Passport dress

The conclusion to my Lisette pattern trio is Simplicity 2209, known as the Passport dress.  The bodice is a linen/rayon blend with ricrac trim at the neck and waist, and the skirt is some Ikea cotton.  This was my second attempt at this dress (the first came out a bit dumpy and I haven't blogged it), so I knew that the waist needed to be several sizes bigger than the rest of the dress if it would fit me!  If you have a defined waist, this is a great pattern for you.  The rest of us, however, can make it work.  

You might be wondering about the bodice color (my husband is...), so let me explain that it was inspired by this photo in the Lisette Flickr group.  That seamstress added neck and waist trim, which inspired my ricrac-a-rama.  Ricrac is great stuff and I need to remember to use it more often.  Originally I had bought a different fabric for the skirt, a nubby mustard/brown cotton stripe.  Then I opened up the kids' closet a few days ago, noticed that Ikea heap peeking out, and realized I could do a lot better. This cotton from Ikea is fairly substantial, more so than a typical quilting cotton, so I feel it makes a respectable garment fabric.

Side note: I wore this dress to synagogue this morning and I got two compliments, both of which began with, "Did you make that dress?"  Is this a slight of my sewing skills?  Or a keen eye for something original?  Let's hope for the latter!

Ottobre tunic for Liora-loup

Behold the Jänönheinä  tunic (what's up with all those trémas/umlauts?) from Ottobre's autumn 4/2010 issue.  I made it in the 74 cm. size and it's ample even on my little butterball of a 16-month-old.  The fabric is leftover Lisette lawn from my blouse and gingham from JoAnn (why can't they sell 100% cotton gingham?).

Hopefully this will still fit come next 4th or 14th of July!

Shower curtain tunic

Continuing on my Lisette pattern streak (did you miss it?  I've made TWO things!), here's the Portfolio tunic (Simplicity 2245, size 6).  The fabric is a fabulous cotton twill with a fun story: my friend Dawn bought it as a shower curtain, changed her mind, and gifted this pink and orange happiness to lucky me!  This provided some useful pressure (entirely self-imposed, mind you) to actually bring this shower curtain into a new form.

I am curious what Lisette designer Liesl thinks of sewists' interpretation of this pattern, because when I checked the Flickr photo group I found a lot of icky muumuus that made their wearers look rather rotund.  And then of course, I forged ahead anyway and made a floral version myself.  By the way, checking Flickr groups (or Patternreview) is a good technique to get concrete ideas of how patterns look on normal people, not models, before you sew them yourself.  You can also see what a pattern yields in a variety of fabric prints and weights to make a more informed decision.

The tunic has some fun details that you don't usually find in a regular pattern:

1. Front yoke/princess seams that turn into pockets.  As a teacher, I feel that pockets are an essential part of all my clothes, so this is a very good thing.  Normally I would consider pockets on a tunic to be a real no-no (bulky, child-like), but I think these are clever and classy.

2. A little square piece below the neckline (perhaps this has a technical name?!).  Someone more creative could probably make a real fashion statement with this tidbit.

The one part that threw me for a loop was the cuffed sleeve, because I followed the directions for the long-sleeve view by accident.  I will forever be reminded of this error because my facings pop out a bit at the underarm as a result.  Now, do I have leftover fabric so that I could choose to redo the sleeves?  Yes.  Am I going to take the time to make this tunic perfect?  Of course not.