Life is Beautiful

Motherhood, Sewing, Family

navy blue & white striped skirt DIY

~ SEWING

i originally ordered a navy blue & white knit fabric to make
anthropologie’s expanding universe tank. however, when i received the fabric,
it was a lot thicker than i’d thought so i decided to make a skirt instead. 
i should’ve looked closer because on the fabric info,
it says it has 20% stretch which isn’t a lot. 
can you tell this is only my second time purchasing fabric online? 
 i guess i still have a lot to learn in the sewists’ world. 🙂

*picture shown of the back of the skirt
–you’ll need: 1/2 yard of striped knit fabric(i purchased mine here),
scissors, matching thread, pins
–estimated time: 30-45 mins.
–project cost: very low(mine was $4 w/ free shipping)
–skill level: a beginner
1. wrap the fabric around you and see if it’ll go around your whole hip/waist area.
(if it doesn’t, then you’ll need to cut two pieces, but this is how i did it.)
2. place the fabric a few inches higher than you’d wear it
and roughly mark with your fingers the length you want it + extra1-1/2 inches.
3. keeping place with your finger where that line is, cut across the fabric all the way.
4. fold about 2″ inward to the wrong side of the fabric and pin it across.
(this will be where your waist will be).
5. fold it in half.  the red lines are to show you where the darts will be.
(the darts will only be in the back and not the front).
6. make the darts by sewing along the red lines shown in the picture.
(you can have the line be more angled as you want but make sure it ends as gradual in the end).
the darts should look similar to this.
7. cut the top 1/2 of the edge so it’s a little rounder like this to resemble a pencil skirt.
8. sew along the edge.
9. hem the bottom of the skirt.
and you’re done!
(excuse my butt shot but it was necessary in order to show the darts ^ ^)
this skirt only cost me $4.
buy a similar skirt at alice + olivia for $165 or make one for $4. 
the choice is yours. 😉

my dress at shabby apple

~ DIY DREAM HOUSE

remember when i made it to the top 15 for the shabby apple dress design contest and the day they announced the winner, i didn’t even bother to check because i knew for sure i had no chance of winning?
it’s still hard for me to believe that i won and it’s harder for me to grasp that the dress is finally made and will be available for sale in august for shabby apple’s fall collection.  shabby apple was kind enough to send me their final product for a sneak peek and i’m excited to share it with you too!
so what do you think?  see my original dress here.
and another question.  i’m looking into manufacturers right now to have a few of my designs made to be available for purchase.  yes, so exciting right?  for my designs i’m thinking about the pleated dress (shabby apple made it a little different and my design will be a little different than my original but even better ;), the split-neck dress, and the sailor dress.  i also have some other designs in mind that i haven’t made yet.  so my question is, would you buy those designs yourself?  and are there other designs you’d like to see have it made?

split-neck pleated blue dress DIY

~ DIY DREAM HOUSE

one day while i was driving, i saw a girl waiting at a stop light wearing a beautiful dress.
it was a very pretty blue, the color of a bright clear sky, had a split-neck, and a pencil shaped skirt.
and i just knew i had to find the same exact dress or make one myself!  so i did.
the difference with mine is instead of doing the pencil skirt, i did a flared, pleated skirt.
i thought it gave it a more fun, summery look.
shoes c/o of romwe
headband from s.t collection
the color doesn’t show up well in these pictures, it’s a brighter, more clearer blue, a lot prettier in person. 
i did use a pattern this time, i combined two patterns, i used the top from a dress pattern i had
(except it was just a round neck one so i made up the split-neck part), and a skirt pattern.
do you like it?

anthropologie gathered hemlock dress DIY

~ DIY DREAM HOUSE

i told you in my older post how i found the same fabric that anthropologie used
for the gathered hemlock dress?  well, i got the fabric and couldn’t wait to make it!
anthropologie gathered hemlock dress
my version of the dress
i made mine slightly different, the sleeves are just plain and not gathered like anthro and a little shorter, and instead of the neckline being a boatneck top, i made mine a cowlneck.  the tulip skirt of mine is not as gathered because i wanted the focal point to be the neckline, and that’s why i also left the sleeves plain, i didn’t want it to be too overwhelming with gathers everywhere.
and my favorite part? it’s actually a top and a skirt.
so it’s more versatile and the possibilities are numerous!
i didn’t use a pattern, i roughly traced a tight shirt i had for the top, made the cowlneck the same way i made this top, and the bottom i just wrapped around me to measure and went with the flow. 

modestify a one shoulder dress DIY

~ SEWING

okay, i really need to stop with this whole ruffle madness.  as you probably know, i love ruffles, and i just counted how many ruffled clothes i have and guess the number—-52!!! i even have 5 ruffled swimsuits! this is getting ridiculous so i vow to not buy or make anymore ruffles! that’s it! we’re done! 
well, after this DIY project that is. he.he.he.  but hey this is my 52nd and my last! (i vow to try my hardest but no guarantees :p) i loved this dress when i saw it but they only had bigger sizes in stock, not to mention it’s a one shoulder strap dress.  so i bought it anyway and altered/modestified it.
before:
after:
i only had to cut off and sew one side of the dress since it’s a tube top and i also cut off the bottom length. (if you notice the before picture it’s a slanted assymetrical length but now it’s symmetrical) and with the extra fabric i cut off, i added the sleeves on both sides.  it’s basically a long rectangle and you bunch up one side in the front of the dress and bunch up the other side in the back and sew.  i did the same for the ruffled shoulder, just a smaller rectangle and i sewed the sleeves under the strap.
then we went to our friends wedding.
dejavu anyone?
such a cute, happy couple! and the bride looked beautiful.
adi: “mom, when am i going to get married?”
me: “when you get older and find a boy you love.”
adi: “but i already have my prince!”
me: “uh…who?”
adi: “daddy! so when can i marry him?”
me: “NEVER, you cannot marry him, he’s mine! i’ve already married him, so bad, so sad.”
okay…so i didn’t say the last line but the rest is all true story. 😉
oh and speaking of prince, there’s this king’s daddy-daughter grand ball i’ve been trying to get jay to take adi and ana to.  the prince dresses up in his tux and the princesses in their fancy dresses and eat treats and learn & practice special dances in a castle-like ballroom.  HAHAHAHAHA, am i the only one that finds this hilarious? i mean it’s such a cute idea and my girls would love it but really? what about those poor dads! can you just imagine a bunch of dads in their best suit with their male testosterones flying across the room while they munch on special treats and practice some special dances in a castle of magic and wonder? jay says no way he’s going so i’ve been telling adi to say to daddy, “but this is my dream come true, daddy! it’s all i want for my birthday! are you going to crush a 3 yr. old girl’s dream?” but it’s not working yet.  but oh how i wish jay would take our girls to it so that i can spy on them and take plethora of pictures to blackmail him later.