My brother is commissioning Rachel of Mamma Made Designs to make a very special dress for his daughter Chesna for her 6th birthday. I am designing the fabric that it will be made from. It has been a very fun process. I started from a drawing of a horse and rider that Chesna made….

…I produced a vector line drawing of the form…

This is the final fabric design.

Now I’m getting ready to order it. It will be so exciting to see what Rachel produces from it!

I wanted to make something special for my friend Maritza. She’s watched our kids for us numerous times and never accepts any compensation. So with some trouble I talked her into letting me make her a dress. She picked out a vintage Simplicity pattern and the material.

I learned a lesson on this one. Next time I will make a mock bodice first. Even though I measured her and cut everything accordingly, the top was way off. Luckily, I got away with reconstructing only the back of the bodice so I didn’t have to remake the whole thing.

Another lesson, pay attention when I’m cutting the bulk out of the seam! I was trimming the seam where the bodice meets the skirt, and didn’t realize that part of the bodice was folded up underneath it. I rolled right over it with my rotary cutter and made a huge sickening gash.

So after a few ripped out seams and a few improvisations to cover the hole, here it is…