I Dream of Jalie Jeans

I was inspired by the lovely jeans made by the PR's who reviewed this pattern. My daughter was also impressed with this pattern and urged me to add this to my wishlist and purchase it as soon as possible. Because this was actually my first time at sewing jeans, I thought it would be a good idea to make these jeans "on a smaller scale" before making them for myself.



Pattern Description:

Women's flattering stretch jeans with slim fit through the hips and thigh and a flared leg, back and side front pockets, zip fly with button closure. View A has a low rise (2-3 inches below the navel) and View B has a regular rise (at the navel). I made View B.

Pattern Sizing:

Multi-sized pattern from toddlers to adult. I sewed an equivalent of a size "7". I should have used a "6", but it is better slightly loose than tight fitting.


What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

Favorite Features

*Wonderful instructions, especially for attaching the front zipper. I made more mistakes in attaching the belt loops than in the zipper construction!






*Pant legs have a nice flare, similar to one of my daughter's Old Navy jeans.


Slight dislikes

*Loose waist (remedied by cinching with a belt)

*Long length (remedied by folding the lower hem into cuffs)



Fabric Used:

Stretch denim from ah-hem, excuse me, from Jo-Ann's



After changing needles, I highly recommend a needle specialized for sewing with denim. Being stubborn, I thought a "universal" needle would work on my medium weight stretch denim. I noticed a remarkable difference in the topstitching and the machine's handling of the fabric after switching to the new needle.


Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Surprisingly yes. Even the back pockets of Heather's jeans came out low like what the young Jalie model was wearing.


Were the instructions easy to follow?

Whoa! There were 50+ steps of instructions. But I expected that after reading the reviews.



Honestly, I found that they were easy to follow, decipher and perform. Don't be overwhelmed by the instructions as I was at first glance. They are user friendly and I suggest downloading the instructions from the Jalie website and read them first while referencing to the very helpful diagrams. I admit, I made some errors in placing the pieces in the wrong positions (i.e. the pockets and the yoke fronts), but it helped to re-read the steps and carefuly examine the diagrams before pinning and stitching.


Here are some highlights:




* I traced an image of a star (onto tissue paper used for gift wrapping) from a page of the craft section of the instructions in a recent Burda WOF magazine. Then I stitched it onto the back pocket. The lines helped guide my stitching.





* "Star and Swirls": I attached the back pockets, back yoke, and topstitched the seams. I also prepared the front pockets.




* "Face the Pockets": I added the facing to each pocket.




* "Got Sass on Pockets" I sewed each pocket to the upper edge of the front leg.



* Turn the front pockets to the inside



* "Putting on the Zip". I did not have to worry about shortening the zipper until the attachment of the waistband. From past experience, I would cut the zipper to size and reinforce the bottom with a little coil of stitches.


Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:

*No alterations. The only modification was Heather's choice of design for the back pockets.


Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

Yes. After some adjustments (especially in the waist and length), I plan to make another pair for my daughter. I also will be bold and sew a pair for myself.


Conclusion:

I absolutely recommend this pattern. If you are like me, who have been intimidated by making jeans and front fly zip pants, then you will very much appreciate the friendly and fluid instructions for this pattern. I even recommend it to advance beginners who welcome a workable challenge. After making my first pair of jeans, especially with this pattern, I became inspired and courageous to make more pants with fly fronts and also to improve on technique. I need to work more on my topstitching and being familiar and being more familiar with what needles to use on certain fabrics.


Despite the jeans' "imperfections", Heather liked wearing them nevertheless and proudly replied to one of her friends' comments, "My mom made them." I was shocked and surprised that her friend responded, "I don't believe you. What store did you get them from?"


You will discover that all of your time and efforts invested in this project will be worth it.

Asterisks in the Sky

After our experiences from shopping at the girls' department at Macy's and Kohl's, I have been discovering that RTW rarely offers stylish and comfortable tops for girls in my daughter's age group. My daughter is slowly distancing herself from character inspired t-shirts and tops.





Pattern Description:
"Top with criss-cross front. View A has a short flutter sleeve, View B has a flared three-quarter sleeve and View C is sleeveless." I sewed the sleeved and sleeveless versions for my 6-year-old daughter.

Pattern Sizing:
There are 27 sizes (toddler to adult) in one pattern. I sewed the size based on a girl's approximate age of "7" years.


Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes.


Were the instructions easy to follow?
Yes. I found the diagrams particularly helpful when I was not certain about the written instructions. I made sure that I cut all notches, which certainly helped me immensely in lining the front bodice pieces along the sides with the corresponding notches.

The directions and diagrams are printed directly on folded pattern sheet. For convenience, I downloaded the directions from the Jalie website.



What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?



Likes
*The convenience of a multi-sized pattern. I recently re-traced a slightly larger size of another household favorite Jalie pattern, the twist top, for Heather.

*Easy-to-follow instructions and clear diagrams.

*The criss cross style of the front bodice.

*I agree with Kbenco, in her review regarding the top fitting nicely on a child.

Slight dislikes
* I agree with the other reviewers that there is some extra ease in the front lower piece. Next time I plan to reduce the width.

* The lower front is not fully attached to the criss-crossed bodice. It is sewn "partially" to the lower edge of the under layer or the bodice that is not fully visible. Such feature is more convenient for nursing moms.

* I omitted the elastic below the bust after reading several reviews of this pattern to eliminate the potential bunching.

*I could have taken in the side seams another 1/4" due to my daughter being slender.


Fabric Used:
Poly jersey from GorgeousFabrics.com

Modifications
*Skipped the elastic wherever indicated to reduce bulk


Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Yes. I have already sewed 2 tops for Heather and plan to trace the pattern in my size, keeping in my mind that it will mostly likely fit differently on an adult with my proportions.

Conclusion:
This is really a nice pattern that produces a stylish top with little time and not so much fuss especially after making the first version.

We Are Thankful For...

Heather shared her Thanksgiving projects that she completed at school.

I was particularly intrigued by her "I am thankful" booklet.

Each page was a cutout that represents one of the true wonders of our world.

I am thankful for...
The good brown soil,
The green hills,
The tall trees,
The clear, clean water,
The tall purple mountains,
The bright warm sun,
The big blue sky.

Now I feel that I have not really been over the years very appreciative of the "natural" gifts whose importance transcends that of our technological gadgets.



I chuckled at one of "Heather's feathers": "Heather's thankful for squirrels". I asked Heather about this and she responded, "Because they are so cute." I added that they are not so cute when they are disease-ridden. We occasionally spotted a squirrel or two at the school where I work, especially when there are no students on campus. The little critters must reside somewhere on campus, certainly on the lookout for food. Heather has a high appreciation for nature and its inhabitants.




Here's one of my favorite songs that so nicely expresses my gratitude and thanks for the generosity of others...

la la la la la la la la la.................


You've been so kind and generous, I don't know how you keep on giving
For your kindness I'm in debt to you
For your selflessness, my admiration
For everything you've done, you know I'm bound, I'm bound to
thank you for it....

la la la la la la la la la ...........................


You've been so kind and generous, I don't know how you keep on giving
For your kindness I'm in debt to you
And I never could have come this far without you
For everything you've done, you know I'm bound, I'm bound to
thank you for it....

Na Na na na na na na na na na
na na na na na na na na na na


Oh, I want to thank you for so many gifts you gave with love and tenderness,
I wanna thank you
I want to thank you for your generosity, the love and the honesty that you gave me
I want to thank you, show my gratitude, my love and my respect for you,
I wanna thank you

Oh I want to thank you, thank you, thank you,
thank you, thank you, thank you...

(by Natalie Merchant)


Happy Thanksgiving!

Wonder Girl

The iconic Wonder Woman from the late 70's, Lynda Carter:



It seemed just like yesterday when we went on a little trick or treat excursion last year. After being Snow White, The Little Mermaid, and Tinkerbell, what's left for little girls, or how about picky first graders? For Halloween this year, Heather originally wanted to be Dorothy of The Wizard of Oz, and changed her mind to Belle, and then she could not make up her mind.



United States Customs, I Mean Costumes Service
Possibly with the comeback of the "Superhero" or in this case "Superheroine", Heather decided to be Wonder Woman. Barbie last year recently released the upscale versions of Wonder Woman, BatGirl, SuperGirl and others.

Taking a yogurt break at a local shopping center's Halloween event.








After some reprieve from those megacephalic Bratz beings, she became interested in the Wonder Woman Barbies: my 1999 version and her 2003 "pink label" version.

Let's get ready for the red, white, blue, and....gold!


Fabric Selection
Late September, we skipped Joann's and went to our local Yardage Town. Heather suggested we purchase the fabric well ahead of time. She's one of those who hates procrastination. In fact, more than half of her homework to be done during the fall break completed just after the teacher assigned it. I was impressed that we found some red cotton/lycra (2 yards), gold lame?? (1 yard), and star spangled cotton fabric (2 yards). Each of the fabric selection had been marked 20% off the original. The lady kindly included an additional 20% for the notions (thread, various buttons) and did not charge tax on some $1 patterns we purchased.

Designing Wonder Women
The challenge was how to get started. Heather asked me politlely and intermittently for nearly two weeks, "Mom, are you working on my Wonder Woman costume?" Here's my usual response, "I'm still designing it in mind ..." It's harder than what I thought it would be. I went through my pattern stash and became more befuddled as I thumbed through the envelopes.






Pattern Transformation
Then last Saturday (Oct. 11), I discovered a tiered slip dress that I transformed into a "Dora" dress that I made for Heather 3 years ago, and the wore often before she outgrew it. I liked the design and felt I was up to the challenge of transforming it into a Wonder Woman , more like Wonder Girl, costume, something very age and school-attire appropriate.




It's a Bird...It's a Plane... It's a Spider, No, it is not a candelabra!!
Heather suggested that I started with the eagle. I thought it would be easy to design a caricature of one and translate it to fabric. Uh oh, actions are harder than words. I wanted to draw one suitable for a young girl, not one for Lynda Carter. My first sketch would get a nod from "Spider Girl." I simply am not geared for being a graphics artist. I almost gave up. Then Heather showed me a sticker labeled "United States Customs Service", containing our national bird in all its glory. She mentioned that she selected from her class's goody box. I made the final template on yellow paper.

To create a "quilted" eagle, I pinned the template onto the folded fabric and cut two pieces. I applied fusible interfaced on one of them and sewed the pieces, right sides together along the edges, leaving the edge of the base open for turning the entire eagle inside out. I lightly pressed the eagle, pinned it to the front of the bodice and topstitched approximately 1/8" from the edge. It was quite tricky to sew with these fabrics and especially with these fabrics together.





To finish the neckline and armscyes, I sewed the "right" side of each bias strip (cut 2" shorter than the circumference) to each edge from the "wrong" side. For instance, since the circumference of one armscye was 39, I cut a bias strip with length 37" and width 1 1/2". Then I turned the bias strip to the outside, tucked the raw edge approximately 1/4" and topstitched approximately 1/8" from the folded edge.







Accessories

I used the gold pleated lame for the headband, waistband belt, lasso, and bracelets.

*Headband with red star
I modeled it after Heather's knit headbands. I handsewed a sequined red star that I purchased from our local Yardage Town which equates the cost of two spools of thread.

* Adding the waist band/belt
I cut two bands, one 1" shorter than the width of the front bodice (measured flat) and the other 1" shorther than the width of the completed back bodice (also measured flat). This allows the entire bodice to be a little more snug at the waist and just above the hips.

*Golden lasso made from a bias strip folded in half and sewn right sides together and turned inside out through an inch opening at the center.

*Two bracelets folded made like the belt, but of course, except that it is much shorter in length and joined at the ends.




No More Tiers
I used the bodice of the dress of McCall's 4113 for Heather's Wonder Girl costume. I originally intended to use the skirt tiers and attach them as seen on the illustrated model, but Heather changed her mind and wanted a detached skirt (McCall's 5091, left skirt) . Maybe this would allow some versatility.

Conclusion
Red boots? Nah. Heather wore her very comfortable UGG boots to school yesterday. She and the other children had fun participating in a little costume parade. I'll add some red "boot covers" just in time before trick or treating.

As for trick or treating, Heather is one of those rare(???) children that sees it as a fun venture in itself. She generally does not like candy (i.e. Skittles, lollipops, etc), except M&M's and the little Hershey chocolates.



She is also tough on crime! Happy Halloween!

Pretty in Pink and Puffs

Heather and I recently on Saturday, August 29, took our first official trip to a garage sale (this is the first time I personally visited one). After quickly sifting through several boxes of patterns on the lady's kitchen table and in her living room (she was very kind to welcome us to her home), we found altogether 10 patterns. This was the first pattern that caught Heather's attention. She was intrigued by top's style as illustrated on the pattern envelope. She liked the shirt's stylish collar and puffy sleeves which we do not recall seeing in her size in current RTW. Once we reached 10, we stopped searching and paid for the patterns and 2 folds of fabric.

Heather was very excited for me to make her this top and left the pattern conspicuously in the family room (stayed there for a week before I sewed the top) along with the buttons and the tissue paper on which for me to trace her the same pattern in her size from the given "10".





For some strange reason, I can easily imagine Jan Brady wearing those types of tops, especially the one with the big collar. It's so "her"!

Special thanks to Annette ("Idunna" on Pattern Review) for sharing pictures of her wearing tops made from same pattern. She looks groooooovy!





Pattern Description
From 1974: "Girls' top and bell-bottom pants". The tops with front seam interest features "V" shaped neckline, short set-in sleeves tathered to sleeve band, fornt button closing and tie ends.


Size
Girls' size 10.


Fabric
When her picture taken day was scheduled for Tuesday, September 8, she reminded me again that she wanted to wear the top pictured on this pattern and would like me to make the top in the pink cheetah fabric in a cotton/rayon blend that we purchased days earlier from W-Mart. When Heather tried this top on (just prior to adding the puffed sleeves), her dad joked her about being ready to fly with her wings on. I was certain the collar reminded him of plane flaps. Heather looked at him quizically.







Favorite Features
*Large Peter Pan style collar. I like the ease of construction and placement along the front neckline. I cut 4 pieces, interfaced a pair, sewed each pair right sides together, turned each pair inside out, topstitched the edges, and basted the edge that would be stitched onto the neckline. Each collar flap extended from the shoulder seam to about 3/4" from the front corner.

*Puffed sleeves with band

*Curved upper and lower bodice

*Upper bodice is gathered at lower edge

*Top-stitched edges

*Contains a back facing piece

*Nicely drafted


Not-so-favorite features
* We were not able to find a pattern in a smaller size (i.e. girls' size "7")

* Pattern envelope was missing the entire back section of top and one of the piece for pants. I could not find them in the envelope, between other pieces, and in the directions sheet.


Directions
The directions were clear, simple, and easy to follow a la Kwik Sew. I was able to rely nearly entirely on the illustrations. I liked how the pattern pieces, cutting layout, some tips, directions, and illustrations occupied one two-sided sheet.


Modifications

* Traced all pieces of the collared shirt pattern onto tracing paper and adjusted to two sizes smaller

* Drafted the missing back given the silhouette of the front top (upper and lower bodice combined)

* Omitted the side ties that tie in the back

* Used 4 buttons instead of 6

* Sewed the collar band to the edge of the sleeve 'after' instead of 'before' sewing the sleeve seams (flat). I sewed the right side of the band to the wrong side of the sleeve and turned band to the outside (correct side showing). Then I topstitched very close to the pressed-under edge (pressed under approximately 1/4") that covers the seam formed by the upper edge of the band and the lower edge of the sleeve.

* The top is a little loose for her (noticeably in the waist) but still very appropriate and wearable.


Conclusion
My daughter has often requested me to make sleeveless knit tops like the ones I have been making her for months now. She insisted that she button this top all by herself. I was getting frustrated with her forcing the button through the buttonholes instead of turning them sideways to fit into the horizontal slots. I was afraid that the buttonholes would not last with her persistence. "Heather turn them sideways to go with the buttonholes." But maybe it's good for her to practice buttoning her tops without my help. It has been awhile since she has worn a top with a buttoned front because she has been accustomed to the convenience of tops that slip easily over her head.

I highly recommend this pattern for that lovely young lady you know. It seems to be rare to find current patterns of stylish blouses or shirts for girls in my daughter's age range. Occasionally I would find nice outfits in the children's section of Burda WOF.

Saturday Sewing Sale

Last Saturday, August 29, Heather and I went to a "seamstress garage sale" advertised on an email directed to all employess of my school district. The items belonged to the mother of one of the employees who used to teach sewing and other courses. I was curious as to what items would available. The home is not too far form ours.

When I drove past the home, I was intimidated by the many boxes of "junk" in front of the garage and the crowded looking garage. Heather suggested that we just take a look. I agreed and who knows, we might find something interesting. We parked our car near a corner and walked past a few homes before walking to the driveway. The boxes in front contained many odds and ends of colorful fabric that did not intrigue me. Many seemed to be about a yard of remnants that seemed to need laundering. As we entered the garage through what seemed to be the only walkable path, Heather "spotted" some stretchy cheetah fabric and immediately snatched it. It was the only fabric on the shelves that she liked. There was fabric with some interesting print, but I passed for fear that I would stay longer than I should.

Then we met a friendly lady, one of the daughters of the late seamstress/teacher. She asked what I was looking for and told her retro/vintage patterns. She responded that she has a whole bunch of those and pointed to a Simplicity drawer (just like the ones in fabric stores) replete with vintage patterns, of which most if not all were from the 1970's and possibly early 80's. Many were in plastic bags that included their directions and seemed to be missing their original envelopes. Just when I was ready to go through a drawer in further detail, the lady welcomed us to her home and took out two boxes of patterns and placed them on a kitchen table. Heather was eager to locate some children's patterns and became disappointed when most of the patterns were for teens and adults.



She was fascinated with a 1974 Simplicity pattern's envelope having illustrated models wearing flared pants with cute shirts with buttoned front and puffed sleeves. I would also agree with her on this style and would not mind having an adult version of the same style.



There were so many patterns thumb through and we did not have the time to stay so I just picked up what I could easily make such as a 1970 "super simple" from Simplicity. I also took an early 90's tailored short jacket, a la The Nanny (Fran Drescher). Then the lady pointed to the living room where there were more boxes of patterns! Oops! I could not turn down her offer! I found a cute dress from McCall's with a criss cross back and an "It's So Easy" princess seamed top with cap sleeves. There were many "enticing" styles, but what prevented me from not grabbing more than the 10 we purchased were that many of the sizes were in the 8-10 range. Again, there were few children's patterns in the boxes.

On our way out of the garage, I found glenplaid for Heather's skirt. Each folded piece of fabric was $1, a super deal. Altogether, with the 10 patterns, and Heather's cheetah fabric, I spent $12. Just as I had planned, we did not walk out with an armload of stuff.

Cheetah-Rific

Last fall/winter, I made Heather a "Cheetah Girls" tunic from this Simplicity pattern:



She's very happy about the style!


Twin-kie fun!

I just finished the second version this afternoon and Heather wore it to her grandparents' house.

Pattern Description
"Girls' jacket or vest, knit dress in two lengths and tunic. I sewed view "C" (with semi-detached gathered sleeves) in the tunic version

Size
Girls' 8, 10, 12, 14, 16. I made an estimated size smaller than an "8".

Fabric
Poly knit jersey (left over from our matching tops made last year) purchased over a year ago from Gorgeousfabrics.com.


Favorite features
*Trendy sleeve style
*Thick shoulder straps (also knows as the upper front yoke)
*Gathered center front in upper bodice
*Easy to construct.
*Comfortable

Not-so-favorite features
* Why does this pattern (and many others) draft patterns for girls assuming they are built like little football players?

* Maybe not so much in the first version, but in the second version, I noticed during my daughter's first fitting, the neckline was unacceptably low and just drooped. Since I made the first version 8 months ago, I do not remember clearly what modifications I made, if any.


Directions
They were fine and the illustrations helped further clarify certain steps such as placement of semi-detached sleeve onto the armscye by placing on the marked dots.


Modifications
*Instead of using loose, long machine stitches to gather the center of the upper bodice, I used a 1/4" wide piece of elastic, stretching while I sewed.

*I noticed even after the straps were taken in further, the upper front edge still drooped. After looking at the pieces to see what I can do, I moved (more like scooted over) what seemed like extra fabric in the upper edge of the upper bodice towards the strap so that it would further overlap the strap, thus becoming part of the larger seam allowance between the front strap and the upper bodice.

*Three baste and fit moments (someone almost became irate and impatient) resulted in an additional 2" in the seam between the front strap and the upper bodice.


Conclusion
Despite my challenges with raising the neckline of the upper bodice, I was able to complete my daughter's tunic within 3 1/2 hours (includes pinning the pattern and cutting the fabric). If I sew with this pattern again, I would sew the dress/tunic with the fully attached sleeves. If you have this pattern for a young lady you know, check for the fit of the front straps and bodice and adjust accordingly. Other than that fitting issue, it's simple to sew, and even better with a serger!

Camp Rock-ette

Heather had this pattern in her stash for some time now.


Pattern Description

From the Project Runway series: "Child's knit dress with skirt and sleeve varations."

Fabric
'Camp Rock' printed cotton. I should have paid attention to the pattern envelope to see that it required stretch fabrics. Hmmm.



It is apparent that the Camp Rock-Jonas Brother craze (joining Hannah M.) has entered our household. Yup, my 6-year-old is a fan of the Jonas Brothers.


Nowadays, I guess there are not much young, wholesome and cute male singing groups to choose from as compared to when I was a younster (the Bay City Rollers, Jackson 5, the Osmond Brothers, the Monkees. to name a few). Kevin Jonas reminds me of cross between a young Greg Brady and a young Tom Hanks...



I laughed when somebody mentioned in her blog about the Jonas Brothers potentially being related to this legendary singer/songwriter
The Original Jonas Rocker


A fashionable solitary rocker. Yup, cool hair, nice lapels and placket.


This has not made headlines yet, but who's that girl?...Auntie Jonas?



Size
Girls' 3-4-5-6-7-8.

Likes
* Versatile pattern because it enables you to select a style element (sleeve, skirt) of your choice to create many unique styles.

There are three types of sleeve variations: puffed short or three-quarters length with lantern cuffs, or sleeveless. The front bodice is used for both the sleeved and sleevelss versions. For the sleeved versions, front and back upper yoke pieces are attached to the front bodice and the 'high' back upper bodice to form a square neckline. The sleeveless version goes with the neck band or shoulder straps attached to the 'low' back bodice with an elasticized band at its upper edge.

There are three types of skirts which are all gathered upper edges: standard skirt with hemmed bottom, standard skirt with bubble-hem, and the double tiered skirt.

There is also the option to add a ruffle at the center front or along the upper front.

Dislikes
* Since this is a 'Project Runway'-inspired pattern, you would have to determine the total yardage you need. I would not rely on the yardage for the individual pieces, because they tended to be overestimates.

* The cutting layout is by piece or by style element instead of each view in its entirety as shown on the pattern envelope. It was helpful to look at the 'croquis' sketch and select the style elements from there. On the section with the name and sketch of all of the pattern pieces, I placed a dot in each piece that I intended to use for a sleeveless dress. I used the bodice front, front facing, front ruffle (center front), low bodice back, shoulder strap and the skirt front and back.


Directions
* I referred to the directions that went with the particular style elements that I was using. So, the directions can be jumpy due to skipping over sections irrelevant with the style I chose. For the sleeveless version with shoulder straps, I started on the third page of the four pages of directions and diagrams.

* The directions and the diagrams were sufficiently clear. However, I thought that the directions for the neck and front center ruffles, there was no mention of finishing the lengthwise edge. So I turned under 1/8" from the raw edge and stitched a very narrow hem along the rectangular strip. To gather the ruffle, "stitch 1/8" in each side of gathering line, using a long machine stitch."

Modifications
* Added 3/4" to the width of the front center ruffle before cutting. I thought it was too narrow when I cut it from the pattern sheet. As just mentioned earlier, I turned under 1/8" from the raw edge of the rectangular strip and stitched a very narrow hem along each side before gathering.

* I used a cotton woven (oops! I forgot that the pattern asked for knits!). I cut the front and back bodice along the bias and added 1/2" extra to each side seam. I definitely recommend following the stated fabric requirements after 'sized for stretch knits only'. Simplicity should have bold-faced that so that I can see it better...

* After another fitting, I slashed the center back of the dress and I added a self-made rectangular facing of the same fabric to add more width. From the remaining fabric, I cut two strips 3" wide to be folded in half and topstitched.

* I ended up shortening the dress another 2"

Conclusion
I made a matching pair of pants and Heather prefers the pants over the dress. She is at that stage (out of kindergarten) where she prefers something comfortable and still stylish. I realized that she likes wearing knit dresses with skirted bottoms.

I will sew this in a knit! Once you have a particular style in mind, you could sift through the directions, making note of which steps are used to achieve that style.

Gifts for My Mommy

Heather hinted throughout the week that she had some special surprises for me. Yesterday afternoon she excitedly gave me a little white bag with pink and blue stars that she drew and colored. Wow, I had little butterflies when I opened the bag. I received a Mother's Day card with a beautiful message in it signed by Heather and a tulip on the cover (she cut and pasted the little red vase), and
a little ribbon bounded notepad with a pen and Heather's adorable sketch of me and her printed on the lower left corner of each page. The sweet notepad consisted of xeroxed pages of a reduced sketch that each child drew of his/her mother and him/her so that it would appear on the lower corner of each page.




Heather's teachers are amazing to prepare the notepads and the beautiful cards with the pre-cut tulips and heart-warming message for the mothers of the children.



The children recently learned about measurement. Heather told me that Mrs. B measured all of the children and arranged them according to their heights. Taped to the left inside of my card is a folded green "stem" that represents Heather's height Mother's Day of this year. This is a very sweet memento to be treasured now and for years to come.

"As I have grown these early years
Mommy dear you've seem me bloom.
The stem will show in later years
How tall I was this special Mother's Day.

I thank you mother for your daily unconditional
Love!
You are helpming me become
A beautiful flower in this garden of life.

Happy Mother's Day
This May 2009"

Heather




Happy Mother's Day to not only our mothers but also to all women for their love and support.

Miss-Cute-Ears

After I made a red ribbed knit version (first version), Heather became hooked on this top, especially after discovering that it was quite easy to sew. She asked me to make more!




Pattern Description
"Fast and Easy"
"Girls' tunic, dress, sash, and leggings" Pullover tunics and dress have hem variatons. A: lace inset. B, C yoke neckline. C: sash. Leggins D has casing and elastic waist." I made view A, the crossover tunic with a ruffled bottom, and an inset or what I refer to as a "mock modesty cami".

Size
7-8-10-12

Favorite Features of this View
* Easy to make
* Few pattern pieces for view A, front, back, inset, and bottom ruffle/flounce.
* Cap sleeves
* Has sporty and feminine style.

Not-So-Favorite Features
*Neckline of the inset is low and somewhat loose. It has a tendency to droop forward little.
*Extensive gathering for the bottom ruffle



Fabric
First version: cotton rib knit:



Second version: girly cami poly knit with some spandex



Third version: poly jersey from Emma One Sock


Directions
I was impressed with very nice illustrations alongside the sufficiently clear basic directions in an easy-to-read and step-by-step format.

General steps:
* Stitch front and back sections at shoulders.
* Finish neckline
* Lap the front over the left matching the notches, large circular dots, and centers. Baste the lower edges together.
* Add optional trim to the inset.
* Pin right side of inset to wrong side of front. Baste armhole, side and lower edges
* Stitch front and back sections together at sides, below the large dots. Clip seam allownces to circles.
*Make a narrow hem at armhole edges.
*Stitch ruffle sections together at sides.
*Gather upper edge of ruffle.
*Finish lower edge of ruffle. Trim is optional.
*Pin upper edge of ruffle to lower edge of tunic. Adjust gathers, baste, and stitch.


Modifications
* For the second and third version, I used elastic thread for gathering the upper edge of the ruffle. Why didn't I think of using that for the first version? I wound some elastic thread on the bobbin, loosened the tension a notch and voila, the upper edge of the ruffle had already gathered on its own! I left enought elastic threads of the end so that the gathering does not "escape" and pulled those ends to further gather the upper edge.

* I raised the inset or modesty bodice panel another inch

* When Heather tried on each top for the first time, I lightly marked the points belowthe front edges on which to tack inset to secure the fronts edges and thus prevent them from "flopping about".

*For the third version (Target bullseye version), I added a white strip (about an inch wide after folding in half lengthwise) to the upper edge of the inset. I like that it stabilizes the neckline and raises it to a more appropriate level.

Conclusion
Definitely a simple and stylish top for your fashion conscious young lady. If you have this pattern and plan to sew this view, note the level and drape of the neckline and securing the inset to each of the front edges. The flounced bottom, fun fabric and trim give character to a plain knit top.