the (striped) grey dress

Can you tell this is my favorite one ? I love, love, love it. It's a mix of two patterns from this Japanese pattern book. I mainly cut one pattern (which has the pockets on it) and just applied the neckline from another.

No buttons for me (supposedly it has a line of buttons at the back) but just sewed in a zipper instead. Didn't have enough fabric to cut a bias skirt, but I'm so happy with it anyway.

I baldy want to make another one, but not sure if a fall or even winter version of this would work out (maybe with some sort of top underneath and a cardigan on top ?)

And that's it for dresses for now. It's probably my favorite thing to sew, so when we come back from vacation I'm really looking forward to a bunch of new projects to make !

the red dress

The pattern for this white and red dress has been on my sewing to do list for years now. It's from an old edition of Patrones (can't remember which issue but if anyone's interested I'll dig it out later). The pattern was quite straight forward and just needed some minor adjustments (bust and waist, mainly). I quite like the style of this one so I might do it in another fabric soon (must*really*reduce*my*stash).

the blue dress

I know, this dress is kind of very granny-ish looking... but I like it nonetheless. The fabric was given to me by an aunt years ago and it was sort of a test run for using the same pattern with this Lecien fabric which I don't seem to have the courage to cut.

The pattern is nr. 22 from this book and I had a few issues with it. As always with Japanese patterns for me, it was large in some places and tight in others, and I need to add darts to make the pieces more fitted.

I don't think I'll be using the Lecien fabric to make another of these, so I'll have to search for another suitable project. That said, I do like the dress and I'll probably wear it a lot this coming Fall...

this, that (and 3 new dresses)

It seems I've been enjoying summer too much and forgetting to post here altogether :)

Also, there's the fact that I don't really have much to report on, but since we're leaving on vacation this Friday I thought I'd post about a few things I've enjoyed lately ...

Summer reads have been quite enjoyable, particularly due to the recommendation of friends. My favorite this season was the fabulous The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society which I loved, loved, loved. Comparisons to 84 Charing Cross Road (another favorite) are a bit inevitable but this one was so much better. The story and the characters will stay with me for a long time, and already I'm itching to re-read it soon.
Others I've enjoyed were Wildwood dancing for a bit of old fashioned fairytale fantasy, and His majesty's dragon which I unexpectedly enjoyed (have never been a great fan of dragons and such). To go on my packing list for this next trip are Shantaram and a couple of Elizabeth Chadwick's books.



I've also been going through a craze of period drama watching. I had a few BBC titles on my shelf I hadn't seen yet so I went off on a binge. I watched (and loved) the second season of Lark Rise to Candleford, and although the first season was good this one was much, much better. And I'm happy to have found out there's a third season coming ...
Under the Greenwood Tree is based on a Thomas Hardy novel and I had bought this on a whim last year. Finally got round to watch it and found it adorable. True romance and a charming love story. Not sure if it's true to the novel (since I never read it) so I can't comment on that. I also have the most recent adaptation of Tess D'Ubervilles to watch and the first season of City of Vice which seems to have good reviews so I hope I won't be disappointed.



And now for some crafty news (which is the reason I started this blog in the first place) .. I finally managed to finish not one, but three dresses altogether. Here's a sneak peek but I'll try to post some decent photos very soon.



I'm also almost finished with Daisy. Finished sewing the body last night but I still have the sleeves and neckline to knit.

I hope that will go fast, since I can't wait to start on my Fall projects. I'm itching to start knitting with proper wool again, especially these below which just arrived and are ready to be transformed into some paper dolls and a hooded cloud