curtains for you

Recently we took a trip to Oregon. We had a great experience visiting with our children and grandchildren. On the way home we took a detour and went to a Goodwill in Medford. I found a peach and white printed curtain and thought the lace would look beautiful if made into a dress. It took me a little bit of time, but I finished it today and think it is just peaches and cream.I added a bit of lace I gleened from an old wedding dress. The motif has pearls and sequins to adorn it. Also the pearls are complimented by a strand of trim along the dropped waist line and around the neck. The sleeves are 3/4 length, and have the same lace as the bottom ruffle. It is a three tiered ruffled dress with a peach lining and petticoat underneath. The large bow is detachable. I think it would make some little girl very happy. It is a size 2-3 years.

Trip to Portland

We had a great time traveling to Portland to meet with our favorite model and do some buying for Amma J's upcycled clothing. Here are some pics of our girl wearing some of our designs.

Blueberry Buckle circle skirt dress

Here is a sweetheart of a dress I made recently.

It features a circle skirt and a diagonal crossed bodice. The fabric I found at a local thrift store, and the lining is from a new sheet I purchased at the same time. I added white piping to the bodice.

A white satin ribbon rose and white with blue ribbon bow adorn the umpire bodice

I made a cute little cap to match with the same ribbon and rose.

The eyelet lace at the hem and on the hat was  

 upcycled and makes the outfit
just perfect for the summer
picnic in the park.

Valentine dress

I had a special order for this Valentine dress. It is hand smocked. The dress itself is made from an upcycled fabric found at one of the local thrift stores. I added a petticoat of white eyelet. The edge of the dress is scalloped with white eyelet lace and red piping. Red satin ribbon roses adorn each scallop. The smocking is in a pattern of hearts and flowers. The collar is also embroidered with red roses and lace and piping. The dress is finished with a large red bow and whiwte buttons. The little girl looked gorgeous in this and it will become a family heirloom for them.

Delft blue dress

I love the way some of the vintage pillow cases have cut outs in the embroidery. This pretty dress was made from one such pillow case. It seemed to have a blueish hue to the embroidery. I tried unsuccessfully to copy the embroidery. I just couldn't get the color right. I used a pretty blue fabric I upcylced to use as an underskirt and bodice. The sleeves are gathered and then I put a scalloped edged cap sleeve on top to set it off. The flowers on the waist band are silk. I had to take the plastic off and add these pretty pearl staemens. they are all hand sewn on. To finish the look I added an antique button from Aunt Jenny's button box. It is closed with a zipper and hook and eye closer. It is a size 2.

Dancing ladies dress

Here are some pictures of the Dancing ladies dress. I thought some puffed sleeves would make the dress look retro. I added a pretty corn flower blue ribbon to pick up the color of the sashes on the ladies' dresses. Because I didn't want to cut through the hem stitching the dresses is closed with shiny pink buttons. The petticoast is white with pink tulle to add some fullness to the skirt. I think some grandmother would love to see her little girl in this vintage inspired creation. It is a size 18mo. - 2 years.

Dancing ladies

One day when I was visiting my local Hospice thrift store, I noticed a bunch of hand embroidered vintage pillow cases hanging in the linen section. They were so beautiful. Someone did a lot of work on them. My favorite was one with ladies in pink hoop skirts dancing around the hem line. It also had flowers and hem stitching. I thought it would make a wonderful creation for Amma J's. I also had picked up a few weeks earlier this pink table cloth. At first I thought it was fabric, but when I unrolled it, it turned out to be a table cloth. It was an exact match for the color on the ladies' skirts. I decided to add some pink and white lace I had found to the bottom of the pillow case. It wasn't gathered, so I had to do that. Then I wanted to carry the flower motief onto the peter pan collar so I embroidered the same image onto the white collar. I added some pink piping for good effect.