So after finishing the planning stage of this project, I was ready to start sewing. First, the bodice. This took a bit longer than I had planned, because I guess I should have done a bit more planning. First, I cut out the pieces for the bodice and sleeves from pink satin. Because this fabric frays practically just from touching …
Princess Dress for Barbie – Part 1: Planning
So I was working on a different post that I’ve been meaning to finish and publish, but lately I’ve been absorbed in a totally different project. I’ve spent a lot of time on the preliminaries and it’s gone very slowly, but I’m finally to the point where I have everything I need to get started. This post is going to …
Simplicity 8390 Vintage Blouse – Green Dress
My last posts were about the first blouse I made from a real pattern, and then the second one I made from it. Today I’m showing you the next thing I did with that same pattern. I made it into a dress! For this project I chose a dark green cotton poplin. I also got some light green for a …
Red Silk Sleeveless Blouse – Lekala
This is the first garment I made for my youngest sister using a Lekala sewing pattern. She needed something new and fancy to wear to Mass, and this blouse is the one she chose. She was a teen, but I just put her measurements into the women’s template and the fit was really good. I made this blouse two and …
Blue Gored Skirt – Sewing Pattern Test
I have posted about my first projects using Lekala sewing patterns: the maroon top, the blue fleece top, and the blue velvet blouse. The next project I did was a test for this sewing pattern from Sewist, Lekala’s sister site. When I first saw the gored skirt I wasn’t sure about it. I thought it looked kind of strange with …
Blue Velvet and Satin Blouse – Lekala Pattern
This is my third project using a Lekala sewing pattern. The first two were my maroon wrap top and my blue polar fleece top, both made with this free pattern. After the good results of the first two projects, I decided to go ahead and try a paid pattern, and this velvet blouse was the one I chose for my …
Purple Velvet Circle Skirt – Free Pattern
Last year when I finally got to making myself a Christmas dress, I decided to use this free circle skirt template and simple bodice from The Littlest Studio. After making it and seeing the skirt, I knew that I had to have more circle skirts in my wardrobe. In February my sister went shopping and brought home a whole lot …
Blue Fleece Wrap Top – Lekala
This is the second project I made using a Lekala pattern. The first one was the maroon wrap top I made in June 2017. I had made some mistakes in the measurements of that one, and so it ended up a bit tight. I decided to make another one with the same pattern, this time using polar fleece for a …
Maroon Brocade – My First Real Corset
After my previous corset attempt in 2017, a year later I decided to try again. This time I started with a real corset pattern: the Cupid corset. This is a beautiful pattern, and it came with a booklet that included a materials list, fabric suggestions, how to pick a size, tips on altering a corset, pattern notes, assembly tips, and …

My First Corset Attempt
I love corsets. I love the way they look, especially over a dress or light blouse. Ever since learning to sew, a corset top was something that was on my list of things to make. After making my white fitted blouse that fit me so well, I decided to use the same pattern from PatternLab to make my first corset. …