Naturally Dyed Knit Dress

My most recent make is a simple, fitted knit dress, perfect for spring time! 

As I mentioned in this Instagram post, I love having the ability to make clothes custom fit to my body and my style. This dress is a comfortable length (not too short for chasing a toddler around) and its fitted but not too tight. This thick ponte knit fabric from Joann is very forgiving, also not at all see through! 

One night I was itching to sew something, but I had no project in mind. I started digging through my stash, hoping to use up something that I already have, and I stumbled across this white ponte knit from Joann. 

I knew right away that I wanted to make another knit dress (my last one gets worn all the time!), however I didn't want it to be stark white. 

Luckily I've been saving onion skins and avocado pits to naturally dye fabric, so I pulled my red onion skin stash from the freezer! 

I boiled the onion skins in a big pot of water for over an hour. I then got the fabric wet with hot water and put it in the dye bath (I used my sink since my pot was not big enough for that much fabric). 

The fabric soaked overnight and the result was this beautiful blush shade! It was just what I wanted, something light and breezy other than stark white. 

Such a beautiful subtle pink color!

I am so inspired by the beautiful colors that Sara from Farm & Folk achieves from natural dyes and the beautiful quilts that she makes. 

I plan on doing a lot more research and learning all I can about natural dyes.

I got started right away with turning it into a dress! I used the same self drafted pattern I used for my last dress, serged it all together, and used a double needle for the hems. It all came together (cut out and sewn) in less than two hours! 

I am so happy with how it turned out! It will be a staple in my spring/summer wardrobe, and I might need to make a few more. 

For my body type, I have to lengthen dresses to avoid them being too short, and I often have to drop the waist (my torso is very long). I love the freedom that comes with sewing my own clothes. I get to make whatever works best for me and as a result I have a closet full of clothes I feel so great in!

My husband coaching me on how to pose

Pleated White Skirt

A couple of years ago I made my sister in law a pleated skirt for Christmas. 

It was inspired by this skirt. I love it because it is such a classic style and a simple to make. 

On my last trip to the LA Fabric District, I found a heavy ribbed knit in white that I knew right away would have to be used for a pleated skirt. 

All I had to do was measure my waist and create these even box pleats. I chose to make pleats that were 3 inches wide because I wanted them to be even, including the zipper addition, and my waist measurement was easy to divide by 3.

The first row of stitching to secure the pleats in just the right places

I stitched across the skirt at the waistline once the pleats were all pinned in place. After that I stitched again next to the first stitch to ensure the pleats were perfect and secure. After that, I attached the waistband to the front of the skirt. 

I took advantage of the stretch in the fabric when making the waistband. I often make waistbands that are too big, and I didn't want that to happen again, so I made sure to measure the waistband with the perfect amount of stretch. 

After attaching the zipper, I stitched in the ditch to secure the inside of the waistband down. 

I used my sewing machine's blind hem stitch and foot for the hem. It is one of my favorite tricks with sewing hems on dress pants, skirts, anything! 

I wore my new pleated skirt with the pom pom sleeve tee I made recently. I loved the white on white with a small pop of color. It is one of my favorite handmade outfits so far.

Close up of the ribbing detail in the skirt fabric

I love the way the skirt fits! I am so glad I measured the waistband a little smaller than I normally do. I made all the difference. 

Emily's Wedding Dress: Adding Sleeves

Emily got married last weekend! 

During the wedding dress shopping stage, they were sending me pictures of any dress that she liked and we would quickly brainstorm what could be done to make the dress modest. She sent a few pictures of different dresses, and then she found THE DRESS. It was the perfect length and the bodice fit her like a glove. The only work that needed to be done was adding sleeves. Granted, that is a huge job, but it can be done!

She fell in love with the beading detail and the overall silhouette. Adding sleeves wouldn't be too much trouble because the front is not too low cut. I was confident right away that I would be able to create sleeves that would match the dress almost seamlessly. I did a similar alteration on a prom dress last year. 

We had two fittings with a cotton mockup of the upper bodice. The first draft was way too big and the second one fit her almost perfectly. After making minor adjustments to the second mockup, I finally cut the pieces out of the white satin, using the cotton as the pattern and eventually the underlining.

The first change I made to the dress itself was to remove the beaded flap from the neck edge. Even though it was a gorgeous detail, we all agreed the dress would look better without it once the sleeves were added. Luckily, the beading extended underneath the flap so I didn't have to re-bead the bodice.
I wanted to reuse the beads from the flap so I spent a lot of time removing those.

Once the satin outer layer was attached to the lining and the finished sleeves were sewn on, I then pinned it in place on the dress.

Shoulder pieces pinned to the dress ready to be fitted and sewn

After she tried it on one more time, I had a few adjustments to make. Once those were made, I had her try it on one last time! This time I was confident with the fit so I finally attached the piece to the dress. After that, I began beading!
The beading was easy, but oh so time consuming! I continued a border around the neck edge to make it look continuous. I also continued some of the bodice beading over the seam onto the shoulder pieces. This made it look as though the dress came with the shoulders and sleeves (I REALLY didn't want it to be obvious that sleeves were added).

After I finished beading, I hand stitched the lining fabric closed, added a few hooks and eyes, and it was finished! With not a moment to spare! Thankfully, she was a very easy-going bride so she didn't seem to mind too bad that I got the dress to her only a few days before the wedding.

Days before the wedding. Its finally finished!

I am so happy with how it turned out. I am so proud of the beading especially! I was sure to text a few update pictures to the bride as I made progress. This close up of the beading was one picture that I sent to her. 

Some of the beading detail

Congrats, Emily! So happy I got to be a small part of your big day! Now that I am finished, I think I might reward myself with a new dress...

Second Annual Prom Season

Prom season just came and went!

Lately I have been so busy with taking care of my almost three month old that it is hard for me to find time for my projects. Its been really stressful because I've had some MAJOR projects: altering two prom dresses and building sleeves onto a strapless wedding dress. 

During our busy season for our business (April through August), my husband doesn't get home until 8 or 9 at night. Most nights he comes straight home and is on "Peter Duty" for the rest of the night. If Peter needs something, he happily takes care of it so I can sew.  

A few weeks ago I finished my work on the prom dresses and it turned out great. 

Source

The beautiful result!

The first dress was a beautiful blue floral dress.
I hemmed the dress about three and a half inches and added blue satin underneath the sheer part of the bodice. It matched the lining fabric so perfectly!

The second dress I altered was a champagne lace off-the-shoulder dress with a train.

Source

I raised the lace off-the-shoulder detail to cap sleeves. Along with that, I removed some of the lace from the neckline to expose the sweetheart detail.
The hem had a beautiful train, but it may have been a bit over the top for a high school prom. I evened the hem to be straight across.

The lined cap sleeves and even hem

First Annual Prom Season: Success!

Prom just passed! I did a few alterations for some of the girls from church. I know how hard it is to find a modest, beautiful prom dress and it felt so good to be able to transform these dresses. 

Becky's dress:

Before

After!

Becky's dress was a beautiful bright coral color. I raised the hem 4 inches and built up the shoulders and sleeves. I was really nervous to do such a major alteration, but after searching for some pictures of added sleeves and seeing this post, I knew it would look great.
I'd never done anything quite like this before, so it was definitely a learning experience. I am so pleased with how it turned out, though! The fabric had a lot of stretch, so I had a lot of piecing to do. The seams throughout the shoulders, however, make it look uniform with the criss-cross detail on the bodice.
When I was all finished, I had a piece of fabric smaller than my hand left over. It was a close call!



Kimmy's dress:

Before...

I forgot to get an after picture of Kimmy's dress... But I raised the hem 6 inches and added 1 1/2 inches to the neckline. I ruffled the added piece so it would look uniform with the rest of the bodice.

The Sunday after Prom, all the young women wore their gorgeous dresses to church! It was so fun to see everyone all dressed up.

Since then, I've gotten a few inquiries each week about alterations or projects from people at church. I've learned over the years that sewing skills don't need to be advertised. Once people learn that I sew, they never forget! 

In college, I lived in a house with eleven roommates (yes, ELEVEN!), and I kept busy with all of their projects each semester. Regularly, I would come home from classes and find a skirt and two pairs of jeans at the foot of my bed in need of some repair. The word is slowly spreading and I have a feeling I will be very busy with projects from now on.