My Polka Dotty Princess

Pink Party PETTISKIRT

Rose was invited to a PINK party so it was the perfect excuse to give the pettiskirt tutorial a go! I was a little disheartened at first as after doing some research, the general consensus was that it would take between 7 hours to a whole day to do! Given that it was 8.30pm on the eve of the party, I had doubts about my ability to finish it in time.

I'm not sure how much material I used, I just used all the polka dot material I had left! I was 3+ metres I would say. I had found a tip online that it was easier to sew backwards. eg. Start from the hem and work your way up. This was definitely the way to go! I think I would have given up if I had done it the other way! I made metres and metres of "fluff" for the hemlines, which is what gives it the fullness. The gathering foot on my machine was my best friend for a few hours and I wouldn't even contemplate making one without it, it would take days!

On the plus side, due to all the layers, the fabric and style are very "forgiving" and small errors go unnoticed once the pettiskirt is done! How long did it take me, you ask? It took me 4.5 hours in total and I was determined to finish that night! I went to bed well after midnight. :-)

I love the end result and so does Rose. I'm not in any rush to replicate the experience yet, it is too scary to contemplate but I'm sure the lure of other gorgeous colours might make me give it a go again. One lady had written that it takes a LOT of time and effort to make one of these, but that it was worth it. I tend to agree. :-)

Pettiskirts!

It was a couple of months ago that I first heard of Pettiskirts via an Australian online forum. http://www.princessratbag.com/ had a special on, which I missed out on and I have been wanting to buy one for Rose ever since. I knew they were costly to buy but I never even considered the possibility of making one until I saw a link to http://www.marthastewart.com/. She had the pettiskirt guru, Kaiya Eve of http://www.kaiyaeve.com/ on her show and I found a link to an online video tutorial. I had some pink and white polka dot material, bought and used as a tablecloth at Rose's 4th birthday party and it had only cost me $1 per metre. I knew a pettiskirt would take a LOT of fabric so I decided to use that to keep the costs down in case it was a failure!

Here are some of the pictures that inspired me to give it a go!

Happy Birthday Maddy

Rose went to her friend Madeline's 5th birthday party on the weekend and I decided to make a little nighty for her in vintage inspired fabrics, to go with her present. Rose tried it on for size and wanted to keep it herself! I promised her that she could choose her own fabric from the sewing room and I would make her another one, as this one was especially for Madeline. I am hoping she forgets!