Paisley Corduroy

Yesterday, I left you with a sneak peak of what I've been working on the past couple of days.  I managed to make two things for Ella out of this adorable paisley corduroy that I bought at the start of winter.

The first thing I made out of this fabric was this sewVery fun jumper from McCall's pattern M6154.  I think I picked it up at Joann's for a couple of dollars on sale.

I've made this jumper before, which you'll see in just a minute, but this time I decided that the fabric was whimsical enough to pull of the bubble look of View A from the pattern cover.  And judging from the photo session with my model, the dress inspired her to have fun.  She ran and played peek-a-boo from behind the tree and smiled her most beautiful smile.  Just as I had imagined her when I was sewing this.

I thought about adding a fabric flower or some type of accessory to one side of the yoke, but I haven't come up with anything yet that I really like on it.  If you have any suggestions, please let me know.

After cutting out the jumper, I realized I had about a yard of fabric that was 9"-10" wide.  What could I make out of that--pants, a skirt, or maybe a cute pair of winter/fall shorts!  Well, I decided on a pair of shorts/knickers with a tie at the side of each leg.

I used just a basic shorts pattern as a go-by, but I cut out several inches of the width since my fabric width was very limited.  I'm really pleased with how well they turned out, and in fact, I may start making all of her shorts with less width.  Ella is pretty tall and thin, so all the extra gathers from elastic waistband pants sometimes make her look too poofy.

We actually took the pictures of Ella in the shorts first, and she was not happy.  She was eager to get into play clothes so she could join Connor outside in the backyard.  I had to keep promising her candy to get her cooperation.  It's amazing what a few pez can get you!

    Unhappy Ella

Happy Ella

Anyway, I really wanted these shorts to be different than regular old shorts, so I added the band at the bottom and extended it out on each side so it could be tied in a knot or bow.

 After making the jumper and shorts, I decided to finally repurpose this green sleeveless sweater and cardigan set that I have had lying around in the sewing room for months now.  At the time of this photo shoot, I had not worked on the cardigan yet, but as you can see, I did come up with something decent for the sleeveless sweater.  It's not exactly how I thought it would look, but I think it's cute.  I did take a few pictures of most of the steps I took in making it.  I'll post about it another day.

Oh, and here is Ella in the other jumper I made using the same pattern from McCall's (No. M6154) version B.  She has been wearing it for the last couple of months, and it is one of her favorites.  She always gets compliments when she wears it, and this pattern is so easy to make.