Yay, another design finished. The ideas always bubble up quicker than I can realise them with my hands. I am very proud of this one since I did not use a purchased pattern for the skirt - it´s my first own design! This literally formed under my hands. It all started with this beautiful palest pink babycord that I had some 70 cm left of.
Given the amount of fabric left the options were limited so I chose to make a puffball skirt out of it. While most children´s skirts work with elasticized waistbands, sometimes I want a cleaner look so I sewed in 6 pleats from the waistline. And cut a fitted waistband to top it up. Now, the skirt falls beautifully smooth along the hips, and the volume starts happening lower. For lining I used a cotton knit so the lining would stretch (to create extra puff in the puffball, I cut the lining smaller than the top layer. Choosing a knit helped creating enough room for movement for my DD when bicycling - this is Holland after all, so one has to be practical!). Now, this combination of fabrics certainly challenged my concealed zipper skills! I had enough fabric left to make a cute apron to go with the skirt. I embroidered it with a blonde
Mascha. And then I figured, if I double it up, it would be a cool purse too! Now DD can tote along all the important stuff (most noteably, Bambi and fairy wand) everywhere. So, after some fidgeting, rumbling through the remnants box, and testing some fine stitches on my Pfaff (Note To Self- Must Not Forget To Match Underthread To Top Thread When Wrong Side Shows Too), this is the result. For days when you want to tone the loudness of the skirt down a bit, it can be worn without apron too. To go with it, I wanted a shirt that would not be too sweet. I found this old Diesel shirt in my remnants box which had just the right army green color. You see, when I clean out my closet, anything that has nice fabric and color will not go to charity but to the sewing room. At the pace my girls are growing, I doubt whether I will be refashioning my old shirts for them much longer though... This one was kinda hard already! I even sewed the old collar back on, inside out. I would normally not do that but I simply had not enough fabric left to cut a new neck binding strip. And since this is the kind of shirt that is allowed to look used and beaten up, I think it turned out quite well. Some cute girly details added (ruched sleeves, a red satin rose) and voila. The leggings are made from Stenzo tricot from my stash. Nothing new purchased for this project, even recycled two old shirts of mine (the other one went into the skirts lining) to this is truly UWYH (Use What You Have)! Ehm, maybe this just means I have a lot. And, I do. And I´m grateful for it. In every way. Stay tuned!
Finally, they´re finished... These pants took an awful lot of time, not only because I wanted to use a nicky velours because it had the right color (which meant first flat lining certain pattern pieces to stabilize the stretchy fabric with a woven underneath) but also because of the elaborate decorations. I love it though, every once in a while, to make something in proper Farbenmix style. 
Last night I hammered in the poppers, argh what a frustration. I don´t understand why some people see poppers as a lazy womans type of closure as I find it sooo much easier and quicker to just sew a couple of buttonholes. Anyway, my DD will be grateful for these as they will be easier to manage for her small hands. When the pants were finished and I showed them to her she said ´´beautiful mommy´´ so hopefully we´ll get a lot of mileage out of these. The Nonita pattern is actually meant to be 3/4 length so I sewed one size bigger hoping she can wear it for two winters. The pattern is totally cute with its unusual flap front closure. Will make more! 
I like to add that little wink to my Dutch nationality wherever I can, and you´d be amazed at how well the Delft blue colors combine with almost anything! You also see that every scrap gets used here as the remains of the purple vichy check served as a backing for the scrappy scarf I posted yesterday. The pattern is fun to make and the fit is nice. 
The pattern I used is Nala by Farbenmix although I shortened the ruffle by 2 cm and elongated the sleeves and legs by the same 2 cm. I have to tell you, I have a special conenction with the Nala pattern as this is the one that got me into sewing in the first place, now about 4 years ago. I had never sewn before nor taken any classes but was confronted with the never ceasing need to buy more clothes and stuff in the next size up when my twins were born. I was simply astounded with the prices some brands sometimes ask for simple stuff. In addition, it was hard to find the colorful look I loved so much from growing up with Oilily myself. Therefore I started to explore whether it would be difficult to make something myself. I came across this pic of the Nala pattern with a Marieke dress and I just loved it. It shows a bright orange dress with a huge butterfly applique, combined with a hot pink shirt and leggings... Colorful, playful, one of a kind.. ever since I have been trying to retrieve that sometimes wild, sometimes more subdued, but always colorful and playful look for my own kids. 
