Maggie Mae Menagerie

Zoe loved her Maggie Mae tunic (pattern from Shwin Designs) so I thought I would make one for Anna, too, so she wouldn't feel left out.  And while I was at it, I cut another one out for little baby Zoey here in Bangkok, figuring I could sew them at the same time, assembly line style, and also get some instant gratification by walking down three flights of stairs and seeing Zoey try it on immediately.

The navy menagerie  fabric (with some seriously random animals: lions and frogs and octopi (?) and dogs and rabbits and elephants, oh my...) is from Belleboo, paired with some coordinating yellow quilting cotton.  I made the Maggie Mae according to the directions, with the exception of the pleats in the skirt, which I just gathered instead.

I meant to cut out the dress version, but spaced out and cut the tunic version by accident (note to self: measure twice, cut once), so I made a matching diaper cover using the free pattern and tutorial from MADE... I sewed up the version with the bias tape edges to match the yellow fabric.  Cute!!

Here are a couple shots of Anna looking pretty great in her new Maggie Mae, paired with some jeggings and a long-sleeved t-shirt for warmth:

My Sewjo is Back

Somehow our recent move to Bangkok squashed my sewing mojo (sewjo?) a bit.  In an effort to rejuvenate it (and to justify having brought my sewing machine and part of my stash in the air shipment in lieu of something more practical like extra towels), I took myself on a fabric field trip.  The field trip seemed to do the trick because I am back in action!

Some Googling informed me that Bangkok's main fabric shopping area is in Chinatown, on a teeny, yet packed-to-the-gills alley called Sampeng (also called Soi Wanit 1, also called something else in Thai, leading to much confusion on my part).  I followed these directions and took the MRT and a bus to get there, got a little lost (see aforementioned street name confusion), but ultimately stumbled on the fabric- and sewing paraphernalia-lover's dream (and claustrophobe's nightmare, see photos here) that is Sampeng.  Sadly, I did not take my own photos this time (I was a bit overwhelmed, dodging food carts and whatnot), but have plans to head back quite soon, photographer in tow, and will definitely post about it on my other blog when I do!  In any case, I walked away sweaty and clutching several bags full of dirt-cheap fabric.  

This little baby dress is made from some of the fabric procured during my Sampeng adventures and is for the cute baby of Mr. Ben and Erin (who are our neighbors again, woo!). Specifically, it's some cute elephant printed quilting weight cotton from Belleboo, which designs and prints its own fabric here in Thailand.  The pattern I used is the Summer Breeze baby dress pattern (free!) from Shwin and Shwin (designers of some other patterns I have used: Maggie Mae tunic, Rita Pants, Lucy tops), which is super easy.  Instant gratification certainly restarts the sewjo.  And the phrase "summer breeze" certainly elicits inescapable earworms.

UPDATE: Truly instant gratification... Baby Z wore the dress the next day at the beach:

My next sewing task: a wearable muslin of By Hand London's Anna Dress.  I have already muslined (is that a word?) the bodice and it seems good to go as is, so I plan to make the whole dress from some super cheap ($1/meter!!!!) cotton blend fabric I bought on Sampeng. 

Long Sleeved Flannel Maggie Mae

I got the above photo Zoe this week rocking her Maggie Mae tunic, along with a note that said "This shirt looks precious on her!"  I interpreted that as an order to "Make more!"

This is a slightly different take on the Maggie Mae... sort of a combination of the Maggie Mae dress and the long-sleeved Maggie Mae... I extended the cap sleeves out about 12 inches and the bodice front and back down about 10 inches.  I added some piping along the seam to keep things interesting.

I used some very cute purple plaid flannel fabric that Colleen gifted me (thanks, Colleen!!!).  I was able to match the plaids pretty well on the side seams, but not so much on the shoulder seams.

Meh... I ain't mad at it.  

My photos are not doing this shirt justice... in reality it's pretty damn cute.

Ruffle-less Ruffle Top and Hot Pink Ritas

After my success with my first ruffle tunic, I was itching to make another version with piping, like this one from StraightGrain.  Here's mine!:

I decided to use this linen-y material left over from one of my Grainline Scout tees... the long, skinny pattern pieces for the ruffle top made it easy to use scraps. 

And to match, hot pink Lovely Rita skinnies (same pattern as my crazy pants from a few weeks ago, minus the button band on the leg.):

These are made from some stretch bottomweight from Joann's.  I hoping they can also be worn under Zoe's batik bubble peplum top for the fall (she's been wearing it as a dress thus far).  Cute!

Crazy Pants!

Aren't these pants delightfully crazy?  They might be my 10 year old self's dream pants with their wild, florescent-tinged pattern.... so late '80s/early '90s and so awesome.  Hopefully 2 year old Zoe shares my love for this crazy print.  She seemed to like the throw-back Hammer pants that I made her, so I'm optimistic.

These are the Lovely Rita skinnies from Shwin Designs, cute little skinny jeans with a button flap on the leg.

 I made them from some stretch bottom weight fabric from the Red Tag clearance rack at Joann's... I love how the fabric looks like it's been printed with that bubble-wrap stamping method that's been bopping around the interwebs of late.  Plus I got to use some comically large buttons I have had for a couple years now!  Woo!

I love how they came out... just hope they fit!!

Twin Lucy Tunics

Taking a cue from Chuck, who made Zoe and Anna some "twinsie" cardigan sweaters, I made them matching batik tunics that I hope they can wear next year:

 I used the Lucy Tunic pattern, a cute A-line cross-front tunic from Shwin Designs (same designers as the Maggie Mae top) and cut the 12 months and 3 years sizes.  The fabric is a printed batik I bought here in Jakarta, lined with some blue plaid/cross-hatch from the Real Martha.  I didn't make it fully reversible since the lining fabric is a bit sheer and the batik shows through.  I think they came out pretty cute!  Pair them with some skinny pants or leggings, done.

Maggie Mae Tunic

I'd had my eye on a couple of cute patterns at Shwin Designs for months now.  Recently they re-released all of their patterns with a whole range of sizes included, so I took the opportunity to snatch several of them up, including the Maggie Mae tunic/dress.  I love the curved seam on the bodice and the ability to easily do some fun colorblocking.

My first Maggie Mae is the tunic version, sewn in a beautiful leaf batik (scraps leftover from Colleen's Anda dress!) combined with some cute red polka dot fabric from The Real Martha.

I meant to add piping to all of the horizontal seams, but kinda forgot until the last step.  Thus I only added it in at the waist seam, but I think looks pretty cute in the end.  Don't look too closely at the sides of the tunic, though, as my piping insertion is not ideal at those seams.  Zoe won't notice, right?

I also skipped the pockets this time because the white polka dot fabric was fairly sheer- I thought they would show through.

Can't wait to make it again in more color combos!!  I also like the full button-front version shown on the Shwin and Shwin blog...