If you read Friday’s post, you’ll understand what the title means…
I was having trouble with Sara’s outfit… the denim jacket I made wouldn’t go over the tee… the tee’s sleeve area was apparently too thick for the armhole area of the jacket…the neck ribbing was too thick as well… so this is what I came up with… I don’t even remember if it was my options…
First, I finished hemming the short sleeved tee… I knew I wanted to include it with the listing since it matched the thigh highs.
Next I started working on the jumper to go over it… I used the bodice I had made a romper out of once or twice before… but it’s hard to see in this dark brown fabric. I stitched the ruffle in the gold thread so it would show up a little better and I added some tiny orange buttons down the front.
It is similar to this romper’s ruffle I made a while back…
The jumper has narrow straps that go over her shoulders. It might be able to be used as a sundress, but I don’t have any pictures of it that way…
This isn’t a very clear picture but it’s the only one I took… I think you can see the ruffle down the front.
So I had the short sleeved tee made and the jumper finished and showed it to my hubby, who told me it looked too summery? TOO SUMMERY?
Why did he say that? I walked back into my sewing room with my tail between my legs… and almost cried.
But when I looked at it again… all I could see was SUMMERY!
So what did I do?
I took a piece of the gold striped knit and made a couple of “fake” long sleeves and wrapped them around Sara’s arms… like this…
…and then… you guessed it… I drafted a new pattern with a scooped neck, NO RIBBED TRIM, long sleeves and a bit longer.
So this is what the new knit top looked like as I was making it. I used tulle for the lining at the top area to give it some stability and also reduce any bulk… I used some lightweight interfacing down the back to have something for my snaps to hold onto… AND I used a piece of paper underneath my stitching to keep it from sliding.
Now this is what Sara looks like in her NEW long sleeve top…
Here she is with her jumper added.
“Thanks Mom… I knew you could fix things!” replied Sara!
Now I can move on to the rest of the set…
I will see you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Wow! I love Sara’s new top with that jumper! Looks So much better with the long sleeve! It was clever of you to make some test sleeves to see if it would look right. Sara’s new look is “Just right”.
That is exactly what I was thinking, Jeanne! The sleeves made the outfit look too summery, but when you started, you were using the jacket to go over it, and long sleeves would not work very well under the jacket. I thought the idea of the tee and jumper was the best option, just that those sleeves did not work for me. But I love it now, and also the addition of the cute ruffle and buttons on the bodice. That makes what could be a plain jumper a special one, a Jeanne Marie one!!
Can’t wait to see what’s next!!
You did it again, Jeanne! So cute and perfect for fall! Looking forward to the rest!
Looks great! 🙂
To be fair, you started the top with the brilliant intention of the jacket being a cover up, so, the whole remake is lovely too. Very lovely. I adore the ruffle on the front of the dress. Everything is back to perfect!!
“prroceed”- say that with the proper rolled R
I like it!
I hope everyone had a happy week-end. This is the first time I have not really “enjoyed” the extra hour. Perhaps my body and brain caught on that it was just a big “leg-pull” 😅
Happy Monday everyone. Extra best wishes for a good week.
The change didn’t work for me this time either. I did something I shouldn’t have. I changed my alarm clock during the evening so what I ended up with was an extra hour in the evening but not while I was sleeping. All day Sunday it felt like the spring time change. Won’t do that again.
Lovin the long sleeves and the jumper. The short sleeved tee would be perfect for one of the boys with a cardigan sweater and cords. There aren’t many outfits for the boys available. Great choices.
Oh, I like the tee ever so much better without the thick neck binding. The long sleeves are a bonus too. The jumper looks great with the tee and matching tights/socks too. If you make another tee, I’d like to see the back neck cut a little higher. Now, if only the sweet jacket would fit. 🙁 But guess you can’t have everything unless the fairy godmother can wave her magic wand.
While we have some dry weather, other person and I have been doing prep work for re staining the decks and shade structure here. Other person started in on the tedious railings staining where they were ready to go while I power washed and scrubbed the beams and deck underneath the shade area. Required standing on a ladder to do it. Of course, that came after I had some help moving all of the furniture out into the yard and putting it on any flat area available. Three hours later, hair wet from dripping dirty water from beams, and soaked shoes, I was done with the prep of that area. Amazing how much time it takes to just do prep work. Cleaned up everything and by late in the day the whole lower deck was pretty dry. Today, I’ll either start in staining or power wash/scrub the back two story steps and railings. And the good thing, I think I have a delivery coming in the mail. We’ll see how that goes. 🙂
Dear Jeanne, I love the outfit! She looks adorable.
As “they” say, where there is a will there is a way. I really love the new outfit and the jumper with the ruffle is really cute. Looking forward to what is coming.
Perfect! Love the longer sleeves for fall!
Great changes, Jeanne; it’s perfect!
I simply love your descriptions of how you solve design problems. They are great lessons on working through problems. Thank you so much! Love this outfit too, even more knowing what you went through to get such a wonderful set.