The Imaginative Seamstress

I made this for my daughter, Jubilee, just before Christmas time. Its my version of an Elsa dress. Needless to say, she is in love with it. Its made from a light nylon lycra fabric, so it stretches easily. It was quick to make since I didn't need to add a zipper or buttons :-)I lined the bodice, front and back I think... I went almost completely without a pattern. I used my swimsuit bodice pattern, and then used a shirt of hers to go by for the sleeves. And just measurements for the skirt and train..  When it snowed, I took a couple pics of her wearing it outside. She didn't like the cold, so it didn't go over really well. :-)  "Mom, its cold!"  

Earlier this morning I posted about shrinking a favorite dress.. I had also posted in a sewing group on Facebook. Its called 'Sewing It Up - Sewing for Beginners'. I'm not a beginner by any means. I had applied to this group while I was waiting to be approved to some other group...and they were taking a while. I didn't expect to stay in the group, I was simply curious and wanted to take a look around. I haven't spent a lot of time there really.. But I tell you that I didn't expect to learn things from a group that was labeled "for Beginners" Its truly not just for beginners. Everyone helps each other out and its fun learning from each other! I know sometimes FB groups can take up time but lately they've saved me so much work its incredible. A guy in one group told me how to get the dumb pop ups off my computer, and I had a add-free computer in 20 minutes! Totally awesome!  Back to posting in the 'Sewing It Up' group... This was the turn ou...

Sad news... Last night I washed my barn dance dress and I guess it was the first time I had done that. When I pulled it out of the dryer I could tell it had shrunk! That was stupid. I should have either washed the fabric before I made the dress or air dried it last night. It had been 2 years since I made it and I guess I just didn't remember if I'd washed it or not :-( Now I'll have to make another before next year :-( I loved that fabric! Maybe I could find a similar one? I did get to wear it to 2 barn dances, and one thanksgiving, so at least I hadn't *just* made it. That would really stink. So now I'm in *what to do* mode.   2012 I wouldn't mind a teal blue/turquoise with brown dress.. but that probably wouldn't go well with whatever Josh is wearing..unless its like a solid brown? Or maybe it'd be fine. Or maybe I shouldn't worry about it and go with whatever I think would make a cute dress?   2012  2014  I've had thi...

 On Tuesday evening I made the mistake of drinking coffee... and not going to bed. I could have gone to bed, I could have made myself lay down and go to sleep. But then, I could stay up too... so I stayed up and worked on orders. When I was finished working on orders I grabbed the new, black, knit fabric which was laying in a heap on the floor. I pulled out a pattern I'd bought months ago, and made the top I've been dreaming about making. When I finished the knit top, I rummaged through my to do bag. (which is always hanging on the back of my sewing chair) (I should take a picture of this bag, my sister made it and I adore it!) In the bag I found a partly taken apart t-shirt, which my Mother-in-Love had given me back in the Spring, I believe. And I finally went through with making a skirt out of it. The turn out was marvelous! So why stop there?? I grabbed more fabric from another heaping pile on the floor and made a second skirt! Somewhere along the sewing path, the sun came u...

Leggett, that would be my maiden name, just in case y'all didn't know. My brother Micah was the 3rd to get married, just 2 weeks ago. Now my Mom only has 6 more to go... lol!  Months before the wedding, on the joyous day of going to pick out bridesmaids dresses I was invited along, and was largely pregnant with baby #2. It was quite the car ride (ahem, van ride) with 4 expectant ladies and one who was sick a couple of times. Oh boy! Anyway... we'd gone to David's Bridal to seek out bridesmaids dresses. Beckah (the bride to be) had already found her dress, and it was lovely! Now all we needed was to choose dresses for the attendants. There were 4 of them and everyone had their own opinion. They searched for something fairly modest. They'd found one that was pretty decent. Beckah didn't know if she should send Micah a picture to see if he liked the dresses or just buy them... I said to her, "You know, its probably the most modest thing you're going to f...

In 2010 my 'then' suitor Josh, (now Husband) had asked me to a Valentines Swing Dance. I made a dress for the occasion and his mother made him a matching vest. I thought with Valentines coming up I'd make a post with pictures :-) What could be more fun?! I used a vintage ADVANCE pattern. Pattern found on Etsy. I love Etsy! I also found my Sister's  Wedding Dress Pattern on Etsy.    ~*~ First I made a mock up in cotton fabrics...    Later I took better outdoor pictures. After the mockup, I knew all the adjustments that needed to be made for the actual dress I'd be wearing to the dance.  Pictures were taken by my friend Tasha :-)  It was later that evening I got my first "I Love You" from Josh <3 Two weeks later we were engaged to be married!  *I am hoping to wear the dress for a Valentines Dance again this year. And yes, it still fits...even after baby :-) ...

Once upon a time my friend Jennifer wrote me an email asking if I was able to make her brother (a professor of physics) a doctorate robe. Well, I didn't know about that but assuming there wasn't much I couldn't do, I told myself, "sure, I could figure it out". Come to find out there are no decent patterns out there for them and the reason he was wanting one made is because they're terribly expensive. If he was going to have one he was going to have it well made. He's one of those that if he has to spend money, he's getting the top of the line in whatever it may be. Geoffery brought to me a robe he'd borrowed from a friend, so that I could make a pattern from it. I only had a few days with the robe before I needed to give it back to Geoffery, so I took a bunch of pictures and did my best to make a pattern. Here are the pictures I took of the borrowed robe...  The back   Inside the yolk. It seemed that there was felt to keep the nice shape ...