Double duty sewing double

The April challenge for the Monthly Stitch was Sewing Double. The idea was to revisit a pattern you’d already made – maybe change it up a bit – or make 2 versions of the same pattern. I did a bit of both.

 The bodice of this dress is the perennially popular Elisalex from By Hand London, which I have made twice before here and here.

Another challenge running in April was Sew Dolly Clackett. I am sure you all know what that was about (and if you don’t just click on the link!). Roisin is rightly famous in our small corner of the world for mixing up her patterns and she does love to add a full skirt to her BHL bodices. In true Dolly Clackett spirit I dug out New Look 6223 and used the pleated skirt for these 2 frocks.

Roisin’s signature style also relies heavily on whimsical prints; however I did not think I would ever wear a Cowgirl dress, and using an Eiffel Tower print would just feel too much like a complete copycat, so I looked for something a little more subtle, but still in the same arena of whimsy.

This cute little house print I found on ebay seemed to fit the bill, so I ordered me some yardage and got to sewing. From a distance the houses look like little beach huts, but close up they have lights and curtains and clocks on the wall, so let’s go with cottages.

Not much to say about the construction. I love the Elisalex bodice and it always goes together easily. The bottom half is a no brainer pleated skirt, to which I added side seam pockets.

For my second make I chose this striped fabric from the same ebay vendor.

Roisin doesn’t really use stripes so much, but if she did I’d like to think that she might chose something like this – so this is my “If Dolly did Stripes” dress.

I matched my stripes like a boss on the centre back seam (though nowhere else).

Sadly I neither under stitched my lining nor topstitched my bodice, so my lining seems to be making an appearance in these pics…

I missed the deadline for both the Monthly Stitch and Sew Dolly Clackett. Annoyingly, I actually had both of the frocks sewn up in time, but I just haven’t got around to photographing and posting until today. As I said in my last post – sometimes there are bigger things in life than keeping your blog up to date!

However, as today is the day Roisin marries Nic – the event for which Sew Dolly Clackett was conceived – it seems mine is a strangely timely tardiness. (I think I am right about the date – it’s certainly around now).

Anyway – that’s me done for now. Thanks to the wicked stepdaughter for the hurried pre-school photoshoot (that’s “before she goes to school” rather than “pre-school”). I think she’s hoping to be paid in kind with an Obi Wan Kenobi costume by next Friday. Where did I put that old bedspread?