Category Archives: infant clothing

Knitted Christening Gown

 

knitted christening gownEall

It was mentioned earlier that knitting was my first needleart.  Actually, for many, many years, it was my only  needleart.  So when I was awaiting the birth of our first child, my knitting needles were going non-stop.

This christening gown was one of the first projects I began for our eagerly awaited baby.  A delicate white knitted lace shawl was knitted immediately after the gown.

Unlike today, when this dress was made, expectant mothers rarely knew what gender their babies would be.  For many readers, that dates this dress circa Cave Man Era.  So when I decided—for whatever reason I don’t recall— to add lace with color, I purchased yardage in both pink and blue.

Days after our son was born, the blue lace was stitched in place. Four years later, when our daughter was born, the blue lace was removed and replaced with the pink trim which remains today.

 

knitted christening EcloseBrite

 

Continue reading

Church Bazaar Projects

church bazaar sign

 

I love church bazaars–never met one I didn’t like.  To see such a concentration of women’s creative efforts is inspiring.  From baked goods, knitting,  quilts, crochet and sewing to  plants and crafts, the variety is enormous.  The effort put forth for such good purposes is proof positive of the kindness and compassion of women.

Doing my little part for our church bazaar is always such a pleasure.  I like to drag out unused items and try to make them marketable.  Then it’s always fun to try something new.  This year I did both.

 

church bazaar potpourri

Christmas sachet

Continue reading

Wool Butterfly Sacque

antique baby butterfly sacque–hand embroidered

Winter is just around the corner and it is expected to be a cold one.  Wool is classic fabric for brrrrrrr season. For sewing, smocking, and hemstitching,  it is divine.   For jackets, skirts, blouses, shawls,  baby blankets or any winter wear, quality wool is just luscious.  The possibilities are endless.

When I first learned smocking and heirloom sewing, more than 30 years ago, hemstitched, lace edged,  woolen baby blankets were very popular.  That was when I learned about hemstitching and attaching tatting or lace to it, and decided to learn embroidery.  So long ago, so much joy and beauty to behold since then….. Continue reading

White Wednesday~Made Over Baby Dress

linen-yoke-all

This sweet little dress has been more trouble than I ever expected.    Have you ever had a good idea, visualizing an easy re-make on an item with potential, and then been sorry you ever started?  Well, that’s exactly what happened with this ivory linen size 1 frock.

Purchased on a shopping trip in Puerto Rico with June Mellinger, I thought with a simple modifications,  I would love it.   WRONG!!!!

We had finished teaching at an event there and were scouring old San Juan for treasures.  In that absolutely enchanting enclave, we strolled into a shop filled with linens and baby things, both machine and hand embroidered.

June went for the linen housewares and scrutinized  much of the machine embroidery.  She was tickled to find several items embroidered with designs featured on Brother embroidery machines.  Obviously, at least one cottage industry was alive in well on this tropical island. Continue reading

Unique Techniques ~ Vintage Daygown

 

Well loved daygowns and roses are two of my favorite things. This Bright Future climber had a 5th rose in this cluster.

Well loved daygowns and roses are two of my favorite things. This Bright Future climber had a 5th rose in this cluster.

 

At first glance, this antique daygown is sweet but offers nothing noteworthy. Upon closer examination, however, there are techniques and features that make me wish I knew more about it.  I bought it on eBay for reasons I don’t remember.

smocking close roses

One of the first things that caught my attention is the pale, pale pink smocking (probably faded with time) which appears to have been stitched without the benefit of a pleater.  It seems unlikely that iron on dots were used, as the gossamer sheer fabric likely would have refused to surrender this intrusion, even after multiple launderings. Continue reading

Leftovers make Heirlooms

This is another re-run from the earlier days of this blog.  Right now,  time is very short.  Yet again, my sweet elderly Aunt Aileen has fallen on the very hip that was replaced in emergency surgery exactly 7 days ago.   This her 4th fall  in the 3 days since she was discharged.  She has been to the ER twice in the past 36 hours and was just  released an hour ago.  The poor dear forgets that she cannot get up without assistance and falls, again and again……..It’s so sad.

But sewing is happy so I am focusing on that before the nursing home calls again with more bad news.******

Shortly after my daughter and her husband found out they had a little one on the way, I began sending a package every Monday, with Nana-sewn goodies.  Sometimes the contents were complete sets with a daygown or bubble, bonnet, booties and bibs and other times it was just a package of Harry Potter themed burp cloths.   But the arrival of those packages marked off the weeks very happily.

This bubble was delivered to Rebecca during her 33rd week.  Bubbles look so neat and tidy on babies.  There is nothing to come untucked or to scrunch up so Baby always looks well put together.  I especially like baby bubbles with no collars, as these seem always to flip up on little ones who rarely have a  discernible neck.  So this Michie’ Bubble/Dress #104 Yoke Overlay www.creationsbymichie.com  pattern appealed to me immediately.

Rebecca had specifically requested something in green so green easy care Imperial batiste is what she got.  The Swiss embroidered yoke overlay has little white ducks swimming in pale blue water but they are hard to see. Continue reading

“…with a little help from my friends”~New Vintage Baby Bubbles

pink blue bubblesxx

 

These sweet baby outfits were made by my friend Haydee, one of my students the last time I taught in Puerto Rico.  http://www.janicefergusonsews.com/blog/2010/07/20/teaching-in-puerto-rico/

 

pinklambbubble

 

She speaks little English and I speak almost no Spanish.  My entire Spanish vocabulary consists of “Donde est el bano?” (Where is the bathroom?) so it is impossible to communicate about our sewing projects except through photos.

For that reason, I can give you no information about her selection of fabric or embroidery design.  Haydee did preface these pictures with the name of the pattern, Wendy Schoen’s Vintage Baby Bubble.  www.wendyschoendesign.com Continue reading

Re-Run: Alastair’s Little Lamb Daygown

Alastair_LambsBrite

Things have been incredibly hectic around here for these past few days. My few free hours have been spent working on this blog, enlarging the pictures and trying to insert a custom photo at the top of each page. Apparently, WordPress gremlins are foiling my efforts because sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.

I have a pit bull personality. Long after determination and perseverance becomes nothing more than beating my head against the wall, I bang on. But after many of my own wasted hours trying to insert the custom header, then fruitless consultation with my computer scientist daughter (#1 Tech Support), I’ve stepped away from the issue. #2 Tech Support, my computer genius son-in-law, was not even approached as he is up to his USB port designing complicated stuff beyond my ken.

So now that I’ve put it aside, I’ve moved on to getting a “store” up. I’m doing this on my own, without above mentioned tech support, so it will be fairly primitive. But it should work. My original purpose for this blog was to have an outlet for my excessive sewing chit chat and to sell some of my excessive sewing supplies.

As of today, I have written 414 posts. See what I mean about excessive chit chat?!? Surely NO ONE has read all or even most of these. So while I continue to scan, photograph, describe and price store inventory, some of the earliest posts will be re-run.  This is a stroll down memory lane for me. It’s probably a walk down a new path for you.

So here it is—Alastair’s Little Lamb Daygown………… Continue reading

Old Fashioned Baby Bubble–Re-run

I’m still up to my eyeballs cleaning out Aunt Aileen’s apartment and sorting through all her paperwork.  Now she is settled in a nursing home and seems to be content.  We are so grateful. 

Aunt Rheeta is staying a while longer to help me sort and was thrilled to find old photos of her parents, grandparents and siblings that somehow ended up in Aunt Aileen’s custody.  We have another week to vacate the apartment and it is going to take every minute of that to get the job done.  So this is another re-run. 

Now that Alastair’s 2nd birthday has passed, I am enjoying these pictures of him as an infant. 

This is a delightful little garment, old fashioned in appearance but with all the convenience of a modern garment.   It looks soooooo much better on  Baby than on the hanger.  When I showed this to Rebecca, she paused a moment before saying, “….uh..thanks.”

 But after she saw it on 5-month old Alastair, she really liked it. 

It is still a quite large on him and will look better still when he is a little taller.  But hey, Florida summers last until November so I’m sure he will have plenty of warm days to wear it.

The pattern is  from the Old Fashioned Baby Embroidered Baby Clothes pattern www.oldfashionedbaby.com .    The beauty of the one-piece pattern  is that there are no buttonholes, no shoulder seams, no side seams and no set in sleeves.

  Two tiny optional pockets,  a small crotch extension and a one piece facing for the back opening are the only other pieces. 

Pique’ is one of my favorite fabrics for children’s wear, but then there is the ironing factor.  And I am putting a great deal of thought into creating “modern projects for old fashioned Nanas.” Continue reading

Lace Tape : its History and Peggy’s Daygowns

Lace tape is a fabulous new~old product. Its history is as lengthy and varied as is its uses. While not as widely used and recognized as it should be, lace tape is growing in popularity nonetheless.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with this produce, it is a 100% cotton, loosely woven “tape,” approximately 3/8″ wide. Previously available from Wendy Schoen, now the only source that I am aware of is Farmhouse Fabrics. Lace tape has a pull thread on either side just like heirloom lace insertion.

Because lace tape lacks the transparency of lace, it is unnecessary to cut away the foundation fabric beneath the lace tape. Consequently, the integrity of the fabric is not compromised and the garment is sturdier.

Its uses run the gamut from a substitute for lace insertion to shadow applique’ when applied to the underside of sheer fabric to tuck filler for shadowed shark’s teeth and more.

PEGGY’S DAYGOWNS: Evidence of this growing awareness of its charms can be seen in Peggy Dilbone’s precious daygown projects for Martha Pullen’s Sewing for Baby school. Viking educator Peggy always comes up with to-die-for projects and these daygowns are as sweet as anything she has designed.

The pink daygown features shaped lace tape bows and machine embroidery. Gentle gathers offer enough fullness for comfort but not so much as to make the lace tape bows disappear in the fabric folds. What mother would not love this for her baby girl? It would be as much fun to make this puff sleeved pink confection as it would be to dress a little darling in it. Continue reading