First Sewing Project Complete!

    

    It's been a dream of mine for as long as I've had a grown up body to make my own clothes.  I very quickly grew tired of trying to find items that fit my shape and style.  After one particularly frustrating shopping trip, my mother turned to me and said, "Well, sweetie, I guess you're just going to have to learn to make your own clothes."  She was right and I tried to learn under the guidance of several gifted seamstresses, but I just couldn't seem to wrap my head around it all.  Fast forward to when I married a brilliant artist who made his own tuxedo jacket for our wedding.  At first I hoped he would just make clothes for me, but no such luck.  Life happened, the busy years of working, moving, and caring for babies, and I still was no closer to learning to sew.

    In 2015, I was asked to lead a sewing class for our homeschooling group.  Everyone just assumed I knew how because I "seemed crafty."  I did know a lot about certain kinds of hand sewing, but the machine still scared me.  Undaunted I accepted the challenge determined to learn alongside the kids.  After several weeks of working on our doll sized patchwork quilts, I gained some confidence and felt ready to move on.  I looked for the right pattern and a few months ago we made a visit to Nippori, the fabric district in Tokyo.  I chose several inexpensive cotton floral prints to get me started and then waited for my long suffering husband to have a free weekend to begin guiding me through the process.  

    He was so patient and stayed by my side through the cutting out and sewing of the bodice, but left me on my own to make the skirt, attach it to the bodice and put in the zipper.  Each of the attempts I'd made in the past always left me frustrated and eager to just put it all away and forget about it, but this time I loved it.  I loved every minute of it, even the countless amounts of ironing involved.  Maybe it was simply a matter of finding the right teacher, or maybe it has something to do with maturity.  Did I make mistakes on this dress?  Yes, but far fewer than I anticipated.  It fits like a dream, I truly enjoyed making it, and  I can hardly wait to start on the next one.

Shop the Look:
For this dress I used Vogue Misses 1957 sz 6-14 sewing pattern #v8789
Fabric is called Petit Bouquet and is made in Japan, but you can find it here
Forever 21 purse is from ThredUp (use this link to save $20 off your first purchase http://www.thredup.com/r/WKVOY5  )