An unexpected job

I haven't dropped off the face of the planet.  I haven't even been really busy.  I just don't seem to have found time to blog in the past couple of weeks.  I'm in between big projects and thought I'd have loads of time to catch up on my retrospective look at princess dresses, but somehow it just hasn't happened.  Hey ho.  as Charlotte said to me last week "But that's just life though, isn't it Auntie Sandra?".  She's right.  I'm not quite sure when our ten year old turned into a philosopher though!

Remember the Elsa dress I made for Katie?  Only a couple of months ago.  I was trying to weigh down the cloak so it had some swoosh to it.  And then I cut it too short.  Here's a reminder.

Turns out the dress doesn't have that problem anymore.  At the weekend I got Katie's dress back to do a small alteration.  Well not so small.  After Katie wearing the dress almost non-stop since her birthday the cloak's stretched.  A LOT!  Exhibits A and B.

 

I've had to chop 8 inches off the bottom!  Of course this was the 8 inches that contained the rather dodgy looking sparkly snowflakes.  So I've just spent a couple of hours gluing sequins back on the bottom.  Fortunately my snowflake design has improved.

I had to get this done this week as it's half term next week and we're all going away for a few days.  If anyone's in the Lake District over the bank holiday and they spot two children running around looking like they've been dragged through a hedge backwards wearing Elsa dresses, the chances are they'll be Charlotte and Katie.

Blocks and sparkles

Charlotte's Elsa dress is almost finished!  All that needs doing is a couple of little bows sewing on and the bodice lining tacking down (a step I completely forgot on Katie's!).  And I've still got ten days until her birthday.  I find it slightly discombobulating (one of my favourite words by the way.  The other is 'dirigible'.) to be finished so long before a deadline.  I've spent the last couple of days getting high on Gem-Tac glue.

What do you think?  I like the red sparkles, although I'm not really sure about how well they tie in with the 'Frozen' theme.  I'm also not too sure about the bows, but it's what Charlotte wants.

My snowflakes have improved since I made Katie's dress.  But don't tell her that.  Actually overall the dress is better.  I'm going to be in so much trouble!  There's no sneaky cuts under the arms of this one.  I think I worked out where I went wrong with the last one. I don't think I added seam allowance all the way around the top net bit of the bodice.

The point and the seam matching is way better in this dress.  I refused to let Charlotte have the bow centre front because it would have covered up the point!  Does that make me a bad Aunt?!

We had to add the trim around the curved top of the bodice on this one as it was slightly too low cut at the front for Charlotte.  I'm hoping that's added enough height to the neckline.

That's obviously not an Elsa dress.  These are the blocks I made on Sunday.  They're for a friend of Other Half's family.  Two squeak, two rattle and two scrunch.  I like making sets of six blocks so you can do this with them:

It appeals to my mathematical side.  Ten would be even better, but I think that might be starting to verge on the ridiculous.  Plus I can really only draw hearts,  so for the other blocks we'd just have to have some kind of unformed blobby shapes.  

Finished black and white spotty dress

Finally.  The pictures you've all been waiting for.  Drum roll please.  Although I finished the dress a couple of weeks ago, it was only earlier this week that we managed to get out of the house in some decent (i.e. not foggy) weather.  We went to York for the day, and found a quiet spot in the Museum Gardens.  I wanted as few witnesses as possible for this.  I'm going to apologise in advance for the pictures.  I'm not, as you will see, a natural in front of the camera.  In fact I try to avoid it whenever possible.  The sacrifices I make for you all!

So, for those not up to speed, I wanted to make a dress to replace one that I loved but that fell to pieces.  Well split down a seam once too often to be repairable anyway.  I drafted the pattern myself.  And here's the result.

 This is my 'I don't know where to put myself or how to pose' pose.  This is the best full length shot we got.  No, really.  In all the others I looked just as dopey and a lot more, how shall we put this?  Erm, Buxom.  I think we'll move swiftly along to some close ups of the dress features now.

Collar and sleeve.  Note the lack of wrinkles and puckers in the sleeve.

Slightly (!) baggy front of dress.  This was because I forgot to interface and stay stitch neckline before adding the collar.  I did genuinely forget, but I never really understood why books and patterns told you to interface and stay stitch.  I do now.  The collar was supposed to meet front and back, but because of afore mentioned oversight they don't.  It's a design feature if anyone asks.  It also lead to the whole of the bodice being too big.  View exhibit A below.

I'm not even sucking in my stomach or anything, it really did stretch that much.  Always remember the interfacing people!  See what I mean about the buxomness though?

 And this is quite clearly the back of the dress.  Judging by the stance, it's a bloke in that dress!  I really must practice posing.  I did feel a complete eejit.

Twirling.  There was no one around, which was why I wasn't carted away at this point.  I did want a fuller, more twirly skirt, but didn't have enough fabric.  I also forgot to put pockets in.  D'oh.

And one final shot.

 I feel really stupid now.  Once you've all picked yourselves up from the floor I have other updates.  The dress for the wedding (next week) is finished.  Yay.  Three times I pinned that hem yesterday.  I'm still feeling quite bitter about it.  I've made the World's most over the top wedding card as well.  I'll post pictures of that when I show off the dress.  I will try to get more sensible photos of that.  Today I made a set of baby blocks, again pictures will follow.  I haven't forgotten my nieces by the way (if only!).  Charlotte's Elsa dress needs the bodice lining attaching, the cloak trimming, a hem and lots of sparkles.  I've also just realised it's her birthday in less than two weeks.  I think I should stop typing now!