The Pattern Remix Challenge: The Popover Sundress

Sumo's Sweet Stuff: A Little Bit Country

First week of Project Run & Play! It still seems surreal to me that I’m here!  Before I even figured out what I was going to do, I started getting the ideas for these photos. That kind of inspired my design for the Popover Remix. Once I had some visuals of the photo setting in my head, I knew right away that I wanted to give the dress a more full look than the original pattern calls for. I did this by adding on about four inches of width to the pattern when I cut it out. My first thought was to gather the body of the dress into the yoke, but then I decided that a pleat might be a fun alternative. Since the feel of the dress was going to be sort of feminine and sweet, I thought adding in some lace detail would help achieve that. I covered the yoke in lace, and added some big lace pockets. I also decided to add some long sleeves made out of lace. I used this tutorial from My Measuring Tape to help me draft the sleeves. It was my first ever sleeve drafting! I had to add straps to the dress to attach the sleeves to. The last detail that I added was a slit down the back of the dress to assist with getting the dress on and off since I had changed from tie straps to fixed straps with sleeves.

I used a lightweight cotton that is very sheer, and has small stripes of silver running through it. It is incredibly soft! Since the material is so sheer, I lined the body of the dress with muslin. The lace is stretchy, and since I couldn’t find any on the bolt anywhere, I hacked up a lace t-shirt. It worked great! I bought the button before I knew what the themes were going to be – just in case – and it was perfect for this dress! The outfit was finished off with some darling slouchy boots, and a headband that I made using flowers, rosettes out of the silver striped cotton, and a large silver bead. The lace was used for the band part to tie it all together. My daughter loves this dress, and didn’t want to take it off after we finished taking photos. She especially loves the big pockets!

I hope you enjoyed my Popover Remix! Please come by Sumo’s Sweet Stuff to get more details and pictures!

Lexi Made--Tulle, Wool and Polka Dots

Wow! I can't believe the first week of Project Run and Play is finally here! I was so excited to see for the first week we were asked to remix a pattern from Oliver and S. For my remix I decided I wanted to stick with dresses for my girls but I also wanted to add a jacket. I used the same silhouette as the Popover dress pattern for my dresses but instead of spaghetti straps that tie at the shoulders I changed the bodice and added a wider shoulder and a button closure at the back. I also fully lined the dress since I didn't want the wool to be uncomfortable against their skin. For some added detail I used a tulle/lace overlay at the top and finished it with a fun trim. I like to dress my girls in coordinating outfits and not totally matching so I added the button details along the side of one dress and then the open pleat in the front of the other dress.  I knew when I started coming up with the design I wanted to make something for fall and that will transition well into winter. I think these dresses paired with stockings and boots along with a little cardigan and with their coat will work well for winter. Now, onto the jacket. For the jacket I used the same pattern I remixed for the dresses but added some sleeves. I also added the two layers of ruffles on the bottom half as well as the collar. For a little added detail I added the waistband and bow at the back. I was torn between buttons or snaps for the jacket and decided to do both! I just love these buttons and loved the way they looked on the jacket so I decided to use them. My girls are a little over 2 1/2 and are at that age where they INSIST on doing everything themselves! The thought of having to wait for them to figure out how to button the entire jacket without letting me help them was just too much so I decided to use clear snaps as the closure for the jacket. It makes putting on and taking off the jacket a little less painful. I also fully lined the jacket with a fun polka dot material that I thought coordinated so well with the jacket and also the dresses. I wanted to make a coat that would work well with both casual and more formal outfits. I can picture this coat with a pair of skinny jeans and boots for a more casual look. Well, there you have it! My Oliver and S Popover dress remix.

 If you would like to see more photos of the dresses and my girls and a look at my sketches for this week head over to my blog HERE! Thanks everyone!


Emma & Mona-- Indian Summer Dress

I lined the dress everywhere, but omitted the bias used in the original pattern. I replaced it with 'rabbit ear shaped' straps which I sewed between the bodice and the lining. They form lovely bows on the shoulder.

I’ve used golden piping which works perfectly with the dark blue Kokka fabric. The fabric contains silk. I used dark blue cotton fabric for the lining.

I resized the bodices (made then a couple of centimeters larger) and topstitched the pleats. Finally, I made the dress a little shorter for a spicier look.

All we need now is a couple more weeks of summer!  Kind regards!  Griet

emmaenmona.blogspot.com

sewpony--The Cloudehill Dress

The Cloudehill Dress is my creation for the Oliver + S popover dress remix challenge!.   The popover dress pattern is a sweet and simple A-line dress with lovely bias straps and accent strip across the front and back bodice. I loved the straps and did not want to forego them by adding sleeves. I also loved the accent piece at the top of the bodice and didn't want to give that up....hmmm...so how was I going to remix this pattern? I decided to remix it by piecing loads of rectangles (of varying widths) cut from different fabrics together to form the accent bodice piece (which I also made slightly 'taller' to capture more of the piecing) and then repeated this across the hemline and up the side seams to create interest.  I added more fullness and detail to the front by sewing three pleats into the fabric before cutting out the pattern. The pleats are top stitched with embroidery floss to match the bias straps.  The hemline is hand stitched so as not to detract from the colourfulness and piecing of the hem feature. The dress is also fully lined so that the many seams created from 'patch working' the feature pieces together are not brushing against Juliette's skin.

The popover dress pattern comes with a pattern for dolly too...and since I made this doll for Juliette for her first Christmas, and it happened to be exactly the right size to fit into the dolly dress, how could I resist making a mini popover?  Juliette thought it was a great idea and would not let her doll go for the entire photoshoot!!  I also wanted to make something for Juliette to wear in her new bob hairdo... so I made an origami butterfly hairclip with beaded body and antennae.   Perfect for our Aussie spring!   And why The Cloudehill Dress you may ask?  The dress name was inspired by the beautiful (and local) Cloudehill Gardens where I photographed Juliette in her dress.  For more details (and photos) about my creation (including fabrics used and construction of the dress), you can visit my blog.

 And if you would like to vote for my dress, that would be wonderful!! THANK YOU!!

Caila Made--The Dressy Hexi

Yay, PRAP has begun!! I'm so excited to be here with you all! Let's jump right in, shall we? I LOVE this remix, because Simple Summer Sundresses are my middle name. I had so much fun taking the bones of this pattern and turning it into something totally ME. As you can see, I maintained the basic tenants of the Popover: yolk, bias ties, and A-line dress body. But of course, I also redrafted every piece to make it special and unique. First of all--I couldn't help myself--I added side panels. These are curved so the pieces are much wider at the bottom than at the top, which gives the dress a whimsical, swingy feel at the hem. The front and back pieces are also curved to add to that "swoosh." The dress also has Half Hexi pockets for storing treats and other goodies (no really, each pocket is shaped like half a hexagram). I also redrafted the front and back yolks so they are curved.

Now, let's talk Hexis shall we? The word "hexi" refers to cute little hexagrams made of fabric that are appliquéd by hand or machine on to a base fabric. They are typically used in quilting, but I do not like to follow such rules (obvsly). I drafted the front yolk of this dress so that it cuts away between each hexi. It took me a lot of tries to get those notches right, but it worked! I wanted each little hexi to stand out against bare skin, and I love the result. That little bumble bee on the yolk slays me with cute every time! And because of my hexi mania, I also covered the side panels with minis in a pattern cascading upward. These took a lot of work. First, I hand stitched each one using the English paper piecing technique. Then I ironed each one, removed the basing stitches and paper, pined them to the dress, and stitched them down. How many hours did that take? Oh goodness, I don't even know! I continued the hexi theme into Abby's hair with little Hexi Hair Clips. All in all, it's a very bright, summery, hexi-loving outfit, and I hope you like it! For more details and many more photos, head over to my blog! 

Sewing Like Mad--34 Pattern Pieces Dress

This dress contains 34 pattern pieces and two solid colored cotton voiles and is not striped fabric!  Nothing is cut double or on fold except the inside lining and all the pieces for the two colored mini ruffles and tie bands.  Oh and that first navy stripe on the skirt that juuust misses the navy stripe on the other side of the biased cut is not suppose to meet.  Now let's move on to what I actually did, shall we!  I kept the top half of the Oliver + s popover sundress but made it tight fitting and I made a deep cut out. I kept the tie bands but added them between the outer layer and lining. I also cut the dress off at midriff and made the skirt very full.  And THEN I cut the pattern to pieces...literally! 

I also made a shirt with a buttoned back because that low cut back is of course not child appropriate.

The shirt has raglan sleeves so the shoulders was 'clean' looking for the tie bands.

The neck is finished with a wide homemade bias tape. The sleeve has a small pleat to give it shape and is finished with a bias tape inside.  I added this mini ruffle to the front neckline and back cut out of the dress, made from smaller pieces of the two colors sewn together interchangeably to a long strip, folded and then gathered.  The dress has no side seams except left top side where I had lots of fun getting 5 seams (you can see the 4 of them on one of the photos) to match on the invisible zipper I inserted. Phew!  That is all for me...I hope it is enough....if you know what I mean!

As always see more photos and explanations on Sewing Like Mad.

Thank you!

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