Vacation Cascade

Hey kiddos. Forgive my long absence, and the short post today. I've had very little time for blogging and making recently because...vacation! 

[Yep, that little dot is me!]

 
After way too long without one, I finally got the chance to get out and go explore. Puerto Rico was very welcoming, we had so much fun!

Right before I left, I got the crazy idea to make a fun, festive skirt to take with me. JoAnn didn't have too many tropical options, but with some help from the girl at the cutting counter, I was able to pick one I liked.

[Taken in our awesome beachfront condo because, although I wore this skirt several times, we were never in very scenic locations!]

 
Bright and colorful and comfy, though shorts underneath were certainly a necessity. I even had a perfect matching scarf!

Forgive the awkward pics and tiny-looking feet...my friend was getting a little tired of taking these, so they were the best I had! 

I don't really have anything new to say about this pattern. You've all seen it a million times by now, right? I did try a fancy-ish ribbon technique on the underside of the back hem to cover up the ugliness, but...it needs some work, honestly. Oh well, live and learn. 

I alllllmost thought I could make a full-on dress to take with me, too, but that didn't happen. It's currently sitting half-finished in my sewing room...hopefully it won't take until next summer to finish it. I need to start working through my UFOs!

Have you ever rushed to finish something before vacation? How did it turn out?

More Cascade love

Did I mention how much I adore this pattern? No? Wellllll, I do. It's awesome: 

This version especially is so flowy and floaty, thanks in part to the underlining:

[Pardon the derp-y look on my face, but I had to do one of these twirling shots.]

And the fabric is amazing. It makes me so happy. (I think it was only like $1/yard on clearance at Wal-mart, so again, not high quality, but that pattern is to-die-for.)

Here's an inadvertent close-up while I was messing with the self-timer on the camera (I really need one of those remote things, but I don't think they make them for this model) - 

I'd originally been saving the fabric for this ModCloth knock-off:

But then I decided that the chances of me getting around to making this, and making it right, were slim. At least I knew that the Cascade worked for me, and I thought it would showcase this fabric beautifully. 

[Again, stupid look on my face, but great shot of the high-low hem!]

I didn't chop the back of the hem so drastically this time, but did keep my modified pattern so that this skirt wouldn't be trailing the floor. Historically, I haven't been a huge fan of the mullet hem, but I'll make an exception for this skirt. However, I've still got to be mindful of yardages, and I barely squeezed this onto the two yards I had.

It was a bit of a pain to work with this version, as I was using TWO very slippery fabrics, and double-hemming them separately. I initially tried to hem them together, but good Lord was that a mess. The lining might be a bit too short, but at least it keeps my naughty bits from peeking through. 

This was a pretty decent stash-buster, too. I've probably had the floral fabric for 2-3 years but was afraid of cutting into it because of how slinky it is. The underlining was bought this year during a stock-up trip to Hancock Fabrics. I can never resist their spot-the-bolt sales, but I did limit myself to only buying fabrics that I thought would be good for linings (with no specific projects in mind). This one happened to be a really good match for the florals, and I used up most of it here (and have already cut into another lining for a project that I'm still working out some fitting issues on, to be posted once they're solved!).

So, version 2 completed, on to version 3...

Not the best picture, but I didn't want to do a complete photo shoot because this one's not actually for me (though I wish it were - it's the best-made version yet, and I am in love with that print!). My friend's bachelorette party is next weekend, and she's pretty shy and innocent and would totally be embarrassed by the typical raunchy gifts, so I decided I'd make her something instead. I'm planning to include a couple of nail polishes that match the colors in this dress. I think this will be the first hand-made gift I've given to someone other than my mom, and I'm very nervous! I wanted this to be a complete surprise, so I didn't consult her on fabric or pattern choice. I figured a wrap dress was a safe bet fitting-wise, but...who knows! 

Do you guys like to give handmade gifts, or are you more "selfish" sewers? And if you do give hand-made, what's the response been? Are people generally grateful/impressed, or are you worried about coming off as a cheapskate?

Cascade skirt, just in time for cold weather

I finally broke down and bought this pattern last week, yet again breaking my stash diet pledge and the whole goal of this blog, oops. However, I'd been searching high and low for a sale, and when the lovely Lauren at Lladybird introduced one of her new sponsors (Indie Stitches) with a discount code for the month of June, I jumped at the opportunity and allowed myself a small indulgence, since I've been dreaming about this pattern for more than a month.

[I braved the cold for these pictures, but yesterday really wasn't tank top and wrap skirt weather - cold and windy, and some people may have gotten flashed...]

YOU GUYS. Why in the world did I wait so long? I love this thing! I think taping together the PDF pattern took longer than cutting and sewing the entire thing...okay, that may be a slight exaggeration, but this was such a quick project, even with the French seams. Not fiddling with a zipper probably helps a lot, huh? 

A million more of these are now on my to-do list. I made the tie-in-back version, but ended up tying it in front because A) it feels more secure, and B) I'm not a huge fan of bows, so I didn't feel the need to have the extra length to tie one. I also made the hem less drastically high-low, and ended up evening it out even more when I felt it wasn't sitting right in back. I'm wearing it as a high-waisted skirt because it's flattering as hell that way, even though that wasn't the original intention. 

The fabric wasn't a stash-bust, either, as I picked it up this year, but am proud that it didn't sit in my stash for too long! It was only 50 cents/yard brand new from Hancock Fabrics, talk about a steal! It's some cheap synthetic stuff, I'm sure, but it's still really soft and feels really nice on bare summer legs. :) (And obviously it's more florals, ha.) I'm also happy that I still have about 2 yards of it to use - I didn't need anywhere close to the almost-4 yards that the pattern calls for (this is the second Megan Nielsen pattern I've sewn that severely overestimates the yardages needed, though I know that cutting off a lot of the back hem contributed to that here). 

Anyway, I think I'm in love, and this may have surpassed the Tanias as my favorite pattern to-date (though I do have one more pair of those to show you soon, too!) Have you guys given this one a try yet? What did you think?