Smocked Honeycomb Skirt

Have you ever worked really hard on something and just don't like the final result? That is how I feel about this smocked skirt. The one shown in the tutorial on the Victory Patterns blog is so cute! Why didn't mine turn out as well?

I adjusted the waist size several times and put the zipper in twice, but I still don't think that it fits very well. One reason is probably my lack of patience. Another is that the thread in the smocking keeps stretching. The pinched together sections were very tight when I first finished, but now are much looser. I knotted each smocked piece separately because I did not like the "pulled" then "slack" parts shown in the tutorial. Perhaps that is the problem.

Here is the final product. I may try belting it and wearing it higher on my waist. It saddens me to cover all of the smocking, but if I wear it more often, then it is a sacrifice I am willing to make. Or maybe I will continue to adjust the fit in the waist to make it more snug. 

In happier news, I have been doing so much sewing lately. I finished the shirt that I told you about last week and I have another (hopefully better) skirt in the works. I am also toying with the idea of making a quilt!

Patterns: one done, one to do

Today, I am going to the fabric store so I can start a new project. I am going to make the Sorbetto top from Colette Patterns that is posted on their blog, Coletterie. It is free to download. (Have you noticed that I love free?)

Picture from Coletterie

I also finished a skirt last week. It is the Smocked Honeycomb Skirt from Victory Patterns. You can find the tutorial here on their blog. I wanted to show you my finished skirt today, but alas, I have not had a chance to take pictures yet. Check back soon...

Picture from the Victory Patterns blog

I spy St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I hope that these things get you in the Irish state of mind...

Images clockwise from top left are from: asos, Beer of the Day, Gina's Skinny Recipes, Embellish, SeptemberHouse

Midi Dress in Watercolour Print from asos

Smithwicks Beer spotted on Beer of the Day

Baked Potato Soup from Gina's Skinny Recipes

The recipe uses cauliflower as well as potatoes to make it a bit healthier. I was quite skeptical about how it would taste because I do not care for cauliflower, but it was delicious! I will definitely make this again.

Rice Crispy Shamrock Treats from Embellish 

Shamrock Necklace from SeptemberHouse on Etsy

Baby's Crinkle Skirt

Front view

One of my friends has a little girl named Molly that is six months old. (I previously made her a matching onesie and bootie set that you can see here.) I do not know much about babies so I was very entertained to learn that babies love toys that make crinkly noises when they touch them. Armed with this knowledge, I thought it would be very cute to make a skirt for Molly that crinkles. Then she can play even if she doesn't have a toy in front of her.

Back view

\Once, I had a plan, the skirt was fairly easy to construct. I knew that I wanted individual pieces that Molly could grab and crinkle and I knew that I wanted it to be super cute and I knew that I wanted the back to be plain. Maybe a tutorial later...

Inside of the front

I bought way too much material at the craft store because it is hard to comprehend just how tiny baby clothes actually are. But it was nice to have extra for the trial and error of designing from scratch.

I was very pleased with how the skirt turned out. Some of my stitching is crooked, but I think that the overall concept works well. I really love the pink tulle hidden under the crinkle panels, but next time, I would add more!

I spy sailboats

Images clockwise from center are from: Old Navy, mengseldesign on Etsy, cotton & curls, Frank & Gertrude on Etsy, Modcloth

I saw the adorable sailboat blouse from Old Navy (center of collage) and was inspired to see what other interesting boat related apparel, accessories, crafts, and  decor that I could find...

Sailboat Print 3/4 Sleeve Top from Old Navy

Bigger Boat throw pillow from mengseldesign on Etsy

 

Ok, so this one doesn't have any boats on it, but it is a boat neck top and it is a great way to refashion a shirt, so I couldn't resist: 

Refashion a regular neckline into a boat neck shirt on cotton & curls

Foldover Springtime Clutch from Frank & Gertrude on Etsy

An Open Coloring Book top from Modcloth

Coffee Cozy

Perhaps I am crazy, but I don't drink coffee. However, when I saw this tutorial for a Coffee Cozy posted by Jeni from In Color Order on Skip to my Lou, I had to find someone that frequents the coffee shop for which to make it. 

My friend Emily was the lucky winner! (I wonder if my friends like it when I give them homemade stuff or inwardly roll their eyes...) Emily requested a "jewel-tone" color palette. I always have a hard time matching fabrics because I will find one or two that I love and then have to find others that compliment it. Emily didn't complain so I must have done okay. (Side note: I do not know how to quilt, but I love looking at In Color Order because Jeni always uses such beautiful fabric combinations. I will have to use her pictures for ideas.)

This was one of the few tutorials where I followed the instructions exactly as written. The tutorial was really clear and easy to follow. I am very pleased with how it turned out!