Fall Florals

I picked up this dress a while ago and there it sat....waiting.  I have several projects that are patiently tucked away just waiting for motivation, time, and inspiration to transform them into something new.  I loved the floral pattern and color of this dress.  It originally had elastic shirring at the bodice, but it was completely stretched out and formless.  It was also rather long in length.

You can see from the following picture that the elastic shirring was completely stretched out.  I also wasn't crazy about the white elastic thread showing through.

I started by picking out all of the old elastic thread.  I then filled a bobbin by hand with elastic thread.  Using regular thread on top, I set my machine on the longest stitch length.  Without backstitching the beginning or end, I proceeded to sew rows of stitching across the bodice, leaving enough thread tails to tie off later.

When I finished stitching the rows, I turned it to the back and pulled the top threads through to the back.  A straight pin worked well for this.  I then tied knots at the beginning and end of each row of stitching.

Now my dress had some shape to the front!  I wore my pocketwatch necklace from this past post.

Let's Runaway to the Circus!

Each Halloween I like to do coordinating costumes with my husband.  We also decorate our van for trunk-or-treating to match the theme.  This year, I was inspired to do vintage circus after thrifting a heavily embroidered and sequined skirt.  As it turned out, the weather didn't permit trunk-or-treating, so the activities were moved indoors.  I have to admit it was easier decorating a classroom than running electrical cords and such to decorate the van!

I had fun collecting curtains, fringed trim, decorated tins, etc. for the circus theme.  I also found a music box clown that I modified to fit the theme.  I ordered a cymbal-clanging monkey from Amazon.  After printing out letters and different flourishes, I made a sign using foam core board.  The white globe lights around the perimeter operated in random motion and added to the fun.  We also made a "Wheel of Fortune" from a bicycle wheel (not shown).  The kids had fun spinning the wheel and then choosing a prize from the appropriate container.  I also printed several vintage circus posters and hung them around the room.  I found some free calliope music on the internet and had it playing for the evening.

So here's a few more details of the costumes...

Tinley Rose

My daughter recently gave birth to our eleventh grandchild.  The score now stands at 6 girls and 5 boys.  But, our son and his wife are expecting in February and the score will once again be even!  Grandchildren are so much fun!

My daughter really wanted to do some Disney princess scenes for the newborn photoshoot.   I admit, we may have gotten a little carried away!  We had fun gathering items from thrift stores to use in the scenes.  It was a full day and a half of shooting, but in the end it was worth it.

This is Tinley Rose in Wonderland.  The playing cards announce her birth date, 9-23-17.  The Mad Hatter hat shows her weight, 9 lbs. 2 oz. The tape measure that was used in the hospital shows her length, 19.1".  She was born at 9:04, so all of the clocks were set to that time.  I made a new cover for the Little Golden Book that features her name.  Her little dress was refashioned from a women's blouse, utilizing the elastic sleeve and button detail.  She got double duty out of the dress since she dressed as Alice in Wonderland for halloween this year!

(Photo editing credit to my oldest daughter, Kim!)

(Photo editing credit to my oldest daughter, Kim!)