Joanie is ready
for summer.
She picked fuchsia color
Hat, purse and shoes
Joanie is ready to go. She has other hats
that will work. It was a nice day to be at the
Springs. Joanie had been hoarding this
material for quite some time, so this
offered her the perfect opportunity to use it
up. She also found the daisy sunglasses
and decided to add daisy trim to the
neckline of the dress to coordinate with
them.
Cut and sew
On July 14th 2017 we went to Disney Springs.
The event was to make a Gertie Dress from
Butterick pattern #B6453 and we would all see
what others had made. The men came along
dressed up just to make it more exciting.
Dress Pattern with Two
Variations.
As you can see from the main photo
above, the dress could be made with
either a full, gathered skirt, or with a slim
pencil skirt. As the ladies began choosing
their material and the styles they were
deciding to sew, the information on the
sewing Facebook page began flowing. It
was such fun to watch the comments and
see how progress was being made by
each participant. Questions began
circulating about the best way to attach the
straps to the bodice, whether or not to use
hardware to make them adjustable, who
was changing the design to add wider
straps, and what modifications were being
made to the pattern to make it fit each
seamstress properly. We each learned a
few things from each other as we
constructed our dresses.
Summer Styling at the Springs
Photos by: Alexandra
Photos by: Carolyn
Photos by: Matthew
Photos by: Ray Fuller
Joanie did a trial run at home using different hats to see which look she liked. It
turned out that she used a variety of hats during the photo day so her look
changed a little bit with the different photos.
When everyone finally assembled at Disney Springs on July 14th, it was a treat
to see how each seamstress interpreted the pattern with style and material. A
few of the ladies decided they didn’t have the time to attempt the dress, so they
dressed nicely in other dresses, which added to the look of the day.
Colors and materials varied, but all of the dresses looked marvelous. It was fun
listening to conversations about the straps, whether or not someone had used
a zipper, issues they had with the sewing, and just the ins and outs of the
pattern itself.
The ladies who used the straight pencil skirt style looked completely different
from the ones who used the full skirt. There were delicate, tiny prints, bold
prints, one dress with two different prints and one that was even made from a
sheet. The mother who made that dress for her daughter even left the tag from
the sheet attached to the material and worked it into the inside of the pocket!
Some of the straps were sewn in solid while others were widened and attached
at the shoulders with buttons. Some of the dresses had belts and bolero
shrugs, some were just worn as sundresses. The variety was almost endless,
and each lady looked amazing in her dress.
The mother of this young lady, who is sitting next to her in the first photo,
made both of their dresses. The daughter’s dress was made from a bed
sheet, and the mother even included the label from the sheet inside the
pocket. We thought this was such a clever idea. And we ALL love pockets!
As the day moved on, we
had several ladies join us for
the different photos. Some
of the ladies who arrived
earlier in the day moved on
to join their families, but
then others came later and
joined in on later photos.
We had a very nice day for
the event. It wasn’t
unbearably hot as Florida
can sometimes be in the
summer. We had a gentle
breeze from across the water,
which helped tremendously.
We had ample opportunity during the event to sit and enjoy visiting with
people who came. We even had a few tourists ask us why we were dressed
up. It was fun to tell them the story behind the event and to point out to
them that the dresses were all made from the same basic pattern. The
men helped us find ways to show off our dresses, and provided some extra
interest in our photos.
Ann P, our self-proclaimed selfie expert, had to take her usual selfie with the
group. She brought along a couple of her fellow beauty queen contestants to
add to the pretty factor for the day. We always love when she does her special
selfie shots!
The pencil skirt models.
Talking and shopping
That suave old-time photographer
Hurry ladies! The afternoon sun is starting to fade!
Lovely ladies by the fountain.