buying yet another pattern.  But since I had about a 1/2 yard each of silver and blue shiny, stretchy material that was thrifted (so practically free) AND I had a free swimsuit pattern from this site, I thought I'd give it a go. I didn't have enough in the length to make a one-piece like the pattern asked for, so I made it a two-piece instead.  The top turned out great, but I had to add a little section on the bottoms so it would fit over her booty.  I guess I didn't cut them high enough in the back, whoops.  I lined the entire swimsuit with some cheap-o knit fabric from Walmart. The swimsuit came together easier than expected.  Except my double needle fought with me the entire time, as usual.  I need to look into getting a different double needle, one intended for knits. 
I bought a mermaid tail pattern for $1 at Hobby Lobby and made her a tail out of it.  It was pretty quick and easy sew and Elisa loves it!
I actually bought a swimsuit pattern from VFT over the summer.  I wouldn't bother making a  swimsuit if it weren't for the fact that Elisa has a very, very looooong torso (aka girth).  Like, its two sizes longer than most girls her age.  But she's still skinny, or at least normal otherwise.  So it's really really hard to find her a one-piece that fits her properly.  It either hangs off her shoulders or its giving her a wedgie.  So I figured I could make her one that fits if I get around to it.  Otherwise, she just wears two-pieces like this:

Vest & Pant Set

I made this awesome outfit back in May.  I had it in my head that I wanted to make a vest set for Elisa.  Despite me having 50 or so patterns, I decided to make something that I actually did not have a pattern for, go figure.  So....I pretty much drafted the vest from scratch.  I didn't have enough pink fabric to make a full back for the vest, so instead of being patient and waiting til I had more pink like a sane person would, I made the back out of ties and knots.  Which I actually think looks kinda cool, but I think a real back wouldn't slip off the shoulders as much. For the pants, I did use a pattern--the Lucy Pants pattern from VFT.  I also made the shirt using a basic peasant top pattern, using white broadcloth.  I also used pink and white broadcloth for the trim, and some cute jean material with shiny flecks of rainbow color which I found melt under the heat of an iron, haha whoops! The jean material was thrifted, so I didn't spend much making this experimental outfit.  Here she is in her outfit.  She actually likes wearing it, which surprised me because I kinda assumed she wouldn't touch it since its...not your usual outfit. Here are the pics:

Custom Order: Pinkalicious!

I usually only have a few items on my Esty shop, so I was surprised when someone actually found my wee wittle shop. I was asked to create a dress like Pinkalicious wears in the books.  I used the VFT Pepper pattern, sans sleeves.  I even added a little bit of stiff tulle to fill out the skirt. A cute, simple dress. I love the way it turned out:

Ahh! It's the ghost dress!

Aww, so cute!!

Christmas Dress #3

Another Christmas dress from 2016:

I had almost 2 yards of this cute Christmas fabric leftover from Elisa's Peppermint Swirl Christmas dress, so I decided to make one for my niece, too! I don't have the picture of my niece wearing it, but it sure looked cute on her!  I love the bell sleeves.  The ruffle at the bottom took waaay too  much time; I don't think I'll be doing much of these ruffles in the future.  

Christmas Dress #2

 Here is another dress I made for Eesa for Christmas 2016. I found this plaid green and red fabric at the thrift store about a year ago.  I saw it and knew I needed it and exactly what I wanted to do with it!  It was just perfect for a Christmas dress--the right colors and just the right amount of shine!
I made Elisa a knee-length dress.  Even though I didn't have the pattern (yet) I modeled it after Violette Field Thread's Pepper dress pattern, using the same free bodice pattern I had for a couple of other projects.  I just WISH there would have been more fabric so the dress could have a fuller skirt!  I think there was only about a yard or fabric.  That's the trouble with buying fabric from the thrift store.  Still, it turned out adorable!  She wore it with some white knee-highs and black ankle boots, so more of a casual look.  So cute.  I paid not much more than $1 for this, not bad!! I don't have a picture of her wearing it, but here are a couple of pictures.

The Peppermind Swirl Dress--Christmas Dress #1

 I've had my eye on the Candy Castle's Peppermint Swirl Dress for a loooong time.  It finally went on sale and I snatched it up! I realize it's been almost a year ago that I made this dress, but better late than never!
Oh, how I love the flounces on the skirt.  I'm not a huge fan of the bodice though.  But the twirl-fullness of the skirt! Ahhhh! This skirt pattern has my heart! It took a lot of fabric, and there was a LOT of sewing and serging (not much pinning, thankfully), but it was so worth it.  I used broadcloth for the stripes. I know some people complain about broadcloth, but I loved using it for this pattern.  Broadcloth is light (so it didn't weigh the flounces down), it doesn't wrinkle much, and it comes in a nice variety of colors. I plan on making girlie a rainbow dress (using a bodice pattern from VFT though).  I've got a couple pieces cut out but I haven't really started yet. Here is her dress for Christmas '16.  It was a big hit!

Hmm...yep I messed up the back of the bodice somehow. And I don't like how teeny tiny the flutter sleeves are. 

Floral Knit Dress

Another adorable dress That I made back in April.  I purchased this knit floral fabric at Hobby Lobby.  I bought a yard's worth and I was just barely able to squeeze out this dress.  I wish it were just a couple inches longer, but she wears it with capri pants so it is more of a tunic.
I don't work with knits all that often, so I am pleased with how this dress turned out. It was my first time using stay tape (i.e. clear elastic).  It added a few minutes to the project, but I like that I don't have to worry about the dress stretching out of shape, and I think it made the dress easier (as in the knit was more stable) to work with. 
I did make and oopsies--but it turned out to be an oopsies for the better!  I meant to do the burrito roll method to encase the seams of the bodice, but instead I did it the regular way, and it was then when I went to turn the bodice right side out that I realized my mistake--I pretty much sewed the bodice closed so that I couldn't turn it ride side out! So I had to make a slit right down the middle of the back.  I then proceeded to make a corset closure instead! It took a little extra time but it sure makes the back of the dress adorable!  I used lace from Walmart for the trim and the corset tie. 
Girlie prefers knit fabric over woven, so she never complains when she puts this dress on. And how could she? This dress is so sweet and pretty, just like her! 

Jean and Lace Dress

 Here is a dress I made in April '17.  It is one of my favorites! I didn't own an exact pattern for this dress, so I had to combine a couple: Piper from VFT and a boy's oxford shirt pattern (from Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop).  The lace, lace trim, and jean material were all thrifted.  I used white broadcloth to line the skirt, so this dress was really cheap to make! However, I had to go out and buy a brown belt for this dress.  She wears this dress with cowboy boots.  She gets a lot of compliments whenever she wears it, and she wears it frequently.  I will be sad when she outgrows this dress! I love it on her!