Friday, September 14, 2012

Time to Vote! Week 1---Pattern Remix Challenge

It's Friday and that means---it's time to vote on your favorite remix.  Be sure to scroll all the way down and even check out more details and photos on each of the designers' blogs---and then make your pick!  The poll is in the left-hand side bar.  Votes are one per computer (or IP address).  Good luck designers, your creations are magnificent!  We will share the results of your voting and our judges' scoring on Monday.....

2 little hooligans--Flowers For Sale
This was one of those times when the fabrics where chosen first and the designs came second. When I saw this gingham, striped and semi-solid fabrics all together I knew they were it and the design for the ruffled dress came to my mind immediately. All of the fabrics used were 100% light-weight cotton. I also used a few yards of coordinating lace ribbon sewn on top of the white cotton fabric to add a little more detail and sweetness. Each and every piece of fabric that I cut was cut on the bias. This was a new technique for me, but I will definitely being using it again. I just love the way the edges slightly fray. To make the ruffled dress I started out by using one of our favorite outgrown skirts as a template and cut out a skirt slightly larger then the template we had. Then I cut a bunch of strips from the three different fabrics at all different widths and lengths. Each strip was then ruffled by hand and layered on top of the skirt in all different directions. Sometimes I overlapped the rows and sometimes I folded the ruffles so that they would go in a different direction. This was the fun part, but it was also very time consuming. Once all of the layering was done I made a simple bodice and attached it to the skirt. I wanted to keep the bodice simple in design while overly designing the skirt. I can't help but love the way it turned out. The slightly frayed edges on the ruffles work perfectly with the uneven tiers on the dress, plus the cotton fabric keeps the dress looking casual.
The flower embellished dress came to me when I saw all of the ruffled strips laying on the table. They looked like a bunch of little flowers...and thus FLOWERS FOR SALE became the theme as well the design for the dress. For this dress I used one of their outgrown A-line dress as a template and then just added a few inches all around. I played around with the different fabrics for the bodice and skirt until I finally came up with the design. After the dress was assembled I added the flowers to the skirt portion of it. I simply did that by sewing the ruffled strips of fabric into a circle onto the dress, making little flowers. Lastly I added a few ruffles to the bottom of the dress to balance out the solid fabrics that were in the bodice.
 To see more pictures head on over to my blog.


Welcome to the Mouse House--State of Grace
I had so much fun making the "State of Grace" dress!
In my opinion, there is nothing sweeter than poofy skirts, peter pan collars, and flowers for a cute little girl.
After churning out a ton of bias cut organza, I turned each strip into beautiful ivory organza rosettes (lots and lots and lots of them!) and then hand sewed them onto a 
removable organza apron and onto the headband. 
(always have to have matching hair accessories, right?)
 I drafted every bit of this outfit from scratch, including the beautiful peter pan collared dress, which was created from gorgeous pink silk shantung.  Such a great textured fabric on the outside with silky softness on the inside.
In addition to the removable apron, dress and headband, I also made a charcoal gray shrug (also cut on the bias, of course!) for the upcoming cool autumn weather.
I have a ridiculous amount of pictures up on my blog, so go check it out at Welcome to the Mouse House!



Nest Full of Eggs--Le Tricolore

 Did you enjoy watching the Summer Olympics over the summer and seeing all the flags from all around the world? 'Le Tricolore' is what the French call their flag, it is where I got my inspiration from. My daughter is half French, so she is the perfect little model for this outfit. A modern, color block top & skirt, in bright eye catching colors... classy, polished, and oh so chic!
 The skirt is a color block white and red elastic waist skirt, the seams used for the skirt were French seams (how fitting for a French flag inspired outfit!) The royal blue top is fully lined with an invisible zipper in the back. I decided to make the bias strips very evenly spaced apart, creating texture within each color block. And for la piece de resistance... white bias strip straps and ties in the back making a really beautiful touch in the back and a nice surprise. I also created a blue toile vertical ribbon cuff bracelet to accent the outfit, this was ribbon that I bought in Paris a decade ago.
For more details, please stop by nest full of eggs.



A Girl and a Glue Gun--The Sunshine Dress

so i could have done this entire competition with this one pattern!  (well...boy week would have been tricky) i loved it so much!
 it was hard to narrow done the chaos in my mind..but i eventually went with ombre yellow strips, closely sewed together and a full dress....
after the photo shoot...i remembered why i don't use her as my model...but a nice bribe of candy from the gas station got a few usuable shots. and i think i love them more than then a nice posed one! 
This bright dress makes me happy..almost has happy as the little girl in it.

come by my blog to see even more pictures!


Elegance and Elephants--Down By the Bay


I've been loving the nautical trend everywhere lately, and knowing that the last few weeks of our summer would be spent near the ocean, I just had to incorporate it into my version of no big dill's "It's Okay to Be Biased" skirt.  There's something so lovely about crisp white & navy accented by a pop of colour.  I self-drafted the pattern for the fully lined shift dress, which features three oversized satin bias strips, an exposed navy blue zipper, and tie.  There are also matching satin bloomers that I made using ruffled bias strips.


It took a little while to decide how to finish the bias strips, but in the end, I chose to create an asymmetrical shape with them.  And since I love colour options, there are three interchangeable belts in yellow, slate, and coral pink, with silver anchor buttons, to complete the dress.  The outfit is accessorized by a jersey knit beret accented by a bright, yellow bow, and a hand-painted reversible tote bag with pockets.


Visit Elegance & Elephants for more details and fun photos on the beach!



Sew Country Chick--La Vie En Rose


Hi everyone!
Today's first challenge utilizing the bias strip technique from Katy at No Big Dill was inspired by Paris in the 1920's. 

La Vie En Rose.....

The smaller dress worn by Genevieve was made from a combination of cotton voile, silk charmeuse, and silk shantung. It has a double layer Peter Pan collar, a drop waist with black crochet trim, and gathered sleeves. I made the flower hair clip and the tie neck from black silk. Both dresses are made from some silk charmeuse and silk shantung I had in my stash. I machine washed them to make them softer and washable for kids. 

Lily's dress was a classic A line shift made from silk shantung layered over cotton voile. I turned the fabric on the bias and sewed lines every inch or so and then slashed the top layer. I stayed true to Katy's tutorial for Genevieve's dress but mixed up the technique for this dress. To give a more modern feel to this dress I added the exposed zipper and the roses around the neck made from black silk bias strips. I made the feather hairclip from a few maribou feathers glued to a pin. Both patterns were drafted from the basic blocks I recently made from the girls measurements. To see more photos you can visit my blog.





Delia Creates--Simple Lines Outfit

One of my favorite things about Fall style is the layering. So, when creating this outfit I decided that I couldn't just stop at the dress. My sweet Natalie, would most certainly need a cardigan and some leggings to go with.

The dress is a basic, short sleeved, A-line with a bias strip asymmetrical detail up the side, and a punchy exposed zipper in the back. Made from linen look fabric, it is easy to wear, but rich enough looking for Fall. The cardigan is made from a thrifted woman's sweater and adorned with bold wooden buttons. The leggings, also thrifted, are made from a stretch lace woman's shirt.

For a closer look, feel free to stop by my blog: Delia Creates!



Lindsay, Etc.--Summer Serenade Shift
This little number was a last hurrah for summer- a sweet and sunny shift that has bias strip ruffles moving down the bodice and along the hemline.

It is playful and cheery, and is easy to savor every last second of summer in. The bias strips are Nani Iro gauze, a saffron tencel makes up the skirt, and has a zipper closure in the back.  More on my blog here.



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37 comments :

  1. Wow! So much cuteness! And it looks like there was a bit of an exposed zipper theme?! :)

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    1. Yes, it's so weird how that works. I swear we didn't talk to each other about it!

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  2. Just amazingly creative and beautiful work all around!! :)

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  3. What a great way to start season 5! Such a great mix of designs and aesthetic.

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  4. Beautiful. I thought I might try to do this this month. 1 I sewed through my finger late last night while trying to finish the skirt and 2) I am such an amateur, after seeing these gorgeous garments, I'll just keep mine to myself and enjoy my girls' love of the things I sew for them.

    All of those garments are absolutely gorgeous and so creative! Congratulations!

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    1. we all started out the same way! keep at it and dont give up. your little girls love for your creations will push you to keep going:)

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    2. oh, please share. We all have been beginners and we all have had outfits that were not exactly what we envisioned ... But the show and tell is so much fun

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  5. Yay! It has been Friday ALL DAY here in Korea, I've been waiting for this post for what has felt like forever! What a great way to finish the day, good job everyone!

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  6. they are all so amamzing and different. that is what i love about this competition! great job ladies.

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  7. This is the first time I flat out CANNOT pick one favorite. I almost wish I could see them in person to nit pick, just to narrow it down!

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  8. My goodness, they are all amazing! How do you vote when everyone did such a great job!?!

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  9. So amazing!!!! I am DEFINITELY going to have to find spread my vote around. Really such a great job everyone! So many loves!!!
    @ Justine: I smirked when I saw yours. Perfect.
    Oh boy, I sure hope I can find enough computers to vote on for my favs!!!

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  10. All are SO cute! How am I going to pick who to vote for?!?

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  11. Amazing. Everyone did an amazing job! I am tickled by all the exposed zippers. :)

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  12. i kind of wish we could vote 2 or 3 times in the early rounds. its hard to choose with so many options!

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  13. so fun to see how everyone interpreted the bias strip technique... I noticed the exposed zipper theme, too :)

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  14. I wish we could vote for more I couldn't make up my mind. They are all so wonderful!

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  15. freakin awesome! I had good reason to be nervous! everyone has soooo much talent!

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  16. Love them all. You ladies are so talented! Thanks for sharing your brilliance with us!

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  17. I wish we could vote more than once! I was torn between 3, but I did pick one and vote. Good luck ladies! :-)

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  18. Well done and welcome to the competition everyone!

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  19. Amazing job! What a fabulous challenge and I love all the different interpretations. SO HARD to only choose 1!

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  20. OMG _ everyone rocked the remix!!! I love that not only here, but also in the sew along the presence of the EXPOSED zipper was so strong, makes me think baby girl will be completely out of style if I don't get her an exposed zip ASAP! ;o)
    Great job to all the designers - I don't envy the judges - you all made it a tough choice!

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  21. ALL of the models were SO CUTE ladies! I adore seeing your creations on your own small children or friends of children... you get what I mean (I hope!). Everyone is sooo talented... how do I pick just one? Take a bow, ladies, you ALL deserve it!

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  22. Amazing job! Now to find enough computers so I can vote for everyone!!

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  23. Wow can we vote for them all?? Great job ladies - this looks like it is going to be an amazing season!

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  24. Wow! I seriously do not know who to vote for I love them all! Yikes this is going to be a tough season but i'm so excited to see and be inspired by what everyone makes!

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  25. Holy cow. How in the world will I pick just ONE???????

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  26. Oh my goodness, EVERY one of the designers knocked it out of the park!! My faves might be state of grace and down by the bay, but every one of these are so awesome.

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  27. my sentiment is the same as everyone else...how can i possible pick just one!! i love the all and would love to recreate them myself!!

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  28. Makes me wish my now 18yr old daughter was little again... NAH lol.. All the creations are sooooo cute. Love the bias sewing idea and the zipper outside very different and cute. Good luck ladies.. I need to go ponder some more and vote.

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  29. It has been said many times ... But, Ladies, you are great. Picking one is very hard.

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  30. Just the inspiration I need to dig out the bias skirt I started a couple years ago. I don't think I can choose just one favourite!

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  31. Oh wow - I don't even know how to choose!!!

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