I made a dress

I love broderie anglaise and I'd wanted a black broderie dress for a while but I knew I couldn't wear something fully lined here in Reunion, so I settled for a mixed fabric garment instead. I went for broderie ruffles with a plain poplin shell:

I bought the black broderie in Singapore because it was super cute and the quality was very good, and the poplin is from a local shop. I used an old Ottobre pattern that I slightly altered, I think the original dress had tucks instead of gathering and puff sleeves or something like that, and of course I added ruffles that I finished by encasing the raw hem in folded narrow bias tape:

I like my dress because it's really nice to wear, I have my broderie details and even though it's black I don't think I look overdressed in it, or do I^^?

Swans and zebras

Brace yourselves for an umpteenth version of my favourite babydoll style pattern, this time it's a top with short sleeves made with excellent -and I don't use that word lightly^^- swan printed cotton:

I found it in a local shop, the name on the fabric is Stof and when I looked it up I discovered that it is a 100% French brand! They design prints and make fabrics in their own factory in Loire and yet their prices are very reasonable and the quality is great -you can have more details on their website here .

Naturally I LOVE that print because it features swans that are both adorable and graceful, which cannot be said of all animals:

Dora got crazy when she found that heap of old roots and branches and proceeded to rub herself in it for half an hour^^

I also have another animal printed creation I want to show, it's a low waisted dress I made for my mum using cotton from another local shop but this time it is the Japanese brand Lecien:

It was super simple to make, I took a sleeveless top pattern and added two gathered rectangles for the skirt :)

Tiny hearts

I cannot resist a cute print so when I saw this heart fabric I had to have it! I also like the fact that the hearts are black, it makes the fabric quite understated actually:

It's cotton of course, easy to sew and comfortable to wear :) I used one of my favourite patterns, my self-drafted kimono sleeved top/dress with a wide encased elastic at the waist:

Here's the thing worn:

And yes it passed the test of a full day of work at the four corners of the island as you can see from my big smiling face above!

Best summer dress - sleeveless!

I almost never wear sleeveless clothes because I find my arms very chubby but I think that at nearly 35 years old it's time I got rid of this complex -but I'm totally doing push-ups three times a day to try and limit the damage^^
I decided to start this wardrobe revolution with a trusted and beloved pattern, yes my favourite babydoll dress, so I simply deepened the armholes and neckline a little and got rid of the sleeves naturally :)
I had the perfect fabric for it, a 1 metre coupon of beautiful burnt orange linen that an adorable sales assistant from a local shop gave me because it had a tiny tear in a corner!!

To make this simple design a tad more interesting I added a mock tab with covered buttons on the bodice and I bound the armholes and neckline with self made bias.

Finally for once the pockets are made with the same fabric because any other one would have shown since the fabric is a little see-through!

 

I'm so much into orange these days, to think that I used to hate this colour and now I even want orange shoes and dream of orange hair:

Best summer dress the third

Here's a purple linen version of my current favourite pattern, I made it with 1 metre of fabric as usual -well that's because here in Reunion most fabrics are 150 cm wide^^

I used some chambray remnant for the pockets and flower bias tape to finsh the neckline and sleeves:

There's not much more to say except that I'm super happy with this dress and that I have many other versions to write about :)

Another best summer dress

Well I said I would sew more and since this dress is so quick and easy to make, here's the second version:

I used 1 metre of cotton fabric from the same local shop as my Liberty knock-off one, I think the print is adorable with its stripes and flower bouquets! The pockets are light yellow poplin and I finished the neckline and sleeves with bias tape.
I also made the necklace using beads from an old one from my teenage years -I'm not a hoarder obviously^^- and adding a little chain from my stash:

 I stole this awesome scorpio pendant from my mum.

I hope you're not bored of this design already because I really have several more planned!

The best summer dress!

I'm SO happy with this garment, I think it's my new favorite dress! I used my hacked Japanese top pattern and 1 metre of some Liberty knock off to make it. I didn't know what to do with this fabric and since it was cheap and there's plenty in our local shops I figured it wouldn't be a big loss if my dress test didn't work. Well the result looks super cute IMO and the fabric is so nice to wear, it's light and very soft, the perfect material for our hot summer!
Regarding the pattern this is really a cropped top with a gathered skirt, it retains a little shape thanks to the bust darts but apart from this you pull it over like a tee-shirt and that's it :) I added side pockets for once and I should do so all the time because I feel so cool walking around with my hands tucked in them -even though I got sweaty palms because they're like little saunas when it's 31° Celsius^^
I finished the neckline and sleeves with bias tape and made a simple folded hem for the skirt:

Now I want to make one in madras, another one with polka dots, another one with big pandas on an off-white background, another one with stripes... I need help!

Almost Anna dress!

I had been dreaming of an Anna for months so when the amazing BHL girls released the pdf pattern I was ecstatic! I LOVE the maxi length versions of course but I must admit that I haven't printed the long skirt part yet, indeed my favourite part of this pattern is the bodice which ticks all my boxes: demure bateau neckline, kimono sleeves, fitted waist and full bust :) I was seriously obsessed with it and all the excellent variations I had seen on the blogs so I decided to add my own skirt to it and I got this:

I'm SO happy with this dress and I have so many things to tell you about it^^ Let's talk about the fit first, I cut a size 8US/12UK, moved the shoulder seams 1cm to the front, added 0.5cm to the front sides and removed 1.5cm from the back sides and took off a 2cm horizontal chunk at the back even though I should have removed a bit more because the bodice still wrinkles a little and is sliiightly lower at the waist than the front:

The skirt is a 70's New Look pattern which I have made a dozen times, it's so simple yet pretty and it doesn't need as much fabric as a gored skirt.

As for the fabric it's a complete mystery, I know I bought it here in Reunion but where exactly I can't remember! I had forgotten about it until I spotted it at the bottom of one of my fabric cupboard shelves, I think it may be upholstery because it's a little heavy and the wrong side is whitish but the print and colours are gorgeous IMO:

I finished everything, hem included, with black bias tape and I handsewed a regular zipper at the back.
This is actually my second Anna, I made one with a gathered skirt that I have yet to take pics of, but it's not as wearable as this one because it looks like an out of control cupcake so I'll probably refashion the skirt part and show it to you afterwards!

My first Cami dress...

... and certainly not the last, OMG what an excellent pattern! I bought the pdf version on Pauline Alice's site for the super cheap price of 8€ and there were only 14 pages to print and tape together since the skirt is a basic dirndl that you draw yourself.
Being used to trace Japanese and Burda patterns I forgot that 1.5 cm seam allowances were included so I made a first muslin for size 36 that was much too tight. I made a second one for size 38, this time it worked really well except I removed a horizontal chunk of 1.5 cm at the back because of my swayback problem, but it's an alteration I have to do systematically anyway -I'm working on an Anna dress right now and I had to remove 2 cm this time!
I chose the short sleeves version because I didn't have enough fabric but I so want to do the 3/4 length sleeves, especially after seeing these ladies' amazing creations :) I used adorable nautical themed cotton I found in Singapore, you can't really tell from a distance but there are actually colorful little boats all over it:

Since I was very short on fabric I used navy cotton for the front facings, inner collar stand and undercollar:

I found five orange buttons in my stash and didn't mess the buttonholes too much:

Finally I didn't want to add the side zipper because mine always look wonky so I cut two panels for the front skirt and sewed them so that I'd have a placket and closed it with two snaps:

I think this dress is going to be a staple in my wardrobe, it's so easy to make and flattering, I can't wait to make other ones for me of course^^ but I also already have requests from my mum and bff who want theirs!

Manekineko dress

I made this dress a few months ago and had totally forgotten about taking pics of it, which is a shame since I've worn it a lot! I used my NHK book pattern and excellent Japanese cotton from Nippori with the nicest shade of beige, lucky charm cats and other Japanese symbols and seals ever :)

I love this pattern so much, it's simply magic: it takes 1.5 yard of fabric and 1.5 hour max to make and it's so comfortable, cute and 60's looking! Also for this one I had bias tape, seam binding and ricrac remnants that matched the fabric perfectly so notion stash busting checked:

Couture Vintage

It's the name of a great sewing book by Tonje Thoresen I bought last year and today I'm presenting the first dress I made using it, the "Robe Princesse", which is kind of strange considering that it has regular darts and no princess seams at all:

So here are the pic and drawing of the dress from the book:

 

I muslined the bodice only, I raised the neckline by 2cm because it was too deep for my taste and that's it, I made a French size 38 which is very comfortable but next time if I want a more fitted look I'll definitely make a 36. Also I didn't put the bow because I'm a little fed up with them -I can't believe I've just written that!
I stole that AMAZING fabric from my mama's stash, it's "Garden" by Hokko, a Japanese brand and I know she bought it in Tomato but I can't remember how long ago. It's soft cotton and the print is to die for IMO! Since it's getting slightly colder here I could wear it with my trusted refashioned denim jacket:

I also made the romper or "Combinaison Brigitte B." from the book a few months ago using black linen, it's cute but I don't really like the photos -they lack essential pink hair:

It was too plain so I added an iron-on appliqué from some 100 yen shop, it's a cute little girl ready for the rain:

 

To sum it up I think this book has some really cute and cool retro garments to offer so if you're into that style go and buy it :)