Shower of Roses Circle Skirt

I actually started out making this for myself, but for some reason once I was done I felt like I should sell it instead! I think this is the first true circle skirt I've made...it was fun! :-)







It's up on Etsy here.

May Flowers

For Mother's Day I decided to make some flowers for my mom that would last longer than a few days, so I looked around for some ideas to make fabric flowers. I found this tutorial and then went crazy making flower pins! They are so easy and fun to make, here are just a few examples of some I made.

Tie One On Apron - No $$

The latest Tie One On theme was "No $$," you had to use things that you already had on hand and not buy anything new. To be honest, I felt a bit like I was cheating because I have SO MUCH fabric to choose from, that it wasn't hard at all, lol.

I ended up using a blue and cream stripe that I'd had on hand for quite a while (I think I originally bought it to possibly use for a victorian apron, but never felt like making it) and then I used the leftover blue scraps I had from the Alice Apron for the trim. I ended up with just enough blue for the ruffles, pockets, and ties, but couldn't for the life of me figure out a way to fit in the waistband which I'd originally planned to be blue as well. Luckily, I looked through my stash and found some scraps (in my scrap box) of a cream and blue print (which I think was actually used for a victorian apron) that went beautifully with it! It's a super full apron, very twirly and fun. :-)

I call it Country Blue and Cream:

The Alice Apron!

I had a request for an apron inspired by Alice in Wonderland. It was so much fun to dream up and to make, and it's (finally!) all done.













Here was the original sketch:



And the result:







The white over apron can actually be removed, there are buttons on the top (under the collar) and on the waist where it attaches, and this is how the apron looks without it.


The neck strap is adjustable, and also uses buttons.



This was a fun one, I hope she enjoys it!

Regency Inspired Apron With a Twist!

I decided to use my new ruffler foot and make a Regency Inspired Apron that was gathered rather than pleated. I quite like the result!







It's up on Etsy here. :-)

Fun With Ruffles!

I'm so excited, I got a ruffler foot! It did take me a while to figure out how to use it, but once I did I couldn't wait to make something with it. So of course, I made an apron. :-)



It's amazing how much time it saves (and thread, since it gathers and attaches at the same time.) I did both the ruffle around the bottom, and the gathering for the waist with the ruffler.





It also makes pleats, so I may have to come up with another project to test those out as well!

Oh, and of course this apron is up for sale at my Etsy shop. :-)

Petticoats!

A while back I ordered a simple cotton petticoat off of Etsy, trimmed with a lovely eyelet lace on the bottom. When I got it, it was longer than I had imagined...I still use it for several of my longer skirts, especially when it's cold outside! It really does help keep you warmer.

But since then, I've been wanting to make a shorter one to wear with some of my shorter (as in, calf-length) skirts, and with a bit more pouf to it!

I was as Walmart the other day browsing the $1.50 fabric section, and I found some...uh...I don't know, nylon something? I'm not quite sure what it is, lol, but it's synthetic and has a nice stiffness to it, and I thought it would make a great petticoat! I also grabbed some $1.50 tulle to accompany it.

So I figured a petticoat is simple enough, one tier of fabric big enough to go around the hips, elastic for the waist, then another tier or two with more fabric each time for fullness. This was my first attempt:





It's shorter than I had planned because I stopped at the second tier after realizing it was definitely poufy, but it was poufy all around and wasn't all that flattering with the kind of skirts I was planning on wearing it with. It kind of just made me look like I had a huge bottom half! I had also doubled the amount of tulle on the back rather than putting a single layer like I had on the front...



Needless to say, I underestimated tulle's pouf factor!

I thought a bit about where I wanted the fullness to be in the petticoat. I realized I wanted it on the sides and a bit in the back, but I didn't want it much in the front.

So I began again, this time making sure to gather the fabric mostly on the sides and a bit in the back, but to keep it flat in the front. And this was the result:









I'm quite pleased with the result, it's full in just the right places. It's amazing to me how this simple piece of underclothing can add so much! Here are some comparisons of a couple of my skirts with and without the petticoat.