Hi friends! here's a quickie post on today's outfit. I am going to try to get on a track of including at least one outfit post a week. The biggest obstacle to me getting these done is that I am terrible at taking pictures of myself! Part of getting myself out of my comfort zone, though is to learn to take some good selfies. I am itching to get my hands on a smartphone-friendly tripod. Maybe one like this:

If you will forgive me my poor selfie skills at current I promise to keep working on them! Without further ado... The Baronica dress! Our friend Barry and Monica got hitched in August and you might recall that I shared some images of this dress before, just after I finished it.

I applie teal rick rack of differing sizes at the neck and hem and also finished the inside hem with some bright orange grosgrain ribbon which adds a fun pop of color when the hem flips up. I have been surprised how many colors pairs well with this combo and find myself rotating between shades of pink, orange, black and brown when I pair the dress with a cardigan.

Sometime soon I'll post a step-by-step on how I have shortened my legion of cardigans to better suit the proportions of my dresses and skirts. It's super easy and makes the world your oyster of cardigan shopping! I've been bummed to find that so many cropped cardigans are acrylic and nylon based. Blech.

I'm trying to eek out a few more wears of my summer sandals. I love these Azalea's by Earth Shoe. Really supportive, comfy and aesthetically on-point for all of my favorite 40's and 50's dresses that scream, "I need brown sandals!" (Please forgive the wrinkles... I need to buy a steamer since no amount of ironing seems to banish the crinkle!)

My bracelets today are a mix of Bakelite and plastic. The three thinner bangles are each marbled in subtle ways. the top bangle is a bright orangey pink that I am working (very slowly!) to remove the patina from. I'm anxious to hear any tips anyone has!

Outfit details:

Dress- me-made, fabric from The Textile Center garage sale

Cardigan- Gap outlet, shortened by me, similar here: Kinny and Howie

Shoes- Earth Shoes Azalea

Bracelets- various spots, antique malls around the Twin Cities

Necklace- Seratonin necklace from my pal Laura when I was getting ready to move to MN

During my day off last week I was very happy to spend the whole day home and sewing. And doing laundry. And cleaning the cat's water fountain, etc, etc. Still, mainly, a sewing day!

After my most recent trip to SR Harris I had a really hard time deciding which of my new fabrics to start with. Looking through my box of trim I decided to make up this fun blue dot print with some extra wide rickrack trim from my stash. I went back and forth about it since it made me think of baseball right away. I love the kinda '40's, kinda '60's pop Deco feeling of it.

I keep all of my TNT pattern pieces in their own envelopes. Separate bodice and bottom pieces. Mix and match heaven! I have a whole envelope of pocket pieces, too!

I started out with my kimono sleeve bodice block and a basic gathered skirt (I use a tapered hip line instead of a straight rectangle to reduce bulk). I laid all of my bits out and just wasn't feeling it. So I scrapped the kimono sleeve bodice and instead opted for my newly modified Butterick 5748 bodice! I made this up as a test run for a dress I am wearing to a friend's wedding later this month. With the first try there was major neck gaping and the back is so low that I can only wear it with one bra that I own.

To eliminate the neck gape I followed the advice of berni and i . Her step-by-step was perfect for altering a one-piece bodice front with waist and bust darts. It's giving me the confidence to go back and fix some other patterns with similar problems. Don't fear the dart!

As a side note, I generally don't pre-wash my fabrics unless I am sure that the sizing is corn-based (I have an allergy). I find that most fabrics are so much easier to cut and fit in their fresh-off-the-bolt state. Plus, my ironing and pressing time is greatly reduced and my washing machine is saved the trouble of loose yarns tumbling around the center holding my towels and underpants hostage.

In the future I hope to share additional tidbits about organization, pattern tracing, storage and modifications. I love reading about other bloggers organization and tips and tricks.

Next up: pictures of the finished dress! And some Bakelite love.

Happy sewing!