ooobop! sleeveless blouse

I feel like I'm slightly cheating by not having created this from a vintage pattern but I'm convinced the end result has a 40s twist to it. I have been drawling over vintage patterns and dreaming of my next dress but a reality check reminded me that I need some wardrobe basics to replace the tatty ones that come out year after year! This pattern was actually from a Burdastyle magazine, September issue. Very simple to put together, in only a few hours. The little flower buttons were a fabulous find from a local vintage fair a few weeks ago. They were begging to go on a blouse like this! The pleats on the neck/shoulder are very interesting and quite flattering for a minimal bust! The yoke extends from the back section and joins the pleated fronts. I used a bias trim to edge the armholes. More details on my blog

"Dreams Lavender" Dress

   Hello everybody!! I wanted to share with you my latest project, it´s a dress called "Lavender Dreams" , this dress is part of a triligy that shares the same design of lavender, the dress has a collar hand painted by me and then embroidered to highlight the picture.
  The other two pieces of this outfit are the tights also hand painted by me and the little hat that is also made by me. If you want to make any of those twon things, in my blog there are tutorials to make both. 
  Although the pattern of this dress isn´t vintage, (It´s a Burdastyle pattern) I think the look achieved her could pass for vintage , however.
   All details and tutorials, as well as close-up pictures on my blog,   Sewingadicta

One pattern seven bloggers - the big reveal.

It feels like only yesterday, when I sent an email out to a few fellow bloggers and proposed to them that we join together and do a sewing project - One Pattern, Seven Bloggers... and now seven finished dresses!

Today is the big reveal! I apologies for the bad quality photos (and in my kitchen of all places!) but you see, we are having some terrible weather here in Sydney.

So, without further ado, here is my version of the dress...

I cannot tell you how great it has been to be part of this project. It has been fun getting to know the other girls and seeing their emails pop up in my inbox as we all share our trials and successes as we made our dresses.

And don't forget to visit their blogs to see the dresses they have made:

Marie from A Sewing Odyssey

Reana Louise from Curves, Patterns and Pins

Kat from Petticoats & Peplums

Rachel from My Messings

Jen from Pretty Little Pictures

Amy from Sewing Through the Motions

Sam xox

Heidi, sans pigtails, grandfather and gruyere.

I was completely surprised to see that the BurdaStyle Heidi dress, shown here with bizarre styling typical to BurdaStyle, actually has lines not dissimilar to many a 1950s wiggle dress. Don't believe me? Well, checkitout:

Cap sleeves: check. Fitted bodice: well, with a little tweaking, check. Practical and sassy pockets: check.


You folks will forgive me for mashing up my eras, won't you? Loud 1970s fabric, 2000s pattern, 1950s sensibility...

More about the alterations I made on my blog where I forgot to mention that the instructions did my head in. Best to ignore them and use your common sense.

Retro-ish Pants

These are the Nichola Pants from Burdastyle. If you haven't checked out Burdastyle, do so now. Many free patterns to download and print out. It's not a vintage pattern, but reminds me a lot of the type of pants Katherine Hepburn and Marlene Detrich wore, so I'm posting them.

Should you be interested in making these pants, I reccommend reading the reviews on Patternreview.com and looking at the ones other Burdastyle members have made, as the pattern seems to run large. Also, I found by wearing them a few times that the crotch curve is a touch short. I blogged about them here.