Gift #2 - for a first birthday

OK, this one is nearly a week late, but it's done now and off to the birthday girl tonight!

The pattern is Gracie by Sandi Henderson (Portabellopixie). I made version A, a reversible jumper, in size 12-18 months. The main fabrics are both Wildwood by Erin McMorris, and for the yoke I used those gorgeous pink honeycombs from Modern Meadow by Joel Dewberry. I really love how they work together, especially with the trees.

The jumper went together quickly, but I'm glad it wasn't one of the first garments I'd sewn - whereas Oliver + S patterns tell you exactly what to do at every step, this pattern left off a few basics. Some of the things I did that the pattern didn't mention include: trimmed all seam allowances to 1/4 inch; added some iron-on interfacing along the back edges for the button holes and buttons; and clipped the seam allowances for smooth curves.

Do you like the big green buttons? I love them! They were from my stash so I was amazed how well they matched.

Hope the birthday girl (and her mum) loves the new dress!

Well, at least one gift got finished on time...

And it wasn't even a Christmas present! This blouse was made for my girlfriend's daughter's 2nd Birthday. I finished hand stitching the bias edges on the sleeves, wrapped it up, and went to the party.
I used the Oliver + S 2+2 blouse pattern, size 2, short-sleeved version. The main fabric is MoMo Wonderland and the contrast is from Joel Dewberry Modern Meadow. I love those honeycombs!

As I am still quite new to sewing, this project, again, had lots of firsts: first time cleaning and oiling my machine (so not as scary as I thought); first time sewing buttonholes (wow, not hard!); first time making lots of my own bias tape (fiddly, yes, but definitely easier having rotary cut the strips); first time using fabric from, gasp, not the same fabric line (still not too sure how much I like this combo).

This took a lot longer than I expected to sew, as it was quite fiddly throughout, and many seams were ripped and redone. However, those concise and well-illustrated Oliver + S instructions made every step clear. Overall, I'm happy with the result. I look forward to seeing it on its recipient to make a final judgement.

Tonight, I worked another baby birthday present and am nearly done. Next up is a belated Christmas present - another Left Bank Granny Bag. And yes, I still plan to post those links to all the amazing patterns recommended during the giveaway. In the meantime, I'm using all my inner strength to resist buying some of this (already sold out at Hawthorne Threads but still available at fabricworm):