Royal Copenhagen

This quilting cotton was neglected for many, many years.  It was originally slated to be a pair of pajamas, but seeing as I don't really wear pajama sets, it seemed like a waste of lovely fabric.

And I really do love a toile de jouy print, so it was just a matter of finding the right project.

Eventually I settled on Simplicity 9040.  Now, I am really not much of a fan of an elastic waist, but I figured that the fabric belt would be enough to mask that issue.  And while getting any kind of pattern match was going to leave slim pickings of my yardage, I was determined to make it work and the bodice center front.

Somewhere along the line I decided that adding Rick Rack to the pockets was an absolute necessity, so I had to wait for that to arrive (because it's inevitable that the stash of vintage Rick Rack that I have on hand wasn't quite right for the job).

I don't have any complaints, really, except that the neckline is really, really wide.  But a length of ribbon and a couple of snaps used to make two lingerie guards solved that problem.

This dress is easy to wear, comfortable, and I love the print.

And it only took me two years to post the photos on the blog.  But sometimes that's just the way it goes.  With this warm weather, I should probably wear it before the seasons change.  Or is it just too gauche to wear anything with white after Labor Day?! 

Dress:  Made by me, Simplicity 9040
Shoes: Born
Earrings:  Gift
Necklace:  Etsy

A Wearable Toile in Toile de Jouy

Some fabrics just have to wait around for the right project, and I was never really sure what that was going to be for this particular quilting cotton . . . until last summer.

I always envisioned that it would make an adorable pair of pajamas.  But I don't really love wearing pajamas, and the print was too cute not to be made into something that was going to be worn.

But when I came across Simplicity 9040, I decided that the toile de jouy print was a perfect choice.

I was able to match the print fairly well, although that did mean that I wouldn't have enough fabric to cut duplicate sleeve pieces for the lining.  But honestly, this turned out for the best, as the print would more than likely have shown through with that white background.  And since I had a plain white cotton voile stashed away, that was the obvious solution.

The pattern calls for the neckline to be finished with bias tape.  I don't love the poly cotton stuff that you can find ready-made, so I used the voile to make my own.

And now for the fun part - the rick-rack!

I wanted to visually separate the pocket pieces in some way so that they didn't get completely lost in the print.  Piping came to mind, but as I was rifling through my sewing stuff, I came across my rick-rack collection.

And that seemed like the perfect option.

The outer pocket edges were embellished as well as the pocket flap.

I hand basted everything into place to make the top-stitching process easier.

I have a stash of silk thread that I use for basting stitches because it's so easy to remove.

And, it's official, I have rediscovered my love of rick-rack!

I somehow ran out of white seam binding, so I used pale pink instead.  And I rather like the look of it against the white background.

Did I already mention how much I love those pockets?!

I also happened to have the perfect blue buttons stashed away, which was rather convenient.

One thing to note on this pattern is that the neckline is rather wide.  It's wearable, but if I make the pattern again, I will definitely alter that part of the pattern.

But my main reservation with this pattern was the elastic waist.  I generally don't like the way they look on me, but I liked this design enough to give it a try.  And I am glad that I did.

I am quite pleased with the dress, and especially with those rick-rack adorned pockets!  I definitely need to find more occasions to use my rick-rack stash.  And those tie sleeves aren't too shabby, either!!