Monthly MashUp (3) Izzy Top and Belinda Dress

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

For March's Monthly MashUp I'm excited to include a pattern that is available for free.  I posted a couple of weeks ago about my first Izzy top and I knew this amazing pattern from Climbing The Willow would be perfect for a MashUp.  I immediately jumped on the pocketed skirt from the Belinda Dress by Go To Patterns (*affiliate link) as the perfect pairing for the MashUp and I think you guys are going to love it!

The shape of the Izzy Top bodice is unique enough to make it interesting even without the skirt that comes with the pattern.  I like that the faux cap sleeves are part of the bodice so they look adorable without the fuss of a set in sleeve.  The bodice is fully lined which is also a plus.  I just love when a garment looks as good from the inside as it does from the outside.  The sizes range from 18 months to 12 years so this is a top that we'll use for many years to come.  There's also a super cute elastic casing option for the bottom edge of the skirt which will probably be the next Izzy I make for Bean.

The Belinda Dress (*affiliate link) by Andrea Pannell for Go To Patterns was designed as part of Andrea's Designer's Challenge.  She challenges other designers to create something unique to the market so why not challenge herself along with them, right?  This is one of my favorite of Andrea's patterns and we all know how much I already adore her Anywhere dress.  The big kangaroo pocket in the bubbly skirt is such a fun feature.  The bodice is meant to have a bit of stretch, but even a sweatshirt knit that doesn't have a ton of stretch will work as long as you can stretch the neck to go over the head.  The skirt/pocket portion is again meant for knit fabric, but woven apparel fabrics will work as well.  Bonus: for those of you who already own the Anywhere dress the sleeves work for this dress too!  That means you have the option for the puffed sleeve or no puffed sleeve.  My favorite is the 3/4 length Anywhere Dress sleeve with band so that alone was enough to sell me on this pattern initially.

This MashUp is super easy.  Since I'm currently trying to sew ALL THE THINGS for Project Run & Play (which starts on Monday) an easy MashUp was in order.  I'd had this one waiting in the wings so it was as if it was meant to be March's MashUp all along.  The great part about this MashUp is that since you can use woven fabric for the Izzy Top, it opens up lots of fun fabric pairing possibilities.  If you've been following me long enough, then you know I love mixing knit and wovens so this is a really fun MashUp for me.

To start with, follow the Izzy pattern instructions for the bodice up through attaching the lining.  I like to press the bottom edge of the lining up 3/8" before sewing it all together so later when I go to sew the lining along the bodice edge to cover all the raw edges it will already be pressed in the right position.  When you sew the lining to the main fabric, start and stop sewing along the back edges (where it will butt together) about 1/2 inch from the end.  This is so that the lining and main fabrics will not be attached at the bottom edge, nor it's seam allowance.  Do not sew the side seam yet either.

Lets move on to the skirt portion of the Belinda dress which is simply gathered to fit the Belinda bodice so there is no need to alter any pattern pieces!  The Izzy bodice cuts off higher than the Belinda bodice so if you're concerned about length than you may want to add a couple of inches to the skirt length before you gather it.  I found the length to be perfect without adjusting since Bean will be wearing this with leggings or tights until it's a tunic anyway.

Attach the skirt pieces to the front and back main bodice pieces, making sure the lining is not caught in the stitching.  When you sew the back skirt piece to the back bodice pieces, also make sure they butt up to each other so there is no gaping in the back.

To sew the side seams, simply follow the Izzy instructions for sewing the side seams with the lining, but continue down the skirt sides as well.  Once the sides are sewn you can flip the bodice lining inside the dress and since the lining bottom edge is already pressed over, you can stitch along the bottom bodice edge from the right side to secure the folded edge and contain the raw skirt/bodice seam.

Attach the Belinda band to the bottom of the skirt and your MashUp is complete!

The curved shape of the bottom edge of the bodice makes the Belinda skirt bubble out even more which is super cute.

And lets not forget about the giveaway!  In lieu of giving away the Izzy Pattern (it's already free!), Teri has offered the winner's choice of one of the three fabric pair bundles above.  That includes enough fabric to make an Izzy/Belinda MashUp of your own!  Of course if you're going to be making your own MashUp, you'll need the Belinda pattern which Andrea has generously offered to giveaway to the winner too!

Just follow the instructions in the rafflecopter below to enter the giveaway.  Due to international postage the fabric portion of the giveaway may not be open internationally, but the pdf pattern is!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Want to MashUp your own, but don't want to wait until the giveaway is over?  You can purchase the Belinda Dress pattern here (*affiliate link) and the Izzy Top pattern is available for download here.

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!  There are a few great ones out there in the group already and I'll feature a few with the giveaway winner announcement next week.

<a href="http://ajaire.blogspot.com/search/label/Monthly%20MashUp" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1QaqRN54YV5eIpr-nbvuESs6hHOsDFaMODZGPwnVmLdGK0WCIYxnF7W4dZ8eOpKDmR7oCYL_5hvysYBodMWplhjguDoc0ZpyH9QMsGqN4sm3RHmMlUNTuok4VnzI-G48rr3O_8iweIsqZ/s1600/Monthly+MashUp+graphic+600px.png" alt="Call Ajaire Monthly MashUp" width="125" height="125" /></a>

**the fabric and pattern for the giveaway has been generously donated, but all opinions are mine and I purchased my own pattern before contacting the designers.