I live in this dress. It's comfortable enough to throw on and chase the kids all day, but it's nice enough for a date night out.
I originally bought this fabric (Mood!) like 3 years ago on a
girls' weekend to L.A. fabric district. We each bought a yard of this gorgeous fabric to see what we would do with it. I was so nervous to cut into the fabric, I ended up tying it around my waist and joking with a "no sew" tutorial. To see what everyone else did with the fabric,
click here.
Just before leaving for Hawaii back in May, I decided it was time to do something about that yard. I didn't have enough yardage to make a dress knee length, so I got creative and color blocked the top to give me a little extra room at the hem. I didn't want it to look like I just pieced a top and a bottom there. I sliced and diced Megan Nielsen's Briar tee pattern. I raised the neckline a touch and pieced the front and back. Piecing isn't as hard as you might think. Especially if it's in straight lines. It's easiest if you have some tracing paper. I like to use large sheets of tracing paper from a roll (
you can get them in 24", 36" and 48" widths
). See below for the full tutorial.
We had so fun at the photo shoot that I forgot to get a straight on back shot of the dress so here's one flat from my studio.
Sewing the 'v' together was a little tricky since I didn't want any puckering to occur (go slow!), but I tell you, using two knit fabrics for piecing like this is a lot easier than piecing two woven fabrics together. There's a lot more wiggle room. Literally.
First things first, you'll need:
For this, I used a pattern piece from the Briar Sweater pattern. This technique works on any pattern piece.
Draw a line where you want your color blocking to happen. Drawing directly on the flat pattern how you want the pattern piece to look and where you want the seam to fall.
Then slip the pattern piece under the tracing paper and trace each section carefully. Transfer markings and information.
THEN ADD SEAM ALLOWANCE. You'll add the same seam allowance to your color blocking lines as the pattern calls for. Write those seam allowances on the pattern pieces.
Cut your fabric pieces out and align right sides together from the top corner to the middle. Pin at the pivot point.
Sew up to the pivot point and release your presser foot while keeping the needle in the fabric. Align the remaining fabric pieces and pin. Continue your line.
Here's the key: press your seam and top stitch the seam allowance to that side. I chose to stitch the seam allowance pointing upwards because of the fabric choices it just looked better.
Now sew your pieces together as directed in the sewing pattern. DONE!
Outfit details:
- hat and bracelets: c/o Tai Pan Trading
- necklace: handmade (tutorial)
- dress: handmade by me! using Briar tee pattern
- shoes: Toms
*This tutorial is free for personal use and should not be distributed/republished without my consent. Altering any files is NOT ALLOWED. If you would like to use this freebie for commercial purposes, please email me. Thanks!
I had just enough fabric left over from my color-blocked shift dress that I thought I would make her a matching skirt. Then she suddenly grew too tall for the black shirt you see above.
Instead of giving it away or saving it for June, I repurposed it as the top of her new color-blocked dress. Now we really can be twins! Also, I don't have to keep nagging for her to pull up her skirt and down her shirt so that the two ends meet. The below-the-knee length on the dress will give her a lot of versatility. She's growing like a weed. 
As it stands, this is her go-to Sunday dress along with a sea-foam sequin number I bought for my sister's wedding. Proud mama moment right there when I don't have to nag her to wear the things I've made for her. It certainly makes me want to do more (and more to come, her halloween costume this year is epic).
This girl cracks me up. She styled herself, put on the lipstick and mascara herself and begged me for the photo shoot. She got a bit sheepish when her friends were near the playground, she didn't want them to see her lipstick. It breaks my heart when I see the self-consciousness come to play. I hope she can hold off just a little longer before she cares what people think.
Outfit details:
The fabric is a lightweight linen I got from Miriam (turns out she bought it from Walmart - seriously sometimes they have fabulous fashion fabrics!). It's breezy, which is perfect for the long hem, so it catches in the wind and looks freaking awesome. Paired with the black faux leather leggings, I'm channeling Trinity over here (minus the shiny leather).
Sewing the beaded collar wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. I ended up relying heavily on my zipper foot and it worked like a champ.
Pattern-wise, I went off 
I love how this blazer/kimono/blazono works with black leggings. I'd like to try it with a floor length chiffon skirt (black or marbled grey?). I've been thinking about black tie attire lately. I'd like to have a go-to outfit for fancy stuff. So far I don't have anything like that.
Outfit Details:
I'm going to take you through the veeeeeery beginnings of doing calligraphy with markers. The class only lasts an hour so I'll be taking attendees through a guided craft (Holiday cards!) using markers and script.
I hope you come! It's going to be a fun event with all sorts of great ideas, crafts, classes and items to help you gear up for the holiday season. I'll have a table set up at the event selling class kits (
