George and Ginger – Lively Dress

Summer is winding down, but I still need all the dresses. Dresses will transition to fall if you add layers, correct? Yes! Tights, jacket, cardigan, long sleeve crop, boots… so many options my friends. It is currently too hot for layers, so you are going to have to trust me. I decided to sew up my first ever Lively dress and I am happy I did for several reasons.

1. I adore the gathering at the shoulder and yoke detailing.
2. I love a flirty twirly skirt.
3. Stripes and Floral colorblocking potentional.
4. The pattern has both a tunic and a dress option.
5. Today it is on sale!

Yesss, I love full skirts so much.

Let’s talk about the pattern.

This is the Lively from George and Ginger. It is a great pattern and on their old school size chart. The pattern is sized through 5x which is a 55.5 inch bust and a 59 inch hip. I did a 1 inch full bust adjustment so I could have a little extra room in the bust and belly. Yes, a bust adjustment will add room in the belly which I need in GG patterns. As it turned out, I didn’t need the additional room in the bust, but I am so pleased with my first Lively.

I chose to leave out the lining because I am way too hot for lined shirts. LOL I just added a simple neckband by smoothing the curves at the neckline a bit and moved on with my less overheated life. I also left off the sleeve ruffle because I want to wear a denim jacket over this dress come fall. Plus my fabric isn’t navy on the inside and I hate seeing white fabric inside a sleeve when it billows around.

Back yoke in contract fabric really makes the gathering stand out!

I believe my floral fabric came from The Fab Fabric Clique and the stripes were from an online auction. I adore them both separately, but they worked so well together because the navy blue is consistent and the scale is different. Yes, folks you should totally wear your stipes and your florals together!!! This pattern has a lot of gathering at the back and a=near the front shoulders. I use my serger to gather and I have a video on my YT channel to teach you how. Stop by and check it out. Gathering Video

Like I mentioned above today is the LAST DAY for the Lively being on sale. I know, I know, the month got away from me.

Today only it is $7.50 and you can click here to get it. I thank you for clicking my afflink. This costs you nothing, but gives me a small commission from the designer.

Double Zippered Pouch

This is a little bit of a change of pace for me and my blog. This make isn’t an outfit, but I did make it and it is sewn, so I say it counts! I haven’t had a ton of time to make clothing lately, but I did get a little machine time in to create this little double zipper pouch. I should start by saying this was for a swap which I joined through a Facebook group called Made with Love by Mollie fabrics. This is actually a fabric group, but we did a swap! We were each assigned a partner and needed to make a zipper pouch for someone else and mail them within two weeks. Those were the only rules.

This was my first ever double zipper bag so I knew it would be a challenge to myself, but I wanted be able to send a nice item to my partner. I knew how to make a basic zipper pouch so I did a little research into adding a second zipper on the back panel! In my mind, this was much more difficult than it actually was. So here we go. This is the short version.

1. Create front panel- Major scrappy goodness here my friends!

2. Create Back Panel – Less scrappy, still as cool.

Yep, adorable bikes for inside the pockets!

3. Add zippers and connect panels. It is all coming together now!

4. Finish your corners and Tada! You have a bag. I added jewelry charms to the zippers for a little more whimsy. It really is all about the details, correct? They are super cute and took about 14 seconds to install. Trust me when I say it took me waaayyyy longer to decide which bee charms I should use.

Bzzzzzzz goes the little bees!

I think I need one of these myself, maybe a little larger.

Would anyone be interested in a Youtube video with more detailed directions for completing a bag similar to this? I think that could be fun! Let me know in the comments!

Do you think this would be a nice gift? Christmas gifts anyone??

Ellie and Mac – Tres Belle and Wrapped in Love Dress Hack

Hi Friends! Long time no chat, no blog, no sewing. Sorry life has been a little busy this summer, but I have several fun things coming up including a new Youtube video. I hope you have been enjoying summer (or winter) and have been doing a lot of fun sewing or enjoying life. I haven’t sewn much recently to be honest. I am working on a quilt block swap and I made a small zipper pouch for a swap, which reminds me I should share that. I took lots of pics while putting it together. Anyhow back to our regularly scheduled sharing.

My newest dress is amazing and I am in love with it already. I bet it won’t even shock you that it is a pattern hack from Ellie and Mac. I used the two patterns to create this look. I have used each of the patterns several times, but apparently not together. I am so glad that I was able to remedy that situation because I am thrilled with the outcome. I used the Tres Belle bodice which I have used multiple times. Most recently, I used it on a guest blog post for Ellie and Mac. This is one of the few cross front patterns that I really love which is why I keep coming back to it. This one has enough coverage without having “too much” coverage. It is all about balance and I am trying to understand the rules. 🙂 The only adjustment I made was my typical bicep adjustment. 

For my skirt portion, I used the Wrapped in Love pattern and only cut the skirt. I have used this pattern a few times as well. I love that the maxi length isn’t overly wide and I can wear it without tripping up the stairs. This is criteria for what makes the perfect skirt in my book. 

I normally don’t go for fabric that has a lot of white areas, but there was no way I could resist this print though! If you have read this blog much at all, you know I wer all the florals! This fabric is available from Stitchin’ Pretties and it is called Lydia. Here is the link.  I really love ITY because it feels cool even when it is hot outside. It seems like it is becoming my favorite choice for warm weather. Don’t forget when you shop at Stitchin’ Pretties all the regular priced fabrics are buy two yards get a bonus coordinate for free. So choose wisely and buy all the pretty things!

Here are my affiliate links my friends!

Tres Belle Pattern

Wrapped in Love Dress

Lydia ITY Fabric