Tag Archives: sewing for children

Skirts, skirts, skirts

So as Debby called to my attention, there are things I have made to post. Hooray!

Dancing Queen Skirt (Niamh)

I’ve been in a fug of not-enough-sleep for so long that my crafty groove was in danger of disappearing completely, but since the year turned, little by little I’ve been clawing it back. On one particular day lately, I was just desperate to be doing something other than cleaning the house (which really needed doing.). So Niamh and I turned up the ABBA music, she danced, and I put together this simple little skirt. And then she put it on and danced some more. It’s the Dancing Queen skirt! And the next day, Molly needed one to match!

Dancing Queen Skirt (Molly)

The main fabric is from the ‘Natural Effects’ line by Michele D’Amore. I love this particular fabric, it’s striped with three different patterns, so the end result looks more interesting than just a rectangle of fabric with an elastic casing (which is what it is!) Also, I bound the hem with some Denyse Schmidt ‘Flea Market Fancy’ (the only piece I’ve ever owned. How crazy are people for this fabric line?!) Result? Super cute:

Skirt Girls

Several days later, (actually nights… I left it until late late late one night to work on tulle for the first time. Coz I’m smart like that.) I put together this sparkly concoction for Niamh’s dance classes. Each Thursday Niamh goes to a dance class especially for tinies. It is very cute, but it oversteps my tolerance for PINK! just that little bit. Since there’s not really a dress code (low-stress dance classes = good), I figured I could make something which fitted in with Niamh’s requirements of pretty and sparkly, without it being PINK!

Mermaid Tutu 01

Mermaid Tutu 02

Mermaid Tutu 03

Yeah, she likes it! Naturally, Molly had to get in on this action too (and please notice uber-cool tie-dye t-shirt, which I made years ago for one of Finn’s bears):

Mermaid Tutu (Molly)

PS. Photos of the booties I made for Rohan (which Debby also mentioned) will be forthcoming. Just as soon as I, um… locate the other one!

PPS. There is a disagreement between my significant other and I as to whether my use of the word “fug” in this post was legitimate or not. Dermot thinks it’s not. Mum agrees with me (I probably learned it from her!). What say you? I present to you this meaning – don’t you think that not having slept properly for a year would lead to a “stuffy or malodorous state” within one’s brain?! I’m standing by it, anyway! (Besides, I like to mention the fact that I haven’t slept for A YEAR to him as frequently as possible! It’s a guilt thing 🙂 )

Little Posers

I’m not going to admit how many hours of potential sleep I squandered last night, because it is downright foolish. However, I am going to show you the result. Finn is off on a school excursion today to experience what life was like in “the olden days” (for the record, he thinks the olden days were when 1 and 2 cent coins were used, haha*)

Ottobre-Waistcoat

Students were encouraged to dress the part, so I hit the op-shop yesterday and dug up a checked shirt for a couple of dollars, and hit the sewing machine late last night to create this waistcoat (pattern is from Ottobre 3/09). Throw in a pair of (non-authentic, Esprit brand, also op-shop purchased) blue jeans and some elastic sided boots, and he should fit right in. Just don’t look too closely at the handiwork, ok, because late-night, sleep deprived sewing makes me incredibly sloppy. When will I learn not to leave things ’til the last minute?! Anyhoo, from a suitable distance it looks good – and don’t you love the model poses?! (Check the pinch-grip though – he’s so tense when being photographed!)

Not to be outdone, here’s another poser – Niamh has recently had a bit of a growth spurt which has allowed her to fit into this tunic a little better (it’s still big though – she should get heaps of wear from it).

Ottobre-Tunic

I love the second pose – it’s her ‘ooh heck, there’s a bee’ look :giggle:

*For my non-Aussie readers, 1 and 2 cent coins were used from 1966 until 1992!