Sunday, August 9, 2015

If You Procrastinate Long Enough


the dress you cut out 5 years ago for your eldest daughter 

will now fit your youngest.

Not custom perfectly, since their shoulder shapes are different,  

not to mention their heights - Emily would've been a year younger than Kate is now -

but good enough.

It passed the twirl test, as all dresses and skirts must, in our house.

I am not going to deconstruct this here - you can see the original version in this old post. All I will say is that the skirt is a light stretch twill with pleats tucked into a single-layer waistband, and the bodice is interlock knit, and they are joined at the drop-waist seam.

I actually cut out two dresses, both of which lived under my sewing table in a WIP box for 5 years. 

The only reason I sewed them up today (took just a couple of hours) is so I could have the box back. 

Erm. Have I ever told you guys how I organize my WIPs? 

Ah. Let me share, then.

See, I have a finite number (8? 10? I forget) of small shoe-box sized plastic boxes designated for WIPs. Each time I cut out a project, it goes in one of those boxes. I am not allowed to buy more boxes; if they fill up and I need one, I have to empty one out, either by finishing the project, or throwing out the fabric pieces as "Lost Causes" or returning the components to the supply tubs for re-using.

Today, I needed a box. So I dumped out this one and decided that since Emily had clearly outgrown them, these dresses were going the Re-using Route. Then I thought that since they were already cut out, maybe I should sew them up and gift them to an unsuspecting neighbor or whoever had a 6-year-old daughter and wouldn't be freaked out by me foisting free hand-made clothes upon them that might or might not fit correctly. 

But when I'd finished the first dress, it looked bigger than I'd imagined, and I had Kate try it on. 

Voila!  

So Kate now gets two new fall dresses for school to wear with leggings, I don't have to find some random stranger to adopt them and I get my WIP box back, so I can cut out a new Time Warp zippered bag.

Now if only I can convince myself to empty out the box containing that hideously-unfitting smoke-and-rose chiffon tea dress - and maybe even finish it!

Hahahahahahaha! As if.

11 comments:

  1. Nice planning ahead! There are advantages of having multiple children of the same gender, and this is one of them.

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  2. Oh, my.... I got a good Sunday morning laugh here! Thank goodness you needed that box in time for Kate to get the benefit of the contents! She looks adorable in it. Poor Emily, though...... ;(

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  3. I like the dress, and the method for organizing WIP's. Might just have to use that one myself...

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  4. Procrastinating can work differently with boys...
    http://osgoodfam.blogspot.com/2014/07/summer-sewing.html

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  5. Cute dresses! Lucky Kate, poor Emily. I think I need to adopt your WIP box concept, it might just keep me in line!

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  6. What a great WIP system! I think I'll adopt it, but I'll start with 5 boxes (it's what I have).

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  7. I love the limited number of WIP boxes idea! What fun dresses for heading back to school!

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  8. OMG! Seriously I love your idea of organization. And the dress(es)- they are absolutely beautiful.

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  9. Ha, my dresses also have to pass the swirl test! :-)

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  10. Mc calls ended the tent pattern first
    http://mccallpattern.mccall.com/m7268-products-50568.php?page_id=96

    Talking about procrastination...

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  11. aha lovely how it all works out, and you have a bag-in-progress too! these look adorable and comfy. I have knitting WIP's that are older, but no sewing ones... I think!

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