Call Ajaire: Monthly MashUp (1) - Anywhere Dress and Tee Times Three

If you're looking for the details of this monthly series you can check out the introduction post.

For this inaugural month I chose two of my favorite patterns to MashUp. The Anywhere Dress by GoTo Patterns and the Tee Times Three shirt by Blank Slate Patterns (*affiliate links). I have sewn each of these patterns on their own a few times and they have such great features.

via Go To Patterns

The Anywhere Dress is the perfect shape for featuring a cozy knit - a slight curve to the hug the body, but still sweet looking and appropriate for toddlers, kids, and tweens. The three quarter length sleeve is the option I normally choose, but I decided long sleeve would be the most fitting for January. The sleeves are perfectly drafted to fit the bodice and I find there's no need to gather at the cap, so there's no struggling with it when it goes through the machine. It's just a great fitting simple sleeve, but it seems like the simple sews are the ones I come back to time and again.

via Blank Slate Patterns

The Tee Times Three shirt is another great staple pattern. The bodice is the perfect cheat for those online tutorials that begin with "trace a t-shirt that fits your child." I've found this really helpful with gift-giving where I've not been able to measure the child. Melissa did the hard part (sizing a T-shirt) and the rest is just following along with the pattern instructions. The sizing seems to be spot on though I'll admit to not using the pattern for a boy yet. Melissa has two boys, so my guess is the sizing should be just right for a boy too. The hood, kangaroo pocket, and Peter Pan collar options are icing on the cake.

Call Ajaire - Monthly MashUp: Anywhere Dress and Tee Times Three Shirt

For the MashUp I knew I wanted to use the Peter Pan collar and neckline from the Tee Times Three. I figured I'd stick with a simple MashUp this month so I used the rest of the Anywhere Dress to fill out the pattern.

The blue fabric is from an old sweater I brought with me to France when I studied abroad in college. Since I brought just a handful of clothes, you can imagine the sweater was well worn. Sorry about the terrible scanned pictures, but it was back in '99 so you know... technology. I've saved it knowing I could selvage some pieces and I still love the color. Before passing it down to a dress meant to be worn by a toddler I washed it in the washing machine to shrink it a bit and make it a little felted. That way if it gets dirty I can wash it a little more vigorously and not worry about too much extra shrinkage.

I lined the wool with a light blue light-weight knit fabric in case Bean had issues with the wool against her skin. She sometimes has sensitive skin in the winter time and I didn't want to aggrevate it. I simply basted the pieces together before sewing the garment and proceeded as I would have if it wasn't lined.

And that fun Peter Pan collar is made from some glittery-faux-sequiny fabric that is just the right shade of silver and blue. I was originally thinking I'd like a full sequined collar, but then I was worried about it scratching at her neck so I opted for this fabric instead. I am completely in love with it and I even made a little covered button with a scrap piece. I have some left so I'm sure I'll be compulsively adding in elbow patches or shoulder accents to something else soon, hehe.

To combine the two patterns, I lined up the shoulders and traced the Tee Times Three's neckline over the Anywhere Dress' front and back pieces. I was really only altering the neckline in this MashUp so the neck/shoulder edges were the only change to the Anywhere Dress pattern. It's important to keep in mind (as with all MashUps) the seam allowances. The Anywhere Dress has a 3/8" seam allowance and the Tee Times Three has a 1/2" allowance. In this case it was easiest to take the neckline allowance in 1/8" to make all of the seams 3/8". I will go into more detail about blending seam allowances when I do a MashUp where there is more of a significant difference, but if you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments.

I followed the Tee Times Three pattern instructions to complete the shoulders and neckline using the Peter Pan collar, keyhole cut out in the back, and neck/keyhole binding pattern pieces. Then I finished the dress according to The Anywhere Dress instructions. It was a really simple MashUp, yet the result is super cute.

Bean received a camera for Christmas from one of her Aunties and she loves to take pictures even though she really hasn't figured it out yet hehe. I was hoping that would mean she'd be more into getting her picture taken, but really it just makes her run around even more. Or she needs to take my picture while I'm taking hers. At least she's having fun!

Andrea and Melissa have generously offered to giveaway one of each of the patterns to one lucky reader! Just follow the instructions in the rafflecopter below to enter the giveaway.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Want to MashUp your own, but don't want to wait until the giveaway is over? You can purchase the Anywhere Dress here and the Tee Times Three here (*affiliate links).

look at that face...she thinks she's very sly

Be sure to follow the Monthly MashUp Pinterest board if you'd like some more inspiration on garments to mash. And remember, if you do a MashUp I'd love it if you would share it in the Call Ajaire Monthly MashUp Flickr group!

**the patterns have been generously donated for the giveaway, but all opinions are mine and the post was written before they had even been offered. I am an affiliate for both pattern companies which simply means this blog receives a little money if you buy the pattern after clicking the link. More importantly it means that I totally believe in the quality of the patterns. Also, not every Monthly MashUp will use an affiliate company.

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Thursday, January 16, 2014

Monthly MashUp (1) - Anywhere Dress and Tee Times Three