Ugly Duckling Vintage Pattern Party

 I'm joining in on the fun over at Simple Simon and Company's "Ugly Duckling" Vintage Pattern Party. I'm linking up the above Very Easy Very Vogue that I'm almost certain is from the 1980s with the super wide shoulder padded shoulders. I think it is ugly because it looks like a plastic shopping bag that literally hangs on the body, it has absolutely no shape whatsoever. But I wanted to let you know the good news, you don't need this sewing pattern to achieve the same look. All you have to do is gather a plastic shopping bag... take a scissors and cut open the bottom.

 Then slip it on. Voila!

 I have some more ugly vintage patterns to share with you... ugly wide and loud ties, that go up to 5 inches wide!

 Sometimes the ugly is more the styling... ugly sideburns and mustache.

 Shiny green quilted fabric on the far right.

 This shoulder-tied dress has a way too high kangaroo pocket.

 Am I the only one who thinks E.T. is ugly?

 This blouse looks like it has too many extra large scarves tied around the neck.

Actually, in my own personal opinion, I think the winner of the ultimate ugly pattern would be this crochet afghan poncho for a man! Too funny!

Spring Showers Jacket Pattern Tour and Discount Code

 Hello from the land of 10,000 lakes. Mr. J is sporting his newest jacket that I sewed up for him for the Spring Showers Jacket Pattern Tour. Many thanks to Heidi of Elegance & Elephants for inviting me to participate.

Guy Cotten rain coat

 I'm going to hit the rewind button for just a moment… way back in 1999-2001 while we were living in France, our oldest son got a classic yellow rain coat. The brand name is Guy Cotten and it's from Brittany, France. All 3 of my children wore this coat (2 boys and a girl). Here's a photo of my daughter wearing the coat at age 2 in 2009.

Guy Cotten coat modeled with yellow rain boots to match

 I love it that a yellow rain coat never goes out of style. My children no longer fit into that Guy Cotten coat, so I sewed up a big kid one using the newly released Spring Showers Jacket pattern. It comes in sizes 2/3 to 12 years. It's got a sewing level of 2.5 out of 4, it's not super difficult, but it is very time consuming as it's a fully lined jacket with lots of topstitching.

 My favorite things about the pattern are that it:

• is gender neutral
• has a visor on the hood
• has a lower back hemline
• has a hanging loop

Hello octopus... hello octopus

 Project details
Pattern: Spring Showers Jacket by Heidi of Elegance & Elephants
Size: 6/7 with added length (about 1.5 inches)
Fabrics:
main: yellow twill (I quite like working with twill)
lining: Free Spirit, Salt water - Octo Garden - Aqua
Notions: 20 inch separating zipper

 This was the first time I sewed an Elegance and Elephant's pattern and I found it to be of a very high quality, with many photos for the steps, the option to print out just one size, and the option to cut out a few pattern pieces with using measurements or print out pattern pieces.

All in all I had very satisfying results.

It's raining outside today... so can you guess what jacket he's wearing?

Exciting news! There is a discount for nest full of eggs readers during the tour. To receive a dollar off the price of the pattern, use discount code: TOUR. You can go here to purchase the Spring Showers Jacket Pattern.

Katie 18-inch Doll Dress

 The Katie 18-inch doll dress is a cute little sleeveless dress with a 7 inch regular zipper in the back. Most doll clothes have Velcro, but Velcro can snag onto so many things like tights and other clothing. You would think that installing a zipper in doll clothing would be difficult, but it really wasn't.

 The fabric came from the leftovers of the Laura Ashley bridesmaid dress and the dress has the same silhouette as the re-engineered dress. I had just enough leftover piping (from the original dress) for piping at the waistline for this one.

If you're looking for a free dress pattern and tutorial for an 18-inch doll, I highly recommend this one. I will definitely be sewing more of these.

Matinee Pattern Tester Blog Tour

 During Kid's Clothes Week I had the pleasure of pattern testing the Matinee Dress by Jennifer from A Jennuine Life.

What a sweet dress this is. I am a huge fan of this style with it's plunging open back and simple sash.

 There are several options:

• sleeveless or cap sleeve dress
• with or without pockets
• contrasting hem
• peplum top

I sewed up a sleeveless dress with pockets.

 Project details
Pattern: Matinee Dress (available is sizes 12-18M to 8) by Jennifer from A Jennuine Life
Size: 6
Fabrics:
1.5 yards light blue polka dot fabric "PaintBox" by Cyndia Rowley for Michael Miller Fabrics
4 inches light pink cotton
.5 yard light blue 100% cotton voile (for the bodice lining)
Notions: 3 pink buttons

 Some things I really liked about the Matinee pattern:

• The clean finish seams on the skirt.
• All seams are enclosed or finished, giving the interior a very polished and professional look.
• Some of the pattern pieces are given in dimensions rather than pattern pieces.
• The placement of items are given as a measurement instead of a marking on the pattern piece.
• It comes with different sized pockets for the different sizes.
• Images are given for every step.
• The pattern and the instructions are really well done.

I really like the one Jennifer made, where in place of the sash she added ribbons in the back. I want to make one that way, too.

The Matinee pattern will be regularly $10, but Jennifer is offering a discount of $2 off for the release through Friday.  On Etsy the code is MATINEE20, and since Craftsy doesn't utilize coupon codes, the listing is at $8.

Have fun sewing your Matinee!

Sunday Brunch Jacket

 I have had this cotton velveteen for over 2 years now, so it was about time to use it up! I had the hardest time trying to figure out what to make out of this fabric… in the end it became a spring jacket.

 Project details
Pattern: Oliver + S Sunday Brunch Jacket (difficulty level of 2 out of 4 scissors)
Size: 6
Fabrics:
Anna Maria Horner LouLouThi Velveteen In The Clearing Berry
For the bias trim I used leftover pastel cottons from the Antoinette dress.
Notions: four 5/8 inch yellow buttons, 4 sew-on snaps
The Sewing: I'm not quite sure I like the fabric pattern placement on the sleeves, but it's too late to change that now.
Instead of buttonholes I installed sew-on snaps (my buttonhole feature is not currently working on my sewing machine, so making a buttonhole is not fun).

 The Sunday Brunch Jacket is a double-breasted unlined jacket has band collar, gathered empire waist, and cuffed long sleeves. Bias trim is used to finish the facing edge and seam allowances. It's a chic and elegant jacket that's beautifully cut.

 This was the first time I sewed up the Sunday Brunch Jacket by the pattern (back in December I sewed a modified one for winter).

This cotton velveteen is lovely to touch, it's so super soft, but it surprisingly frays and crumbles a lot!
This was the first time I'd sewn with cotton velveteen. Have you sewn with it before? If so, what did you make out of it?

Happy Easter!

Re-engineered Dress

 Repurposing, upcycling, refashioning, sustainable sewing, whatever you call it, it's one of my favorites. I have taken a woman's dress and transformed it into a girl's dress several times (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6). Today I have another one...

 This a pink dress refashioned from a Laura Ashley 100% cotton bridesmaid dress (made in Great Britain) from 1989.

Front

Back

4 flaps in the back, 2 small, 2 large

piping along front neckline was removed and reused

very well made dress

all 5 fabric covered buttons were reused

side zipper

bonus! 2 extra fabric covered buttons hidden inside the skirt!

circle skirt = lots and lots of fabric

 I wanted to stay with the sweet, soft, feminine, romantic style of the original Laura Ashley bridesmaid dress. So here is what I did.

removed zipper

separated bodice from skirt by cutting with scissors

bodice and skirt separated

sleeves removed from bodice

original back became the back for the new dress

one large flap removed and ironed

large flap opened up, permanent crease inspired pintucks

pins in a line, fold on pin line

iron on fold line, then topstitch

pintucks, 3 on left, 3 on right, all 1 inch apart

bodice cut out of pintucked fabric

3 fabric covered buttons added to bodice, original piping at neckline, bias tape sewn onto armholes

 For the skirt I took 3 skirt panels from the original dress keeping the original hem. I added in-seam side pockets to the skirt as well as lots of pretty pleats.

fabric covered headband and bow hair tie

All done, already worn, and a very happy customer. Now off to make an 18-inch doll dress out of some of the leftover fabric...

PS Did you watch the Great British Sewing Bee series 2 episode 8? For the alteration challenge they were asked to breathe new life into an old wedding gown, turning it into a little girl dress! Wow, what fun! They were given only 2 hours for that challenge, what a challenge that would be!