DEAR PRUDENCE BY SEW PONY

Today I am really happy to be part of the Dear Prudence Pattern Tour! Dear Prudence is the latest pattern designed by my good friend Suz and, like all other Sew Pony patterns, it is absolutely gorgeous!

PATTERN: Dear Prudence by Sew Pony.  Are you into unique and special designs with a touch of vintage style and some cool technics that might challenge you just a bit? Then this is a pattern for you! The ultra-complete instructions will guide you through out the all process and you might learn a couple of things while sewing your Dear Prudence.

What have I learned? I am happy to tell you that this pattern made me face an old fear of mine: shrinking shirring! It was actually my first time shrinking shirring with elastic thread and, though my shrinking shirring is far from perfect yet, I think it is quite acceptable for a beginner... I hope I can master this technic really fast as I love it and want to use it more often. (Thank you Suz for helping me  distinguish shrinking from shirring!)

 

For Teresa’s dress, I chose the cap sleeve option and I have only changed three things to the original design: 1. Instead of 9cm of shrinking lines, I have sewn only about 5cm because, as I told you before, I was afraid of shrinking! 2. I’ve hemmed the dress with piping because somehow I messed with the dress length and didn’t have enough fabric to make a regular double folded hem… 3. I added a belt. I don’t really know why I did it (because I do like the dress the way it is) but it just felt right! Maybe it was because I was using a solid color fabric. Anyway, I think the belt looks nice and Teresa and she likes it too.

Teresa was the one picking the hat for this photo shoot. She is starting to like to take photos! Should I be happy about it or not?... I really don't know if I am happy about it...

FABRIC: White cotton from a bed sheet I bought long ago at Zara Home. This is a super soft fabric with some nice little wrinkles (I’m afraid you can´t see them on the pictures…). Nothing special but Teresa wanted a white dress so I had to make her a white dress. As I was afraid the white cotton might be slightly see-through, my Dear Prudence is fully lined with some white voile from my local shop too. All notions were found on my very big notions stash (don’t you love when that happens?!): both piping and buttons are vintage and the belt buckle was bought on my trip to Copenhagen at Hadler Tekstiler, a great haberdashery in the city center.  

I hope you liked my Dear Prudence! Now please check all other gorgeous dresses from the pattern tour and, if you feel inspired to make one – as I am sure you will!-, don’t forget to use the code PRUDENCE15 to get 15% discount on your pattern.

And for more inspiration check out my Paris Sew Social post. There you will find a quite free approach to this pattern…

SEWING FOR BABIES

I’ve sewn baby clothes for the first time! And it was fun. Really fun!

My blogging friend Patricia is expecting a baby girl and some Portuguese bloggers/seamstress decided to put together a baby shower for her with some handmade gifts. A fun idea, right? And the perfect excuse to sew sweet little clothes…

I’ve made a jumper for her (very) soon to be born daughter and a dress for her oldest girl, the adorable Miss Caracolinhos. I’ve also made a softie for them to share (or fight about… How knows!)

PATTERNS: Romper: selft drafted, Dress: View A nº4 from the book Vêtements Amples à Superposer by Mayuko Murata, Softie: Henry & Helga Elephant Plushies free pattern by Christina McKinney for Birch Fabrics Blog

FABRICS: Main fabric is a right flowered red cotton from a baby bed sheet I found on a Zara Home sale. Zara Home has some wonderful prints and I always visit the store at the end of each season hopping to find great bargains. For the romper’s lining I’ve used a white and red pocka dot fabric I had on my stash. The snaps are from Kam. (Oh! I love my kam pliers!)

The romper. I’ve only started sewing when my kids were toddlers so I didn’t have any baby clothes pattern I could use. So I went to my basement, picked one of my daughters’ baby rompers and drafted the pattern myself. I just hope the fitting is right as I have no one at home that will ever fit into such a small piece of clothing. The romper if fully lined with contrasting polka dot cotton fabric and has snaps both in the back and between the leg openings so it is easy to dress and undress as well as to change diapers. This was such an easy and fun garment to sew…

The dress. I love to dress my daughters in matching outfits so I had to make a matching dress for Miss Caracolinhos. I also love to see little girls dressed in simple girly dresses. So I made a spring dress with puff sleeves and gathered skirt. Simple as that! The book is a French version of a Japanese sewing book and I have to say I am in love with all patterns in this book. All clothes are stylish and wearable at the same time. Unlike the romper, the dress is not lined so I’ve finished the neckline with blue bias tape. But, like the romper, the back closes with bright red snaps.

The softie. I had already made a softie like this for my friend Asmita. This is such a great free pattern! It comes in two sizes but I have sewn the largest one both times and it is perfect. The elephant body is made with the polka dot fabric and its ears are made with the flowered fabric as I didn’t have much left after making the clothes…

And why didn’t I have any fabric left? Because Ines begged me to sew a dress for her too! And she also made me sew another romper and elephant to give to her school teacher that just had a baby girl, I must add…

 

Don't Forget to visit my friends' blogs and check all amazings things they have sewn for Patricias's baby shower:

Ana Sofia

Carla

Constança

Inês

Magda

Maria João

Rita

Sara

Soraia

REFASHION MONTH AT HOUSE OF ESTRELA

It’s Refashion Month at House of Estrela and I am really happy to be, once again, part of this series. Last time I made a top for Teresa with a shirt I used to love and this time I am sharing a shirt for me made with a piece of nice cotton from a bed sheet I bought several years ago. (I told you on my last post you were going to see a lot more selfish sewing around here, right?)

Pattern: View B from the Japanese book Stylish Dress Book. I love Japanese sewing books! I love the design of the garments, the styling and even the instructions. But I still don’t know if Japanese clothes really fit my body type… (I hope they do!) Anyway, I had to try this pattern as the sleeves looked so cool… Before hemming the shirt I decided to try it on and it didn't feel quite right. Though the shoulder line was spot on, the shirt was so big, long and wide on me! I decided to cut almost 10cm/4 inches in length and a 5cm/2 inches on each side of the bodice. I don’t know if this was the right decision… I don’t know if the fitting is better this way… I have so much to learn when it comes to women’s clothing! (I have a lot to learn about children’s clothing, too, I must add!)

 

Fabric: White woven cotton from a bed sheet I bought at Zara Home. Good quality bed sheets (bought for nice prices on sale!) are great for clothes too! They are especially good to make “wearable muslins” (here is the first one I made and still wear a lot.) Since I am just starting to make clothes for me and never know if a pattern is going to work, this is a great way to try a pattern without ruining my best fabric but still getting a nice piece of clothing. One more detail about the shirt: the bias tape on the neckline and sleeves is store bought and I had it on my stash for years. The original design doesn’t feature bias tape on the sleeves but they were so short I thought they would look nice this way.

 As you can see, unlike Teresa and Ines, I don’t feel very comfortable in front of the camera… These were the best photos I could pick and I hope you like them more then I do!

Today is just the first day of Refashion Week so stay tuned for all creations that will pop up at House of Estrela during the week.  And don’t forget to head over Pequeno Mundo a 3 and see what Patricia has refashioned…

NUTTA FABRIC SHOP BLOG TOUR

My good blogging friend Shino, from the sewing blog Nutta, has just opened a fabric shop where she sells gorgeous Japanese fabrics. I am so happy for her! And for us too because now we can buy super-ultra-special fabric from her.

I think I was one of her first costumers when, a couple of months ago, I bought this amazing quilted cotton. (I already have the perfect pattern for it so stay tuned!) Soon after that Shino contacted me asking if I would like to be part of her shop tour and, of course, I couldn’t say no. Since I had already bought fabric from her shop she also asked me if I wanted her to refund me from the money I had spent or if I would like her to give me another fabric. What a question?! Of course I wanted more fabric!
So I picked this amazing printed interlock. So special! So unique! I was in love!

Pattern: Hemlock Top by Elegance and Elephants (for Ines) and Climbing Flowers Tunic by Ottobre – Winter 2014 (for Teresa). Since I saw Rachel’s Hemlock tops I knew I wanted to make similar ones for my daughters and this was just the right fabric and print to do it. But Teresa wanted a simpler (no ruffles mum, please!) design… I knew I didn’t want to make just another regular tee so I picked Climbing Flowers Tunic from Ottobre’s new issue and turned it into a long sleeved tee.

Fabric: The “star fabric” is, of course, this printed interlock one from Nutta Fabric Shop. But the print is so special and strong I thought it would be nice to mix it with a bit of basic solid fabric. So, for Ines tee, I chose a mustard yellow cotton piquet thrifted from a man’s polo shirt bought at my local street market. But, once again, Teresa wanted something different… She wanted brown sleeves… So Teresa’s tee sleeves are made of cotton knit from my local store.

I have to say I like both shirts. And the best part is I get to dress my daughters in matching outfits, but each tee really express their styles right now: Ines is still quite a baby girl while Teresa already wants to be a pre-pre-teen…

Sewing with Nutta’s interlock was such a pleasure. You know I have just started sewing with knits and I have just bought a serger but these where such simple and fast garments to make even for a newbie…

So do you also feel like having a couple of meters of gorgeous Japanese fabric? You can win it here.
Then, after trying your luck, you can get inspired by all amazing creations on the fabric shop blog tour. Check them all out here! By the way, my friend Annika has picked the same fabric as me and made these super cozy pajamas for her daughter.
And finally, don’t forget to head over Nutta Fabric Shop and use the coupon code THANKS20 to save 20% off everything until December 8 (that’s tomorrow so hurry up!).

SEW JAPANESE SERIES . NUTTA (TAKE 02!)

Today I am visiting for the second time this week my friend Shino, in Japan, for her great series Sew Japanese. And I am taking Ines and her new outfit with me!
Oh, and how I love this outfit!

Both blouse and shorts patterns come from the Japanese book Handmade Little Girl's Clothes by Yuki Araki and this was the first time I actually sewn with original Japanese instructions. (Ok, I admit almost all my Japanese sewing books are English or French versions. I am a cheater! This book was gently borrowed by my friend Carla. Thank you!) Not fully understanding the instructions wasn't such a big deal as the diagrams where great but, for the size chart I had to get some help from the great sewing dictionary at Japanese Sewing Books Blog...
Though I love the shorts - they are super comfy and have the cutest pockets at the front - I have to admit I am super proud of the blouse as it was made with linen thrifted from my grandmother's old bed sheets!
Courtney from Sweeter then Cupcakes is also sharing a super cool knit jumper so Ines is in great company.
Head over Nutta and check out all the details! And, if you have missed it, you can check out the blouses I shared Wednesday here!

CLOVER SHORTS BY WILLOW AND CO. (TURNED INTO TROUSERS BY DOGUINCHO!)

My kids school doesn’t have a uniform so, to make my mornings easier, I kind of decided denim trousers/shorts/skirts would be their informal uniform. The only problem is that it is so hard to find loose fitting trousers in our stores. Shinnies are all I can buy… So I decided to make a pair of Clover Denim Trousers Teresa could wear to school and be cool and comfortable ate the same time. Here they are!

The Pattern: Clover Shorts by Hayley from Welcome to the Mouse House for Willow and Co. Besides turning the shorts into trousers by lengthening them, I’ve omitted a couple of nice features from this wonderful pattern because I wanted a super fast project to sew. So I kept the side pockets but left behind the belt and its loops. I love the fitting of these trousers! I think they are really unique!

Fabric / Notions: The fabric is light weight denim from an ugly women’s dress I bought at my local street market for 3 Euros. It is really soft and drapes nicely and that’s why I bought such and hideous peace of garment (sorry, but I forgot to take “before” photos). I’ve sew everything with contrasting white thread and I am glad I did it because it adds some texture to the plain and monochromatic denim fabric.

So here are a couple of last minute photos from my last sewing project just in time to share with Willow and Co. Back to School Contest!

And, good news, these trousers look great with the Aster Cardigan I made last week. I think Teresa already has a proper first day of school outfit!

 

DEBBIE'S BIRHDAY DRESS BY SEW PONY

Last year I’ve had the pleasure of testing Suz, from the Australian blog Sew Pony, first PDF Pattern: Debbie’s Birthday Dress, but I completely forgot to take decent photos and blog about the dress I made with the test pattern… The dress still fits Teresa and she wore it today to go to our local public library. When I saw her reading a Portuguese version of one of Marcel Marlier's books (she is actually reading not posing for the photo! she didn't even knew I was taking a photo!) I knew I had to finally show you this dress!

The Pattern: Debbie Birthday Dress by Sew Pony. What a timeless simple pattern this is! It has several options – you can check out here two different dresses I made with this pattern last summer – and it is perfect for a beginner seamstress. But, if you are more confident in making children’s clothes, this is also a great pattern to “flip” and add details.

Fabric/Notions: Main fabric is from a pillowcase I bought at my local street market for 1 Euro! It is super soft and I love the black dotted print. I’m sorry but I can’t remember where I bought the red lace...  I think it is also from my local street market but I am not sure.

We had fun during this photo shot!

 

And, at the end, Ines decided to take part too! She is wearing one of the few non handmade woven clothes she has. This dress is actually a nightgown I bought at fancy local children’s clothes shop (Anti Milk) before I knew how to sew…

The photos where taken (with my iPhone...) at one of my favorite buildings in Cascais: Santa Marta Lighthouse. Isn't it fabulous?!

After launching Debbie’s Birthday Dress, Suz has also designed a lovely shirt, The Little Betty Top (as soon as I can master knits I will have to sew this pattern!), and a gorgeous swimsuit, The Cosy Swimsuit (here is my version). Don´t forget to check out Sew Pony shop for more detailed information on these patterns!