One thing I didn't take into consideration when I decided to start this blog: that I would have to make a choice between sewing in my precious free time, or blogging about sewing. Clearly, sewing won.
The beginning. Right. Insipired my by my friend, Jen, who makes the most adorable dresses, I told my husband that I wanted a sewing machine for Mother's Day. I think we were both a little skeptical. I am NOT a crafty person. Not one bit. Add to that my zero experience with sewing and, well, I think we were both afraid the sewing machine would end up next to the ice cream maker and fruit dehydrator that occupy most everyone's basement shelves.
Thankfully, Jen guided me through my first visit to Sew to Speak, the happiest place in Clintonville. I bought my first pattern, Oliver + S's Tea Party Sundress. It is listed as a "one sissor" pattern, but it still looked rather complicated to this novice. Thank goodness for the free patterns on Oliver + S! They were very easy, but still made adorable additions to my little girl's closet.
My very first project: Oliver + S's Popover Sundress. I chose some cheap-o fabric from JoAnn and I was off!
I found making the bias tape a bit tricky the first time...maybe tedious is a better word. Thankfully, I found another blog with lovely photos for each step of the process. That really helped me deal with attaching the bodice to the dress (one piece is curved, one is straight). From a distance it actually looks like a dress, right! I was thrilled, but definitely knew I had some improvements to make. Namely...
Sewing in a friggin' straight line! I was surprised at how hard that was for me (and still is, from time to time). I've since learned to stop trying to manipulate the fabric so much as I feed it through the machine. Catching the bodice in the bias tape was also a challenge, so I tried again!
Close, but still not quite there. This is the fabric I bought at Sew to Speak. Adorable! One last try and I finally did it...
This version, I can say with pride, is as close to perfect as I could hope to get.
The greatest thing about sewing? Despite my penchant for perfectionism, I was happy to let Lila wear each version out in public. Although I knew those first dresses were riddled with mistakes, most everyone else simply saw a beautiful girl in a cute dress.
I finally had the confidence to tackle my very first pattern: the Oliver + S Tea Party Sundress...
