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40 Garments Week 3

Welcome back to 40 Garments in 40 Days. I've got some great sews for you again this week AND a full bonus post. Want to hear about...

Welcome back to 40 Garments in 40 Days.


I've got some great sews for you again this week AND a full bonus post.

Want to hear about the bonus post first? Tomorrow I am sharing with you an entire post about layering pieces for a Spring/Summer Wardrobe. Complete with giveaways and everything. You'll love it.

Today I've got 6 wonderful garments to share with you, so let's get started.

Lily Bird Studio Sandy Tunic
Purl Soho City Shorts
Rabbit Rabbit Creations Girl Next Door Dress
Love Notions La Bella
Mouse House Creations Norah
and Bella Sunshine Designs Bow Tie Leggings
Up first, is the Lily Bird Studio Sandy Tunic. Lily Bird Studio is one of our awesome sponsors for this week, and you can register below for a chance to win your own copy of the Sandy Tunic. The Sandy Tunic is not like my usual fast and dirty sews. This pattern has beautiful pin tucks across the front and a gorgeous curved yoke. I took a few hours on a Saturday morning to make all this lovely bias tape for this pattern. It really makes all the difference on a pattern like this. I did struggle with this pattern a little bit, but it wasn't in the area I expected. I thought I'd struggle with applying the bias tape, but that part was very easy (and turned out gorgeous). For some reason I struggled with the shirt placket. Despite all the measurements matching up correctly to the instructions, my placket wasn't quite the right size. So my one word of advice, make sure your pleats are really really perfect. That said, you can't really tell that my placket isn't perfect and if you can, just don't tell me. ;) I opted to skip out on the buttons since this will most likely be worn over an under shirt. Also, this pattern uses 1/4" seam allowances. That doesn't leave any room for error, so sew carefully!

Paired with the Sandy Tunic are the Purl Soho City Shorts. The Purl Soho City Shorts are BETTER than a sponsor, they're free. I've tried a LOT of free patterns. Many are a complete waste of time (not all of course). But these are one of the best free patterns I've ever tried. So let's take a step back. The Purl Soho City Shorts come in sizes kids 2-11 and Women's hip size 33-46. I haven't tried the women's size yet, but from looking at it, they look well done. They are simple, with only 3 pattern pieces (1 of which is a rectangle for the waistband). The fit was perfect and they're super comfy. What more could you want in a free pattern? :)



The dress for this week is the Rabbit Rabbit Creations Girl Next Door. I have owned this pattern a long time and have made a sleeveless version every year. I really like the pocket and the over all style of the dress. HOWEVER, this is not a pattern for a newbie. The pattern includes ZERO band measurements so you will need to do the math for the neck, sleeve and pocket bands yourself. I did NOT do the sleeved version. I can only say that my version of the pattern had a fully drafted sleeve pattern piece but it did not denote a front/back but it was clearly different front and back. The hem of the dress cuts straight across the bottom. I opted not to hem at all, but if you decide to hem the dress, you will need to true up the corner the way I did on the Modkid Hailey.

Next up is the Love Notions La Bella. I love, Love, LOVE this pattern. It is fast and easy. Whether you're making it for a woman or a girl, it is SO fast. 1 pattern piece (just cut out the 2 different front and back necklines) and you're all set to go as long as you fold up your neck, arm and hem. But what makes this pattern awesome is the included cowl and hood pieces. Now I did not use the hood or the cowl this time. We've got so many patterns with hoods on them that I felt it might be over kill. It took longer to tape together the pattern than to do the actual sewing. I actually measured out my own arm band because I misplaced my arm band pattern piece (whoops) and was too lazy to print another one.

Paired with the La Bella is the Bella Sunshine Designs Bow Tie Leggings in slim fit pant. I've already blogged this pattern once in this series, and again on its own, so no need for a full review. I went the extra mile and added the bow tie and OMG SO CUTE. In the future though, cotton lycra does NOT make the best bow tie. It ended up a little bit heavier than I wanted. I might use a woven or a jersey instead.

And because those Bow Tie Leggings are SO versatile, I paired them up with the Mouse House Creations Norah in tunic length. MHC is another one of our sponsors, so don't forget to use the rafflecopter to register to win a free pattern from MHC. The Norah is another one of those patterns that I've owned for forever. It is a great basic a-line dress and has some super fun features. I wanted to do a nice black tunic with a pretty collar but my daughter said no way. She has to wear it, so I had to reassess. I'm so glad I did. This Purple leopard is amazing. I really love the simple lines in this pattern. I will say though that the armscye on the sleeveless is too large to wear modestly without a shirt on underneath. Next time I might bring up the armscye to make it a bit more modest. That said, I've made tons of these dresses and have never been disappointed with the over all style and fit. I have found the sleeves to be a touch long in the past, but I'd rather have sleeves I can hem up than sleeves that are too short!

For the back, the pattern calls for a button loop. I cheap on this every time. I instead make a snap loop. This time I tucked the snap in between the fold. This made for an invisible closure that looks way better than my kam snaps.








Now I know you're probably thinking that I've shorted you a pattern this week, but I promise tomorrow will have some amazing stuff to pick from, so be sure to check back! If you've missed any of the series, here's the links.
40 Garments in 40 Days Week 1 Day 1
40 Garments in 40 Days Week 1 Day 2
40 Garments in 40 Days Week 2
40 Garments in 40 Days Sudoku

And don't forget to enter the rafflecopter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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15 comments

  1. It's a longer sew, but I love the Amanda dress (also by Lily Bird Studio!)

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  2. I don't have a girl to sew for, but if I did my favorite would be the Girls LDT by Love Notions.

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  3. I love Mhc clover shorts and Brownie Goose Bay top!

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  4. Favourite girls summer sew? How can I pick? I absolutely LOVE the Sisboom Tobago. I"ve made it in top, tunic and dress forms. Another fave is the Mouse House Creations Clover shorts. I've made a bunch of those to go with the Tobagos, they're one of my fave summer pairs. For dresses, I love the Sisboom Sally.

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  5. My dd is not little any more but I like the Sara Belle dress by OUSM Designs. There are tons of cute ones though and I like them all!

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  6. Right now I'm mildly obsessed with Tadah Patterns Tea Party dress.

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  7. I love most of the Ainslee Fox dresses.

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  9. The Lily Bird Studio Sandy Tunic is super cute and the placket looks perfect to me!

    It especially stands out against the sleeveless tops featured.
    For years I had no qualms with girls wearing sleeveless tops...
    Then I went to work in the schools. 
    The slightest hint of warm weather and the girls were in sleeveless tops, shorts and flip flops. The boys on the other hand were wearing tennis shoes, long pants a shirt or two and hoodies. The boys would complain the classroom was too hot and the girls would complain the room was too cold lol 
    The boys even at the elementary level would leer at the girls in the skimpy clothing, and ignore the girls who were fully dressed.
    On about my 2nd year, I started asking the girls why they dressed that way. Most of them replied that they don't really like it, but it's the only "cute" things they can buy. The only choices they have are skimpy and "boyfriend" (or boy looking clothes). 

    So, I'd pull out my phone and show them fashion from the 1970's with the high collars and "angel sleeves" they went gaga, they said if they could find fashion like that, they would wear it! 
    These are girls from 5th grade -12th. From about 10 different schools and many different socio-economic backgrounds. 
    Got me to thinking, why do we perpetuate the myth that sleeveless and short shorts are cute, when sleeves like on the Sandy Tunic add such a depth of cuteness? 
    Thanks for letting me rant ☺

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  10. Girls LDT by love Notions or the Origami Tunic!

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  11. I sewed a pair of the girls' size City Gym shorts for the first time last week, and I was super impressed for it being a freebie. I think my favorite spring/summer pattern is the Tobago, too. Easy to make, easy to hack, and easy to wear.

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  12. Brueram Dress by Sofilantjes is one of my favorite patterns for my granddaughter in the warm weather months.

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  13. You should do a mini tutorial on the hidden snap loop, I use kam snaps fairly often with my 3 year old but they aren't my favorite to look at. But perfect for closing things while she tries to run away from me and play :) Your daughter is a lucky girl! Such a cute and comfortable looking wardrobe!

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  14. amazing job! I am thrilled to see this journey!

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