I’ve been doing a bit more dress sewing lately. Mostly it’s been dresses for Marian, but I did actually finish one for myself (it’s only been in progress since last summer….sigh.) This is another experimental pattern in my ongoing study of house dresses adapted for modern use. (see the last one here)
This pattern is an authentic 1860’s bodice pattern, but instead of fitting it snugly over a corset as I normally would, I adapted it to fit more loosely to accommodate early pregnancy and post pregnancy bumps. 1860s bodices are well suited for this as they sit ever so slightly higher than the natural waistline. The buttons down the front also make the dress nursing friendly. At my current time of life I want to make all these things a consideration, because anything I make and like, I definitely want to be able to wear as frequently as possible! I’ve been so frustrated with much of my pre-marriage wardrobe being useless since pregnancy and nursing have happened, I certainly don’t want my handmade things to hang in the closet unused!
Since this was an experiment I used some scrap fabric I had – a piece of blue and white check fabric – and I actually didn’t have enough so I had to use another small scrap of similar blue and white check (you can see the subtle color difference) for the wide hem and the binding on the neck and sleeves. I also added a bit of lace to the hem to ease the visual transition. The dress has a ‘low lining’ (another handy technique learned from the super smart 19th century seamstresses) which means the lining has a lower neckline than the dress. You can see the faint line of the lining in the above picture. This means there is less fabric around the neck and shoulders, thus making the dress quite a bit more cool and breathable for warm weather. The skirt is a simple rectangular gathered skirt, quite full, but not nearly as full as a true 1860s skirt would be, and shorter.
I really love wearing this dress! It’s very comfortable for all sorts of housework, and it’s perfect for aprons! Marian’s dresses lately have been all upcycled thrifted pieces. Mostly men’s shirts turned into button front dresses. The one she is wearing in these pictures was an xlarge men’s shirt which appeared to be brand new in a beautiful indigo linen! She always checks to make sure her dresses go ’round and round’, and this one seems to pass the test. I hope to do a post soon showing more of her upcycled shirt dresses.
I ran out of the blue linen shirt material just short of finishing the neckline, so it’s finished with a tiny piece of my left over blue check dress fabric. Which doesn’t bother her – she loves for us to ‘match’!
I have so many more ideas about practical everyday house dress that I want to experiment with – modern smock patterns to 1940s reproductions, and more Victorian inspired ones…. but it is very slow progress right now. Alan is walking now, and in the process of potty training so I spend most of my time chasing kids instead of sewing….which is as it should be!
Absolutely lovely! Pretty and practical, a winning combination! You both look beautiful. (and comfy) :) xx
I watched the short video of the children ‘pretending’. Great to see some creative thinking instead of them being propped in front of the TV! Great idea on using men’s button front shirts for little girls dresses. I don’t have any little girls, but I’ll never look at a man’s dress shirt the same way now! I enjoy your blog, like a breath of fresh, calm air.
Judt thought I’d drop in and say hi. I’ve been lurking here for quite a while now. :) I love to see what you sew and hopefully will see more of it in the future. :)
Glad to have you here, Sari!
So cute! You’re children are darling, and you look fabulous! Gosh, I wish I could sew…. haha
Oh my goodness! How lovely, beautiful, and still very practical and functional. I absolutely love your dress, Atlanta. You did an excellent job. And Marian’s is so cute too! :-)
Love these beautiful pictures. The dress is so darling and I learned some things from the things you pointed out about the dress. I love all Marian’s new made-over dresses, and would love a post featuring these, too. And don’t forget Alan’s made-over overalls. We mustn’t leave him out!
Beautiful dress, Atlanta. Very timeless and flattering.
Love both dresses. Love the linen, adorable Marian!
I love your dress! Are you going to be selling them in your etsy shop or the pattern?
I hadn’t thought about it, but I suppose I could if there was enough interest…
Please do! I am still looking for the ultimate house dress!
I really like both dresses, and your daughter is so cute.
I have made some old-fashioned dresses as well. I love the old styles.
Elisabeth
Love these dresses! I’m hoping to make some dresses like Marian’s out of mens shirts for my little girl. So so cute! :)
“I’ve been so frustrated with much of my pre-marriage wardrobe being useless since pregnancy and nursing have happened…”
Same here! I love those pieces I have which, although few, I’ve been able to wear before, during, and after!
I’d love to hear more about your potty training process. I know that in the past children were potty trained a lot earlier than is typical nowadays, but I haven’t been able to find information about potty training a younger child. Everything I read says things like, “Wait until your child shows signs of readiness and they will potty train themselves!” Well, for the cloth diapering mama, that’s not helpful advice; I’m ready for the next stage.
Hi Meghan! My mom trained some of my younger siblings quite young. My littlest sister was out of diapers and training pants and confidently going on all day trips to town in ‘big girl panties’ by the time she was 9 months old. I haven’t accomplished it quite that young yet. There is a book called ‘Diaper Free’ by Ingrid Bauer I recently read that details the early training process well. (even though I don’t agree with all the philosophy I would recommend reading it)
My basic method is this: start with obvious times of day that you know your baby almost always makes a dirty diaper. For us this was either first thing in the morning, or right after breakfast. Watch like a hawk for signs they are about to ‘go’, and make sure to get them on the potty in time. After being on the potty I like to reward them with a little ‘prize’. Sometimes we did unsweetened carob chips. After you get good at catching those obvious times of day then you can start setting a timer for in between times to start training them to stay dry all the time. From there on out its pretty much a discipline in consistency for you until it ‘clicks’ with them which will vary by child. I only recently read it, but the book I mentioned goes into a lot more detail on the process, I bet you would find it helpful. It recommends starting babies as soon as they are born, which I hope to try next time. When Marian was a newborn it was super obvious for a bout 10 minutes before hand when she was getting ready to fill her diaper, so it was easy to set her on the potty beforehand. She rarely had a dirty diaper when she was little. Alan was much more secretive, lol and I wouldn’t usually find catch it until it had happened, so every kid will be different. Best of luck to you! It’s not as daunting as it seems once you get into it, and definitively less work than cloth diapers!