Katie Mae Turns Two

Happy Birthday Princess Katie Mae - our adorable niece! I assure you she loved her pink princess cake and crown!


A few weeks ago I was trying to come up with an idea for Katie Mae's birthday present - I was in the handmade frame of mind. While in Philadelphia for an outing I stopped by Spool on South Street - you know - where all the hippies go! Now, Spool is not a large shop but they do carry a lovely collection of fabrics - here's one of the shop owner's, Laura Singewald.

I spied the perfect gift for Katie Mae - the "birthday dress" from oliver + s. I've been curious to give this pattern company a try and this was the perfect excuse - after all - who can turn their back on anything with a paper doll on it???

Here is my version - so cute!!! I just love the bright yellow flowered fabric - I wish I could tell you who made it but the selvage went out with the trash - sorry selvage savers. And I couldn't stop myself at the dress - I had to create a matching handbag - every princess needs a handbag to carry her lipstick. Unfortunately I don't have a photo of Katie Mae in the dress - as soon as my sister-in-law forwards a photo I will be sure to share it with you.

What I loved about the oliver + s pattern was the attention to detail and the little extras. Look at the hem - the pattern gives you directions for how to use a contrasting fabric giving such a beautifully finished look. The front of the dress has 3 box pleats - the pattern instructed you to edge sew the pleats to make ironing easier after washing. As you can see I pulled out the serger for this project - I finished all of my raw edges.
The dress closes in the back with buttons - I just love the button placket.

There was a lot of edge sewing with this pattern - my number 5 edge foot really came in handy.

Caution - Caution - Caution

I needed to pick up tracing paper to mark the pleats and button placket - it's been a long time since I used tracing paper. I found this Mark-B-Gone paper from Dritz and thought I'd give it a try.

Oh heavens!!! What a mess!!! The purple inky stuff got on everything - my hands, all over the fabric, the table, my clothes - you name it. Luckily it washed out without a problem - will I use it again - NO!
Tomorrow - Part Two of Katie Mae's present. Yes, I got carried away.