Ruffled bloomers and a ruffled petticoat....

 The inspiration:

My project:

 Are these not adorable?

...And this is the petticoat I've been sewing... I realize now that I should have made the second and third ruffle peiced longer, because the skirt will have to be wider so I can walk..... but I didn't think of that. :(
Oh, well..... it still does it's job. :)

Where is the Candy Cane dress, you may be asking? Well, I have had some difficulties with it... and I may finish on time for the Ruffle Your Stuff contest, or I may not... but I will definitely share pics with you.

Note: Although I put this post under the category of "Historic  undergarments", let me note the petticoat isn't very "correct" :)

Yay! I reached my goal!!! (and ruffle updates)

Thank you, my dear followers, for following my blog! I now have 20! Yay!!!!

Any suggestions for a  new goal, anyone?

Sorry I haven't posted or commented lately... I haven't been on the computer for the past two days.... and I'll be busy and/or traveling during the next week, so you won't hear from me much. :(

To give you some updates: the sleeves have been sewn on, and the bodice and skirt are sewn together. I'm doing the puffed sleeves with ruffles. As for the skirt, I think that, since I don't have much time (what with traveling) to finish the Candy Cane dress before the Ruffle Your Stuff contest ends, I'll only do one ruffle at the bottom rather than two.

The skirt is very full.... I want it to be fluffier. So, I'm going a ruffled petticoat. 

In case it should be a blustery day, I'm making bloomers with ruffles on them, kinda like this. (this isn't my pic, by the way. It's from http://www.fashionsintime.com/html/body_underpinnings.html)

They look really cute so far!

And, remember those white stockings I bought? Well, I intend to sew some ruffles on them.

Have a nice day!

Celine

Candy Cane dress....

yup. I've officially dubbed the Ruffle Your Stuff project the "Candy Cane dress". You see, there are two pieces of fabric I was going to use... I thought they were the same stripe size, so I showed you the one with the red stripe dominating.... and then I realized they were different and decided I would use the white-with-red-stripes fabric and save the red-stripe-dominating fabric for something patriotic.

 These were taken a few days ago... on Tuesday I sewed the lining and fabric together. It looks rather professional.

Yesterday I worked on the skirt.... The skirt is full, and will have a long ruffle on it. (or two?)

I stitched the hem of the ruffle by hand, and only stitched in the red stripes with red thread so it's less noticeable.

I'm still undecided about the sleeves, and whether or not I'll have two ruffles (a small, possibly white ruffle, on top of the large striped ruffle). That idea was in my earliest scetch: (as was the V neckline)

But then there's other options floating around in my head. For instance, I could tie a red grosgrain ribbon around the waist. I might have puffed sleeves with ruffles edging them rather than sleeves that are ruffles. I could put a casing in the sleeves made of ruffles so I could have optional cap sleeves. I drew my ideas (rather roughly).

Please comment about what combination you think would look best.... particularly, the hem ruffle(s?).
Thanks for reading this!

Celine

Happy St Patrick's Day!

You know, I was planning a lot for St Patrick's Day.... and it just "sneeckded" up on me, as my littlest sister would say!

"May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand."
-Irish Blessing

great finds at Wal-mart!

In case you're sewing a doll dress that might need little minature black buttons, I found the perfect ones at Wal-mart  for .88 cents!
Here they are, with a bit of a hint as to the doll dress I'm sewing.....

I also got some blouses for $2, like this one. I put a green shirt from Old Navy  (which was only a few bucks, too.... for a week or two last fall, their clearance was an added 50% off!) But, if you think $2 is amazing, head on over to http://novelpretender.blogspot.com and look at Jane's finds at Wal-mart.... just $1 a cardigan!!!

Along with the blouses, buttons, and fabric, I also got three pairs of white stockings for $1.50 a pair (rather than $2). They're very "Alice in Wonderland". (Sorry! I don't have any pics of these, but we all know what white knee highs look like, right?)

Celine

p.s. thank you for all of your lovely comments! And yes, I am only one follower away from my goal of 20! (thank you for advertising Iradessa, Bess :) Yay!!!!
Looks like I need a new goal.... suggestions, anyone?

Ruffle Your Stuff

I know I've "acted" like I haven't noticed all of your cute projects.... but I have. I'm not blind :)
Let me announce that I am entering the Ruffle Your Stuff contest! (Well, depends on if I finish the project of not...this is just the planning stage, but I have the fabric already.... that's a plus, right?)

I'm planning to make a dress out of this fabric:

The skirt will be full with a large ruffle from just above the knee down, and a shorter ruffle on top of it, and I think I'll sew some ruffle-y petticoats to go underneath.
The neck line will be circular. The sleeves, of course, will be ruffles! (or puffed sleeves with ruffles on the edge. Not sure...)
I might make some ruffle accessories or something...
I've cute out the pieces, and assembled most of the bodice and bodice lining. Pics coming soon!
Celine
p.s. you'll notice that I have a LOT of "planned project" type posts.... =)

Announcing......

You could be slightly surprised, so let me explain :)

I was organizing my fabric supply (which isn't an easy task!) and found lots of leftover material (more than I expected) and some of my old sewing projects.

I found aprons and skirts I had sewed for my doll Felicity when I was about 8 or 9. They were starter projects for me (of course, I'd been teaching myself to sew since I was 7, but those "projects" don't exactly count :)

Then I found all of the left over fabric, more than enough for doll dresses, I decided.... so I hand sewed one while my machine was needing to be oiled.

And let me tell you, that was a very fun project.

So I thought about it, and figured, that if I have so much left over fabric, I bet everyone else does too! Not only that, but y'all are very creative.

Now, I bet you're asking, "well, what if I can't sew?".

Actually, it's not a problem. Just keep reading.

There are five categories, and THERE ARE NO LIMITS AS TO HOW MANY YOU CAN ENTER. If you want to, enter them all and post one each day! You can even enter them all twice since it's so easy to sew for a doll.....

Here are the categories:

1. Historical/Historically Inspired doll clothes: that one speaks for itself. :)

2. Look-a-like: a human sized outfit and a doll sized outfit. Please provide pics of both.

3. Modern Doll Clothes

.....now we get to the "No sewing nesesary catagories"

4. Outfits: create an outfit using your resources... for instance, a scarf can become a skirt instantly...OR do a mix-and-match photo shoot using the wardrobe your doll already has. Use you're creativity and resourcefulness! (And you don't have to use fabric.... paper would be interesting!)

5. Accessories: knit, croquet, embroider, bead.... and use your creativity :)

6. Design: in this category, simply draw or paint your ideas and either take pics of the drawing and post them, or scan them.... can't wait to see them! It'd be fun if you included fabric swatches....

Here's how you participate: post pics of your project(s), so that we can see it clearly. If you participate in more than one category, you don't have to post all of your projects on one day; just sometime during the week. A day or two before it starts, I'll provide a place for you to put a link TO EACH SPECIFIC POST. If you have two different categories in one post, then place your link to the post in both categories. If this still doesn't make sense, don't worry; I'll explain it again before it starts.

Now, then; what if you don't have a 18" doll? YOU DON'T NEED ONE! Barbies and baby dolls work great... just as long as the subject isn't human, any doll is allowed.

If you have an 18" doll, though, you'll be happy to know about this: AGPlaythings has made PDFs of the American Girl doll dress patterns that used to be avalible a long time ago! Here's the link: http://www.agplaythings.com/AG%20Patterns/DollDressPatterns.html

And now for the button thingys.... please post one on your sidebar with a link to this post to show you're participating.

Have fun!!!

Celine

NOTE: I do not endorse how all the American Girl characters act in their books and/or movies unless I state otherwise. Thank you. :)

Are these not the CUTEST shoes?

I love these shoes! They  can be bought here......for $90. Since I would only wear them to historical tea parties, and that sort of thing, I don't think that I would spend $90 just for boots I wear once or twice a month...... so I'll be on the look out for a non-leather version :)

Have a nice Friday!

Celine

p.s. I'M ANNOUNCING TOMORROW!!!!

Skirts :)

Ever since I was a very little girl, I have loved dresses and skirts.
Now that I can sew, I have enjoyed actually being able to make my dress or skirt designs! My ideas are no longer confined to my imagination, or a piece of paper.... which makes me very glad that God has given me the abilities and supplies needed to do so.
I was given a sewing machine when I was 10 or 11, by a very sweet lady who's mother-in-law had given it to her. But, she didn't sew at all, and didn't use it.... so she gave it to me :). I am very grateful.
A sewing machine, you know, is a very, very important necessity when it comes to sewing your own clothes.
Unfortunately, my ambitious, 10-or-11-year-old self didn't know how to take care of a sewing machine.... Fortunately, my Brother machine was used only off-and-on.... until a few months ago. I haven't oiled it in many years. And at the rate I use it, it should be oiled every other week.
So I downloaded a free PDF manual, and I'm going to oil it soon, hopefully tonight.

Meanwhile, I've been hand stitching some small projects, and organizing my fabric supply.

ANYWAYS, the title says "skirts". Here's my latest ideas.

I like this one at Maurices, just without some of the "distress".... anyone have any patterns to suggest? (ha, ha... that rhymes:)

One of these days, I'll sew a denim Prairie skirt, like A or B.

(this pattern is Simplicity 2609)

I like this pattern (Simplicity 2655) too. The one with black flowers, maybe slightly longer, in denim.

I'm also thinking of sewing a just below knee length skirt that's very full and flouncy. (sorry... I don't have a pic to explain)

Which should I make first? Vote on the side bar!

Celine