It's Blog Tour Time Again - Simple Life Pattern Company Mash-Up Tour!

The Simple Life Pattern Co. has only been selling patterns for the past six months, but they've made a huge splash in the pdf pattern world. And for good reason - these patterns are fantastic! They're well-drafted, stylish, and the perfect mix of frilly (pleases my girl) yet practical enough for everyday wear (pleases me).

When I was invited to join their mash-up blog tour this week, I agreed without hesitation and then turned Miss P loose on their website. To mash-up a pattern, I usually use components from 2-3 patterns and blend them for a new look. I think it's a great way to extend the life of a pattern and get even more use from it without looking like I've made three or four of the same dress. (Not that there's anything wrong with that. We've got plenty of "duplicates" in our wardrobes here - it's just nice to get a little bonus add-on from my pattern purchases, too.)

Miss P immediately fell in love with the Lilly Lapel Dress, and what's not to love?? It's GORGEOUS. I reminded her that we live a pretty casual lifestyle with no upcoming big events, and since it was really the pieced version of the skirt that caught her eye we decided to make it a standalone skirt. It was a no-brainer to pair the adorable Cheyenne Ruffled Top with it for a sweet ensemble that is totally wearable but fancy enough to please my little lady.

To make the skirt, I opted for the smaller of the two sizes I was considering and went with the 4T. It left me without enough ease in the waist/hips for her to still be able to pull it on once I added an elasticated waistband, but was a little shorter and less full than the size 5. I pieced the skirt together per pattern instructions (which are so detailed and easy to follow) and then started to draft my waistband.

You can see in the photo above that I serged along the top of my pieced skirt - there are a LOT of seams involved because of all of the panels, and I found that finishing the top edge just cleaned it up a bit as I prepared to add the waistband. I cut my waistband to the circumference of the top edge of my skirt (plus seam allowance) by 4" tall. I sewed up the side seams, pressed in half along the long edge, and also pressed one edge under about 1/4" before attaching the raw edge to the top edge of the skirt. I pressed that seam up and folded my waistband down along the crease I'd pressed down the midline, and then topstitched the waistband in place, leaving about 2" open to thread my elastic. I used 1" elastic, cut just a touch shorter than my daughter's waist measurement. I also stitched just along the top edge of the waistband, about 1/8" from the edge, to help keep the casing nice and snug for the elastic. I hemmed the skirt per pattern instructions but it would look very cute finished with bias tape also!

For the Cheyenne tank, I cut the sleeveless view in the size 4 with added length since I wanted it to be a nice slim fit to tuck into the skirt. Miss P is right between the size 4 and 5 these days, so I can go either way depending on what type of fit we're looking for. I wanted a little cap sleeve to make this a little more of a transitional outfit since the skirt will be perfect for fall, so I made a faux sleeve from the arm band. I simply serged the band onto the tank, right sides together, and instead of wrapping it to the wrong side to finish the arm opening as binding I just pressed the ends under asymmetrically and hemmed in place. I tucked just about 1/2" under at the shoulder, and then tapered down as I approached the side seam/underarm. At that point there was less than 1/2" of the band VISIBLE as the rest was pressed under. Once I hemmed, I just trimmed away the excess knit. It's subtle but I like the way the "sleeve" extends just a tiny bit beyond the ruffles at the shoulder.

Miss P's next request is for me to use the bodice from the Lilly dress since she loves the lapels - and mash it with the tiered maxi skirt from the Mia's Dress. This girl is definitely not into the subtle these days!

Thanks again to Katie, Kimberlee, and the team at SLP Co. for inviting me to join you this week - this was a lot of fun for us! Make sure to check out the rest of the stops on the tour, too!