Who's cuter?:
Trick question. We're equally cute. Well, the flamingo may be leggier but at least I have a smaller schnoz.
Do you follow Marie's fantastic blog, A Sewing Odyssey? Did you see her flamingo print Renfrew top? Did you let out an embarrassingly shrill squeal when you saw her giveaway for two full meters of that same flamingo print jersey? Were you one of the ONEHUNDREDTWENTY people who entered? DID YOU WIN?
I did. Somehow!
These little flamingos paddled all the way across the frigid Atlantic Ocean into my outstretched arms. It's some of the softest, drapiest, most adorable jersey you could rub you face on. I thought I would wait until it was seasonally appropriate to make and wear something with flamingos all over it. Seasonally appropriate, ha ha. But someone somewhere is always turning 40, right?
What's more appropriate is that it's "Sew Grateful Week" as hosted by Debi, and today (Thursday) is the day bloggers are encouraged to post the projects they made with something they won in a giveaway. And because I'm sew grateful for Marie's generosity as well as for all the flamingos of the world, I had to take this fabric off my shelf and make something with it, stat.
I really struggled deciding what to make at first (top, dress, wrap cardigan, circle scarf, circle skirt, yoga pants, power suit, onesie, vest, hot shorts, toga, wedding gown, curtains, uh?!). I eventually determined this fabric needed to swing a lil' bit, so I ended up consulting a great source of inspiration for jersey dresses: House of Pinheiro's blog. She recently made a dress with a boat neck, scoop back and circle skirt. Flamingos on a boat neck? Perfect combo.
I traced a RTW fitted knit top for the bodice, used the Renfrew sleeve pattern (shortened to an in-between length that'll make this wearable in summer, too), and attached a quarter-ish-circle skirt. I didn't want to add a neckband to the boat neck, so I fully lined the bodice with self-fabric, which solved the issue of finishing the neck. Since I know you'll ask, I did not stabilize the waistline. Ehhh I never do. It's just serged. Sorry.
I love everything about this dress except the length. I cut it too short, as usual. I have a habit of losing my ruler at the same time I'm feeling overly confident with my rotary cutter. Learn, girl!
And since it's Sew Grateful week and I love you so, here's a photo of a a flamingo family for your viewing pleasure:
Awwwwww. Fun fact: flamingos are white when they're born and grow pink over time due to their diet. The more vibrant, the more well-nourished!
-------- P.S. I just switched to a new commenting platform, Disqus, because spam was getting through the Blogger filter at an increasingly rapid rate. I didn't want to use word recaptcha, so I switched platforms entirely. Please let me know if it's confusing or if you hate it. I don't like that it lacks a place for you write your website (if you don't have a Disqus acct already), so I won't mind if you just include a link to your blog somewhere in your comment. I like tracing your roots!