Ikat Accordion Pleat Dress

On July 4th I went thrift shopping with a friend and found this awesome accordion pleated skirt originally from The Gap [1]. After a few days, though, I decided that this cotton, silk blend skirt was not for me and it ended up as sewing scraps.

                                                                               

Originally I was intending to use the Lisianthus Dress pattern by Melody Valerie Couture but it took a life of its own when I encountered issues due to my inexperience working with this type of fabric. But in the end I won.

 

  

Side detail

All in all, this dress made a great learning experience for me. There are some things I now know to look out for with fabrics that are light and fray very easily.

               

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Foot Notes

[1] I forgot to photograph the skirt before I took it apart but was able to find a picture of it through the magic of Google:

Image soure

Fable and her new Kaya doll

Fable is wearing... American Girl's Plaid Party Dress in the first set of pictures. In the last two pictures Fable is wearing a blue dress created by me, the shoes from Caroline's Birthday Dress, and the shirt from American Girl's retired Picnic Outfit (1998).

Cece's Colorful Clothes

So I chose to test out a few outfits on Cecile to see what colors look best on her. Cecile has a beautiful warm skin tone, so bright, vivid, rich colors really complement her appearance. I particularly like her in the blue color from Samantha's play dress (top left). I also think golds and metallics like the one from Saige's Sparkle dress (second row, left) work beautifully with her.

  

Latest Doll Addition!

I am very excited to say that I received my Cecile doll from American Girl/ the Jill's Deal and Steals offer. Despite the fact she arrived with a  crooked wig, I will be keeping her as-is. I think it suits her.

The past few days I have been tossing around potential names I'd like to use for her.  Petra is the current front runner (I've been on an Ender's Game kick).

Blue Birds in Flight Dress

Hello, hello! Unfortunately, I will be taking a break from sewing for a while. I will not have a a sewing machine at my disposal for a while but before that happens here is my latest dress design. The design is based off of a dress I took apart for the fabric.  It features 100% cotton fabric, a smocked back, sweetheart neckline, and adjustable straps.

I found the original dress at Kohl's and fell in love with the fabric. While creating the pattern for the smaller dress, I referenced American Girl's Molly's Birthday dress to figure out the paneling on the bodice, the hair ribbon was borrowed from Samantha's Cranberry Holiday dress, and the necklace and boots came from Saige's Sparkle dress. 

SO Chambray Sleeveless Dress

GOTY 2013: Saige's Sparkle Dress (mini review)

Today's post is about Girl of the Year 2013 Saige's Sparkle Dress.  It was one I couldn't decided if it belonged in my collection. Generally I go after outfit with multiple pieces like Saige's Sweater Outfit when I make purchases.  What really sold me on this was the necklace and gold boots.

Well the outfit arrived and wow was I surprised how much I loved it!  

I LOVE love love these boots.

AG also decided to add a layer with some tulle under the main dress and it was a very good choice.  the under layer helps give the overall look of the dress a better fullness and helps it hold its intended shape.

• The fabric is a very rich hot pink with deeper pink ribbons criss-crossing over the waist and around to the back closure and shiny gold dots spread across the front that look like iron-on appliqués.  The main color of the dress reminds me of AG's main color they use on packaging and such. 

• The boots are nice, shiny gold color that matches the dots with mini heels and velcro closures in the back. They feel well made and sturdy. Also, they have Saige's signature flower design embossed/ tooled/ engraved into the outer facing sides of the boots.

• The necklace is very cute.  I'm surprised AG made the necklace silver vs gold since the rest of the outfit has gold accents but I don't care. I think it looks good together, is a nice simple design featuring an oval with Saige's signature flower design engraved on it.

I am also please by the fact this dress was designed with an asymmetrical top. AG has released so many with the same looking neckline. Its like they are re-using similar patterns every year but with varying fabrics. Take the 2010 Petal Pink Outfit orlast year's GOTY Mckenna's Fancy Dress for examples.

I can't say that the neckline and overall design of Saige's Sparkle dress is 100% original from AG but its a nice variation they tend to use now and then. I guess it fits in with the phrase "if its not broken, don't fix it".

Fall Fashion Jump Start

With the fall coming up, I decided to get a head start on some wardrobe pieces for the fall season when cooler weather sets in.  The fall is my favorite season by far. I love the clothes that go with it, the temperature change, and the rich colors of the season.

All of the pieces for this outfit were created from Liberty Jane patterns (minus the shoes and necklace).  With a few alterations here and there. I made a few sewing hiccups but now i know what to look out for in the future such as making sure the jean vest panels are going the right direction!

When sewing it is always a good idea to double check things before you officially sew it together. 

I have had numerous occasions where I had to pull out the seam ripper and pull apart something I

 just did.  -_-

 The shirt Addy is wearing was up-cyled from an old, gently used, plain, white tank top. After sewing it together i added iron-on gem stones for a final touch.

Although the vest was left open for these pictures, it does have functioning buttons that do hook closed.

I love, love, love the jean patterns from Liberty Jane.  Tiny working pockets were even included in the pattern.  The pattern does not include a working fly but is held on the doll with a elastic waistband.  All you have to do is stretch the band and scooch it up over the doll's bottom. 

The fabric of the pants came from an up-cycled jacket.

Note: The shirt, vest and pants were made from or based off of Liberty Jane patterns.  The shoes are from American Girl Julie's Calico dress. The necklace was made by me from my own design.
Also, all images can be viewed larger by clicking on them.