It's 1.12.15 already let's get this year started

I am not sure entirely why but 2015 has been a slow starter for me. Maybe because I am not writing my blog or doing anything at all to organize my thoughts, but I am going to start doing so now! 

So first off resolutions! I am doing attainable monthly resolutions rather than HUGE year long ones. I hope they build on each other but not going to beat myself up about them. January = NO Cheese! and get to Jazzercise at least twice a week. That's it. February = See my friends more often! Hopefully while continuing not to eat cheese and to get to Jazzercise at least twice a week.  Small goals I can actually achieve.

But you are here to hear about what I have been sewing. The last project I actually finished was right before Christmas. It was "M's Magical Christmas Dress" which is suspiciously similar to the Elsa dresses I made around Halloween.

When M drew out this design, I thought she was nuts. I thought it was going to look ridiculous. But it is her dress so I went with it and I am glad I did. It really did turn out lovely. 

The thing that was throwing me off was that those are tiny silver butterflies on the white overlay. I had it stuck in my mind that it had to be a summery looking dress, or all white or some such nonsense.

In reality they just look like silvery spots that could be snowflakes or whatever. I'm the only one who cares that they are butterflies.

Of course the first time she wore it was to a ornament making party where she promptly got blue paint on the front and did not tell me till two days later. Fortunately I worked my magic and got most of it out. She really does not care and is happy to wear it paint and all whenever she gets the chance.

School has been back for a week, and I really have to get my brain back in shape. All that resting and playing turned me to mush! So I have actual paying jobs due this week that I really must get to!

Hope your 2015 is shaping up ok.

Hugs - C   

Elsa Dresses!

What do I love so much about Halloween. Well honestly the fact that it is a low pressure fun holiday.  Except that I manage to create my own pressure. I LOVE costumes, making them, wearing them, just the fact that costumes exist in the world makes me happy. So I end up making lots of them.

M700

Back in August I thought it would be fun to make some Frozen costumes. And a couple of my friends took me up on it and I made two Elsa Costumes (Anna is in the works).

I did use a pattern because, they exist so I thought I would take the easy way out.

McCalls has out M700 with Elsa and Anna dresses though they don't have the Disney rights so it does not have any names on it.

I like that Elsa and Anna are in the same envelope and are made on the same basic pattern.

The Elsa dress is A LOT of fabric. And the sizing on this runs BIG. As all McCalls patterns there is way too much ease in them. I started cutting a 7/8 but in the end used the 3/4 for girls who wear a store bought 7 slim.

I chose the McCalls pattern because it is more simple to put together than the Simplicity (ironic?).


I bought the Simplicity one too. So if I end up making more I may try  that one too and see which one is better.

But just based on the line drawings and the number of pattern pieces I would say McCalls wins.

I used 5 different fabrics in this dress. And I made more than one and tried different fabrics in the other one. I wanted to try some new things and see what worked best.

This version is a light blue chiffon, which was amazingly easy to work with. But is not as sheer as I would have liked.

The bodice is glitter dot tulle lined with lingerie mesh. Which yes is the stuff you make bras out of. But I had to line it with something and I thought that would be soft and comfortable.

This is my daughter modeling it for me. I hope the final recipient enjoys it more. But she is close to the same size so I got her to try it on for fit.

I still need to hand sew some hooks into the tops of this and the other Elsa dress I have made. Those are the last little steps and then I can send them out into the world.

Sometimes it is hard to translate a cartoon into a costume. In cartoons they don't need silly things like zippers.

So the overlay is sewn in between the two bodice sections and I had to leave an opening for the zipper.

If this were a professional costume I might have done that differently. But it is for a child who will outgrow it so I just went with what the pattern suggested.

This is the first Elsa dress I made. See how wispy and thin that overlay fabric is. I love the look but it was a mess to cut and sew.

Next I am working on Anna. There are more smaller pieces to that one. But it is in some ways more fun to make. After that I only have three more costumes to finish. Two are almost done and one (my own) is not even cut out yet.

But I will get them done, I will!

Happy Halloween preparations to you!