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3.26.2014

My Ridiculous Dress Sewing List

OK guys, I'm posting this list for record keeping purposes and as a silent cry for help. It's still snowing around here and what I really need is pants. You know something that actually protects your lower limbs from the elements. But does my brain want to sew pants? Hell no! It wants to kick off the summer of dresses early, really early. Maybe writing all this out will bring me to my senses.....or maybe you all could enable me in my bad decisions. I'm OK with our dysfunctional relationship.


1. By Hand London Flora Dress
I bought this pattern on release day and through the oddities of international mail it still hasn't hit my mailbox yet.  Either that or my mailman is getting his giggles from seeing me lurk around the front window every afternoon. Don't toy with my emotions mail dude, I needs me some new patterns. Anyway, when it gets here it's getting traced immediately, snow be damned!  Right now I'm leaning towards the faux wrap bodice, but am undecided about the skirt. I'll be using this flora print pique purchased earlier this year to negate the whole buying on a stash busting kick.  It never even was.

2. Pushing Daises Knock Off Dress
First let's all shed a tear and pour one out for this show killed before it's time. Dresses, pies, a detective that knits and Lee Pace's magnificent eye brows. I'd also like to put out to the universe that if reincarnation is a thing than I want to come back looking like Anna Friel, second choice Zooey Deschanel.  But enough about that, let's talk about Chucks wardrobe.  Girl knows how to wear a dress and I pretty much want all of them. This one caught my eye with it's wrap bodice action, maybe I'm on a wrap bodice kick.  The seaming details aren't too good on the photo, but if I had to guess it's probably a princess line with a kimono sleeve.  I'm going to take the bodice from Burda 117 and put a full skirt on it. My version will be in this stashed blue polka dot because yellow makes me look like a walking dead extra....though technically Chuck is also a walking dead.  Mmm deep man, deep.

3. By Hand London Anna with the long skirt
I'd like an Anna dress with a tropical vibe to it so I can waft into the grocery store like I'm just stopping by to pick up Margarita fixings for my beach party. Preferably with some of these Miss L Fire sandals.  "Oh you all are all shopping for food? How quaint. Now can you tell me which aisle the mini pirate swords and tiki torches are?" Yeah, I'd bitch slap me too if I wasn't so fabulous.  My stash has only one tropical print that is mentally tagged for another project.  In a perfect world I'd be buying some of this print from Australia cause it's perfect. Damn those stash busting/saving for a new sewing machine goals. I want fabric!

4. Gertie Alfred Shaheen-equese Halter Dress
This is the pattern that the tropical print is tagged for, cause apparently I need multiple outfits for fictional tiki parties.  Frog says, "Hey get enough crushed ice and we can have all the tiki parties we want." Good point Frog and I really can't resist the vavoom of this dress.  It's been long enough since my last Gertie sewing project that I've forgotten all about the gratuitous hand sewing and want to drive right in.  Now someone pass me the boning...huh huh huh.

5. Anna/Pencil Skirt Mash up
Instead of having to go through the work of having to grade up this lovely vintage pattern, I'm gonna do a pattern mash-up.  Take Anna bodice, do a little slashing, add Billie Jean skirt and we're done. Then I can break out a bouffant and work on my "I'm so much more glamorous than you" fashion illustration look.  Maybe Joan Holloway can school me on delivering classy put downs.  I've got another polka dot cotton tagged for this baby.  You can never have too much polka dot right?
So that's all the things I have concert plans for.  There are plenty more dress patterns floating around my stash and oodles of printed cotton yardage.  I'm sure someone will release some new dress pattern to add to this list. God help me, I'm gonna need a bigger closet. 

53 comments:

  1. Umm... there's only three dresses you can actually make at the moment and two are from already tested patterns so I'd go with them first. As long as you actually wear them make all the dresses you want! Wear leggings to keep you warmer since you don't want to make pants... although it's very nice when you finally get the fit you've been longing for.
    Now I don't know if I've enabled or not....

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  2. Sorry. Can't talk you down. I love all the dresses. Especially the floral Flora. So very very pretty! Summer will be here before you know it. Best to be prepared.

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  3. Hi, enabler here! Just stopping by to tell you to sew EVERYTHING! :) These all sound amazing. C'mon, just do it!

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  4. sew ALL THE DRESSES! i am on a dress kick myself at the moment. MOAR DRESSES. now if you can just send that frog my way to pin up my hems?

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  5. Pants are overrated. SEW DRESSES!

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  6. www.tresbienensemble.comMarch 26, 2014 at 11:48 AM

    You'll get nothing but encouragement over here. SEW ALL THE DRESSES! I ordered my Flora on release day also, and I received it in IL on Friday last week. I hope your post man hasn't decided he fancies it for himself, though I'm sure it would look cute on him.

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  7. Yeah I'm on team enabler too. Make them all. MAKE THEM ALL! You know, for our viewing pleasure ;)

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  8. Pants just can't compete with this list. Make the dresses! :)

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  9. I love the Pushing Daisies knock off dress!!

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  10. You don't need a new closet, you can just send them to me!! :) I'll take a #3 and a #5. hee hee hee. I love your fabulous plans!

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  11. These are all so awesome...unsurprisingly. I say " Sew it all!" I'm sitting here dreaming of warmer weather as we are being hit by one of the worst blizzards this season so I understand your pain. Let's all burn our pants to celebrate the first crocus blooming! After this winter, we deserve to wear all the dresses we want. Really, come to think of it.... this is a puny list...make more! Or... "MOAAAR!" as you would say.

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  12. Do it. Do it alllll. I've consulted with Froggie and he is in full agreement. As is Des who keeps telling you to go work with your fabric - you can't ignore the wishes of your son! Do the tropical Anna first, please? I now have a craving for a twin dress...
    Umm, I'm not supposed to be talking you out of this am I?

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  13. They all seem lovely. But I love the fabric for your Flora. I say make them all now, and you will have them for summer

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  14. I'll be a voice of ... I hesitate to say reason, because I agree that you should just make all the dresses... *except the one you don't have fabric for* because you totally want that new machine. So I guess you have to decided how much you hate hand sewing. Or flip a coin.

    And spring is coming. Eventually. In the meantime, layer up! <3

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  15. I'm expecting all of these dresses to be completed by the end of April ;)

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  16. oooo Pushing Daisies! I love love LOVE that show! I want all of Chuck's dresses, and maybe even some of Olive's! (I actually have a dress started that makes me think of the show just because of the colors and the print - I really need to finish it!) I need to rewatch my dvds... so many of the fabrics and set details they used were funny, remember the honeycomb brocade suits?

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  17. Oho, I am sooo with you on the sew-summer-dresses-already! wagon, and also on the but-I-really-should-make-pants one. But dresses! I'm on a wrap kick too, and halter dresses, so I'm thinking wrap-halter!
    And oh how I miss Lee Pace's pie making...

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  18. Make the dresses! Your legs can be kept warm with tights, & it'll be Spring soon, won't it??

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  19. Who needs pants when you can stay inside and sew summer dresses? Make them, Make them ALL! Oh and Chuck, I just love her! I wish my aunts/mother were Darling Mermaid Darlings...

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  20. i'm always making the practical stuff, so i rely on everybody else to make dresses... you sew fast--make ALL the dresses!

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  21. Total enabler here! Sew them all and sew some more! muahhahaha

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  22. You're going to get nothing but the utmost enabling from me. I mean, you had me at Chuck! It's going to be in the sweltering 50s in our neck of the woods next week, so get sewing!

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  23. I ran across your blog and knew we were kindred spirits. I too have a long list of sewing projects, lined up like dominoes, patiently awaiting. Once I get the fever I just keep adding and adding to my ever growing pattern and fabric stash. And there is nothing wrong with that! I love the Advance patterned with the cute polka dots. So chic. I will add you to my list and will be watching as you sew up a storm. We all need bigger closets anyways!

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  24. I all read was, "Make all the dresses you want." LOL. No, I read everything, but aren't you proud of me for picking stash for 4 of the 5 patterns?!

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  25. I like the cut of your jib. In the name of summer preparedness I shall sew sew sew.

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  26. I'm going to do it. It's all for you Sonja, all for you....and for me to. hee hee

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  27. Wooo Hooo we can have a little dress party together Jo. I will send frog over to pin up your hems cause he could use a little vacation.

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  28. Haa haa! All this time I've been so wrong about pants. More dresses!!!

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  29. Sweet, sounds like a Flora is in your future. Do you know which version you're making yet? Both of the bodice and skirt options are cute.

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  30. Score another for team enable. I do owe you all pretty things to look at. ;)

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  31. Yes, yes! More dresses and no pants!

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  32. That Chuck needs to give me some of her clothing. I'll take good care of it. Muhaaaa precious.

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  33. You're such a problem solver! We can talk about making you an Anna maxi since you are the maxi queen.

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  34. I'm down with pants burning as a whole "rite of spring". And you're right, after this winter we need dresses, lots of dresses.

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  35. No, you are not supposed to be talking me out of it! We must also respect the wishes of Froggie and Des because they know best.

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  36. Make them all you say. Don't mind if I do. ;)

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  37. Yeah, I gotta work out some fabric thing for that one dress. Maybe I'll steal the tropical print from the Gertie dress and do that one in a floral or something. I gots plenty of floras.

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  38. HAA HAA! I will inform Froggie to hire some sewing Elves to make this happen.

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  39. Yes the honeycomb brocade suits and the one where they had raincoats with prints on them that matched their names! Good that show was fun.

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  40. Sweet, let's ride on that bandwagon together. We will be so pretty and cold in our dresses until summer. hee heee. Now I want pie.

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  41. Good point Tracy, I need to beat them winter blues with some dresses. Lots of dresses. :)

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  42. And then I can buy more tights in fun colors!!! Oh Anne, you've made my day.

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  43. Yessss, we need Darling mermaid darling, mother/aunts. I think they would be pro dresses too and eye patches.

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  44. OK Lisa, I will scratch your inner dress itch and make them. ;)

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  45. Yeah! Sew, sew, sew that dress, sew that dressss!

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  46. Ha haa haa Shelley, you're cracking me up with the sweltering 50 degrees. I'll make all the dress in Chucks name. It's what Chuck would have wanted.

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  47. We need Tardis like closets, am I right? So what's on your sewing list right now? Should I be adding anything to mine. ;)

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  48. I am so proud! I must say I don't know how you have so much fabric because you do sew stuff up like crazy!

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  49. Burdastyle has an answer to all your darling Mermaids wishes, including plastic jellyfish (alas, no eye patches, but I'm sure they have that too)
    https://www.flickr.com/photos/85417478@N06/13487915093/

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  50. That is one ambitious to-sew list. I like it!!

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  51. I say sew them all. Never enough dresses!

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  52. More dresses! And hopefully more warmer weather so I don't freeze taking pictures of them. ;)

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  53. I'm gonna try Andrea, though I have my doubts about the Anna muslin now that I've tried it on. Might be a little too "High druid priestess" for me.

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