A Dress that was Given a Second Chance

These dresses were intended to be for Easter but the sewing wasn't happening then.  The inspiration for them came in a dream back in December and I remember waking up in the early morning sketching it out and taking notes.  The inspiration was not so much the design but the simplicity of the construction, if I could find dressy enough knit it could be pulled off.   Here's what I started with:

  
This is the twin set I picked up at Salvation Army the night I went into labor with George.  I remember not feeling very good (backache and mild contractions), the check out line extended back into the depths of the store and I would have discarded all my items and headed straight home if it were not for this sweater set.  They were just the right color and texture and I was sure I could squeeze two bodices out of them.  At $6 the set was a little pricey for Salvation Army but I knew it was just what I was looking for.

I used the same basic bodice pattern from their knit Christmas dresses only shortening the sleeves, lowering the neckline and replacing the peter pan collar with a standing collar.  The skirt came from a box of scraps my sister in law sent me, it is made from yards of leftover sateen twill only 15" wide.  So I pieced the twill together with a rolled hem exposed on the outside to make it look it was part of the design.

I got that far last week and just as I was about to piece the bodice to the skirt I discovered little slashes across Maryanna's bodice.  She likes to "help" me when I sew but what she had obviously done was of no help.  I threw both dresses in a big heap next to the garbage, ran upstairs passed the neglected laundry and messy kitchen (yes I ignored all my own sewing rules ) and buried my tears in a pillow.  It wasn't so much the loss of the dresses that got me down but the fact that my first real sewing project after having the baby was going to be flopped (I don't count the diapers because that was task sewing not fun sewing).  I honestly wondered if it was time to quit sewing until my children were grown.

Mid week it was time for a big basement clean up.  When I looked over at the dresses heaped in a pile headed for the trash I had a vision of what the skirts would be.  All tucked, bunched and stitched at each gore there would be enough distraction from the little slashes across Maryanna's front and back bodice.  So I gently zig-zagged over the slashes and Maryanna suggested we put a sash around the waist to cover it even more (the original design had the bow tied up to the side at the collar).  So that's what we did and here is a close up of the damage, there are five of these scars in total.

 
The dresses are paired with their fun and fluffy slips from last year and over all I'm pleased with how they look from far away.  But since they were headed for the trash anyways I'm not as concerned about them ruining them.  Clara's already has a nice oil stain on the bodice after getting into the baby massage oil and Maryanna's sleeves are stretched and distorted after pulling her head through one of the sleeves instead of the neckline.

It was a nice lesson in not giving up and also a reminder of what really is important.... what makes my girls special is not their clothes but their irresistible (and sometimes mischievous) smiles.