The Jellyfish Dress

It's not perfect but I love it anyway so I'm not going to point out its flaws this time.

This is the bodice of Butterick 5748 again and the skirt of Vogue 8811. I didn't get a picture of the back this time but I must say I think I'm addicted to these scoop backs. I have made several, using two different scoop back patterns, and now when I put on an ordinary dress it almost feels wrong to have fabric touching my upper back.

Of course I added pockets, as always, and you might notice the two sea green buttons at the neckline. I just happened to have those, only the two, and they're very close to the color of the sea weed in this print so I decided to use them for a little decoration. I'm not sure they're really noticeable enough to make a difference but I like them and I'm glad I used them.

You know, it's funny... I am not especially attracted to navy blue and I would never claim it as one of my favorite colors but I keep making and loving navy blue things. (Well, two so far this year) I think it's more the colors that go with it though. These ocean colors look so cool and summery and the jelly fish are great fun.

Not Sewing

Hey, it's been a long time, huh? Actually I have been sewing. There was one week when I only did one little thing the whole week - fixed some pockets that were bugging me. And I'm almost finished with another dress that I feel like I've been working on forever, doing just one little step a day most days. Eventually I'll take some pictures and get around to showing off some things but that's not what I'm here for today.

This is not about sewing but it is crafty and it's incredible. I want to shrink (like in those movies) for just an hour down to the size to fit in this dollhouse so I can walk around in it. I'd probably throw out the skulls and the creepy dog skeleton but otherwise this is fascinating and wonderful.

Eifel Towers and Lavender Lace Become the Lazy House Dress

I was having a bad face day. Actually, I have a cold sore. I have been using that stuff that costs nearly $20 for a tube the size of a five-year-old child's pinky finger. I'm not sure if it works or not. Maybe a little but certainly not well enough to justify the price. But I'm not here to talk about overpriced OTC pharmaceuticals.

I used my go-to lazy dress pattern, Kwik Sew 2671. "Lazy" because it's easy to sew - no darts or zipper - and because it makes a very comfortable, lazy day kind of dress. I have made it probably a dozen times with various modifications. I prefer the look of a more fitted bodice but I wear the dresses made from this pattern more than anything else so I'm always happy to have another one.

This time I made it with a seam down the front of the bodice instead of buttons so I could use this cotton lace trim. I'm a little embarrassed about the obvious lack of pattern matching but I think something would have ended up cut in half and/or not lined up no matter what I did.

How about an action shot? Not one of my best but it'll do.

I have to show you a close-up of the fabric so you can see the detail in the bird silhouettes.

The verdict: This is another one of those, "I love it when I'm just wearing it, not looking at pictures of myself wearing it," things so overall, a win.

UPDATE: Forgot to mention, I made side seam pockets this time. Also, two modifications I always do when I use this pattern. 1. It's supposed to be a jumper so I always make the arm holes smaller. 2. I hate sashes and tie belts so I leave it off and put elastic at the back waist instead. I think I could have used a shorter piece of elastic in this one.

Colorful Cats

I needed this. I was feeling a need for some outrageous color. These colorful cat silhouettes are just the thing. I used the bodice of Butterick 5748 with a plain gathered skirt again. (I don't know if I will ever make it with the circle skirt. I like the idea of a circle skirt but I'm not sure about actually living in one.) I also lowered the neckline a little and I'm not really happy with the shape of it this time.

This photo is out of focus but in some ways I think it's the best of the photos I took of this dress.

Most of the photos had these goofy wrinkles across the bodice. But you know, that's life. We are not department store mannequins. We move, we breathe, we are imperfect. But I do need to talk about that bodice a little bit and not just to make excuses for it.

You may remember that the first time I used this pattern my usual size (16) was way too big. So this time I cut a size 14. Well, it turns out that a size 14 in this pattern is a little bit tight so I let out the back seam a quarter of an inch. That's not much and it still doesn't have as much ease as I'm used to but it did give me a little more breathing room and it's not uncomfortable at all. I think those wrinkles are due to a combination of it being a little bit too snug and just a smidgen too long for me. If I use this pattern six more times I think I might get it all figured out.

The trim is cut from a small piece of fabric I had left over from another project. It wouldn't have been my first choice of trim color if I had been buying something new but I already had this and it was a spur of the moment decision and I think it looks okay.

Here's one more pic. The goofy pose mostly smoothed out the goofy wrinkles.

Overall I really like it. It's not perfect but it's perfectly wearable and super fun.