Key Hole Circle Dress

Nothing ignites my creative fire like scrolling through a Free People catalogue.

I love all the color, the billowing shape, the romantic touches, and the exotic flavor that the designers and editors pour into each edition. 

However, like most twenty-four-somethings, I cannot drop upwards of $150 on one of their lovely dresses. As much as it pains me to abstain, that money has better places it can go. Like my savings account, or the fund for an imaginary French riviera vacation.

When times like this occur, I sigh and snap the cover of the catalogue shut. Then run right to the fabric store. 

Some of my more flamboyant creations have come from one too many hours of Free People induced fever, like my Shibori Goddess Gown. Today's feature is a little more simple. 

A few months ago I fell in love with one of their fall creations, the Dynasty Dress. It is a simple piece, just a scrap of jersey cotton and a lovely large keyhole front. I just had to make my own. 

I think the fabric for this dress cost me all of $15. Bought from Joanns, it was thin, drapey, bubblegum pink that screamed female. I used a McCalls pattern for the body of the dress, altering it a bit to create the key hole front and gathering at the tops of the sleeves.

I love it when a project comes together so seamlessly. This dress is the perfect amount of floaty, feminine, and casual. I absolutely love the pattern as well and plan to indulge in many more renditions of this dress. My next one will be floral. I think.

I love this dress to the moon and back. The single drawback is its body-hugging, curve-enhancing shape. You definitely can't pig out on salsa and queso and rock this baby, it is very unforgiving. 

Oh well, c'est la vie. 

***

Christmas is for the cats

A bit late on this post, I know.

Christmas is behind us, along with (gasp!) the year of 2014. It is only seems fitting that I glance back at the creations of that year and share the odd and silly things I have made.
At the top of this list is my cat patterned dress.

Cats. Dress. Some would say they belong together.

This dress began when I stumbled across this fabric at Hancock's. Cats?! I could't believe it. I knew I would have to make something with it. I was very inspired by Mod Cloth and their lovely vintage looks. This dress is a Frankenstein of modern and classic, accentuated with black bits of piping and peppered with tiny orange kitties.

The dress is actually the combination of three different patterns. I used the pleated skirt of one, the button front top of another, and finally finagled a key hole back from the drawing board. It came together very nicely and I just love the open back detailing. I may have to make another dress similar to this one. 

I have to say that the most challenging aspect of this dress was the piping. I can never seem to get it lay along the seam cleanly. Possibly more you-tube videos are in my future. Something will have to give. If you have any good resources I would appreciate hearing about them!

And finally: a quick shot of my and the kitty that inspired it all. Say hey, Algernon.

Dress: self-made, flats: super bedraggled Steve Madden

Peter Pan Shift Dress

 As difficult as it is to believe, today is the first of December.

At last I can cover all things in glitter and eat cookies by the dozen without judgement. My heart longs for the festivities to begin, for the scent of eggnog and cinnamon to permeate the air, for snow to glisten in piles by the front door.

But.
This is Kentucky.

Therefore, on the last day of November when the winter spirit should be burgeoning forth, the weather turns balmy. Seventy degrees balmy, in fact.
At first I was tempted to scoff at the temps and grind my teeth a bit. But that is like looking a gift horse in the mouth. Instead, I donned my latest creation and skipped out doors to enjoy it.

This latest creation has to be one of my favorite pieces. Classic and flirty, a simple black shift dress with a peter pan collar and key hole back. I used only a single yard of black ponte de roma knit with a quarter of a yard of the same in white. The fabric I bought at Joanns and cost me a whopping total of $15. I did not use a pattern but instead traced the lines of another dress from my closet. It was so easy and turned out perfect. 

My sewing machine has this lovely stitch available that looks like little scallops. I couldn't resist, I had to edge the sleeves and collar. It took a lot of trial and error to make it look uniform, but the effort was worth it. I also have to be choosey about what bra I wear with it, as the keyhole in the back is quite deep. 

Again, worth it. The dress makes me feel like a preppy pixie, chic but girlie. I love that I can toss on black tights and flats and wear it anywhere. All I need is some cold weather and I'll sweater this puppy up. With the weather as it is now, though, I am celebrating my last days of bare legs. 

Oh yeah. 

***

dress: self-made, shoes: ancient, beat-up Steve Maddens

What Not to do When Sewing a Coat

 Fall is officially in the air.
Actually, scratch that, winter is in the air. In typical Kentucky fashion, our weather gods elected to give us 2 weeks of gorgeous autumnal weather before unloading 40 degree days and snow flurries on trick-or-treaters. With these low temperatures I feel all the more motivated to crank out the winter coats on my sewing machine.

My latest creation is a dark green herringbone dress coat. It is lovely, a skirted dress coat with shiny brass buttons and a belted waist line. For this coat I used the McCalls M6800 pattern. I do not know if I will attempt to use this pattern again simply because I found it so tedious to assemble. The pattern said "easy," but apparently that wasn't the case for this chick. I was so excited when I bought this pattern, but have found the entire experience very challenging. 

I will admit that this is not the most shining example of my sewing prowess, but it was definitely a learning experience. For all those budding seamstresses out there, let me tell you that when you make a coat use WOOL. Use a nice heavy weighted fabric so that you do not have to be like me and add stiff interfacing to make up for the lack of body. I fell so in love the herringbone plaid fabric that I elected to work around it. Because of this my coat is very stiff, not very warm, has awkward bulky bits, and was immensely frustrating to sew.

Agh. The buttons pull funny and the bust makes me look like I am hiding a weapons harness underneath all that girth. Additionally, my lining material peaks out the bottom. So frustrating. 

In conclusion my final thought is this: wool for coats from here on out.

Holla. 

***

Coat: self-made, dress: ASOS

The Blue Ridge Pkwy

This past weekend was incredibly dreamy, involving all of my favorite things.
Open road.
Mountains.
Adventure.
Love.

Not to mention the howl of the flat six as Justin sped through winding roads festooned in a riot of colors.

The trip was spur-of-the-moment, planned in just a few days. Justin and I decided we needed to ride the Blue Ridge parkway and see what all the hype was about. He, of course, wanted to take the '83 911, a test of its mettle.We planned to spend a night with family, and one night in Asheville, NC.

We started from Louisville and headed east to my aunt and uncle's house in Mountain City, Tennessee. They live in the most glorious corner of the earth, against the south side of a mountain. On a clear day you can see all the way to North Carolina from their front porch, and a clear night makes the Milky Way visible to the naked eye.

The trees were just hitting their peak and seemed to change colors before our eyes as the weekend progressed. My aunt and uncle have the most glorious garden, growing everything from grapes to corn to mushrooms. They keep bees and harvest honey and take hikes to the top of the mountain behind their cabin. We were only able to stay one night, but it was so wonderful to catch up with family.

The next morning we hit the road with coffee in our bellies and a bag of candy corn in the glove compartment. We were going to take the Blue Ridge Parkway from Boone to Asheville, NC.

There was rain. There was fog. And there were incredibly stunning vistas.

 There is no greater felicity than this: to stand in swirling mountain air and look over the world. I don't think a king's ransom could buy such beauty. Every overlook that we stopped at was like a Christmas gift, each better than the last. The rain cleared up enough for us to take a hike to hidden waterfalls just off the parkway.

Yeah. We're cheesy. But it was the best.
We stopped off for coffee at an eclectic bookshop in Little Switzerland and dined in a restaurant on the edge of Mount Mitchell. Upon summiting Mount Mitchell, our whole world was enveloped in fog, making the day seem dark and late. It was like a page out of a Steven King novel. The temperature also dropped drastically, making it way to cold for me in my cut-offs.

Everything about Saturday was heavenly. From the panoramic views to the bustle of Asheville, every moment was golden. Justin and I drank navy grog and shared spaghetti and meatballs at Vinnie's and fell asleep with the rain dashing against our window and hum from the 911 still in our ears.

I still can't believe that I live only 5 hours from the parkway and had never been. It was just endless miles of smokey blue ridges and chilly air whipping through my hair. I cannot wait to go back.

Lady Lace

A few months back I found the most gorgeous white stretch lace fabric at JoAnns. I had no idea what I would make but I had to get it. Impulsively I bought 4 yards of it. Basically, I stocked up for life.

Stretch. Lace. With all that fabric the only thing that made sense was to craft a maxi dress. I was thinking bridal meets boho. I wanted something with tiers of lace-y goodness and a deep open back. Like all things white and stretchy this could easily turn trashy. My fingers were itching to get to work.

This dress ended up having two tiers of fabric and was lined in white jersey cotton. The back opening is unlined and has a lace trim detail. I will be honest, I did not use a pattern for this dress. I totally guesstimated with everything. It is a bear to get on. Not only are you not allowed to breathe while you pull it on, but you have to dislocate your shoulders in order to fit into it. So not my greatest achievement. And yet…it is so pretty. Feminine and whimsical, all floaty and goddess-like. I had a moment where I considered dip-dying the bottom edges of the two tiers in hot pink. It could still happen, but for the moment I am just living with it.

Lately I have been searching my mind for some special occasion on which I pull this baby out. Can't think of anything except a fancy dinner date. Obviously I need a larger social calendar. 

As a side note, I am so excited about my future projects. On the never-ending mental list of mine, I am planning for a shearling-lined bomber jacket, a peter-pan collared shift dress, and possibly a fur coat. Thoughts? Suggestions? Keep me posted.

***

dress: self made, necklace: vintage find

All Squared Away

I have such a sewing obsession. It is crazy, actually, the amount of dough I will gladly shell out for fabric. Comparatively, I wouldn't dream of spending the same on actual clothing. I justify and rationalize my expenses as investments in a skill, in a hobby. Right?

Right.

Anyway, the other month I spotted the most lovely of lovely staple dresses on Urban Outfitters. This square-necked beauty gave me fashion heart ache in the best of ways. It had to be mine, but of course I could't just buy it. So I made something in exchange.

I incorporated the parts that I loved the most from the Urban dress and popped them into my own. This dress has the same clean and foxy square neckline, tufted sleeves, and a floaty circle skirt. The fabric is a sweater-soft jersey cotton with tiny black and gray stripes. You have got to love jersey cotton, this dress only took 2 hours to construct and its fabulous. 

Until I made this piece, I did not own a single dress with a square neckline. I feel like I should remedy that mistake by making a ton of these babies. I also love that I did not have to use a pattern to make it. The simplicity of the design, the effortless prettiness harkens coffee dates, pumpkin picking, and long walks through orchard farms. Despite the 85 degree October days, I hold tight to my dreams of foggy mornings and cool nights that mean fall has really arrived.

***

Dress: self-made, shoes: Steve Madden, hat: thrifted