easter dress project saga

I know all of you are just salivating and waiting to see how my Easter dress project turned out, right? HA!

Well, let me cut right to the chase and tell you that I a) made a total of 3 garments, b) made 1 garment that fit and c) wore 0 garments that I made to church on Easter Sunday.

Here's the rundown of events (complete with pictures):

I purchased the fabric and planned out my dress, which you can see from this post. I made this (what ultimately resulted in a high-waisted skirt) by tracing and cutting around a skirt that I already own. I'd seen that on a DIY network show and it seemed easy enough. Only, I counted the selvedge edge in my measurements and when I cut it off, it made the skirt WAY too tight. I mean, I could wear it, but it was way too tight for being on stage at church...and I really couldn't sit down in it. Maybe I could wear it to a club or something...but I don't go to clubs. So, then I contemplated going on a liquid diet for a week so I could wear it comfortably, but then people kept giving me Easter candy and well, my liquid diet just went downhill from there. I still have this first garment. Maybe one day I'll be able to wear it. Of course, this will be after all the Easter candy is gone from my house. Here is what it looked like...

So, after a crazy week at work, it is after all the busiest week of the year for me, I decided to try round 2 on the Saturday before Easter. (I know.) I went to Hobby Lobby to get more of the same fabrics from round 1 and then became distracted by a bolt of seersucker material. Oh snap, I love seersucker. I left Hobby Lobby with none of the original green and brown fabrics but with 2 yards of blue and white seersucker and 1 yard of a lime green and white geometric design fabric. My plan for round 2 was to make the exact same skirt but just make it bigger. So, I did that. I even used the old skirt to trace the fabric for the new skirt (plus a couple inches). I get about halfway through sewing it and then try it on. TOO STINKING TIGHT AGAIN! Now, I'm irritated. What the crap?!?! Then I had a thought. I was trying to use the width of the bolt of fabric as the width of my skirt instead of the length. Basically, I wanted the stripes to run down my body and not across, so I figured that I could get by with just using the whole width of the fabric as it is on the bolt. Too bad my hips are a tad-bit bigger than the width of that bolt. Ugh. Curse these baby-makers. (note, this is a common nickname for "child-bearing" hips. mine have not actually birthed children.)


At this point I realized that I just needed to stick with what I know. I used the rest of the seersucker fabric (I had about a yard left) and made another elastic waisted skirt like my other one I made. Not exactly what I set out for, but it would work and I'd wear it. Thankfully, this one turned out well. I attempted to do a little pleat in front and well, it's okay but I'm not exactly loving it. The good thing about this skirt is that it is breezy and light and perfect for summer or Easter Sunday afternoons when it is 86 degrees outside where I live.


Here is a picture of that skirt.

And a bit of an artsy close-up so you can see the fabric...

Now, for the final part of my Easter saga. (If you're still reading at this point and need a bathroom break, I'll wait...) After trying on my seersucker skirt, I realized that it looks much better with a tank top or t shirt and flip flops and isn't very dressy. I wanted to dress up a little bit more for church, so I opted not to wear it. Plus, because seersucker is a tad see-through I thought that might be a little sketchy when you add me being on elevated on a stage with theatrical production lighting. That could be bad.

So, I made a last minute (read: 9 pm Saturday night) run to my local Marshalls and left with a cute gray chambray high-waisted skirt that I wore with a white tank underneath, a purple cropped cardi and tan pumps. (Pics to come later)

Moral of the story? Sewing isn't for perfectionist or impatient people. It teaches me a lesson in humility and patience along with giving me an appreciation for those ladies who pump out clothing like the OctoMom pumps out babies. I'll continue to stick with sewing, for sure. For now, I just am excited with figuring out how to use all of that seersucker fabric I have. :)