A Sunny Easter Spot. Japanese Sewing for Easter 2013 sew chibi style

Good Morning everyone!!!  I have been anticipating this post for a REALLY long time now... Some of it for almost a year now and some discoveries I had a la minute!  Needless to say,

this. is. sew chibi.

So I have been obsessed with Japanese Pattern books this year.  It seems all of my sewing has been dedicated to two things: Japanese Patterns and button-making!!!! 

Quick disclaimer:  I am not an affiliate for any Japanese sewing book whatsoever.  I just think these books are totally boss and wanted to share!

Back to Easter.

As some of you know, my blogging flourish started with an Easter dress last year. It's pretty hard to top... I mean, it had a little bit of everything!!!  And then Sephira's little lamb outfit, well... let's just say my artist vision has never been the same since.  Those outfits mean the world to me and opened up a whole world of wonderful people and relationships I could have never imagined.

So, I have been salivating over this one, particular book, A Sunny Spot, which I blogged about back in January.

I pretty much want to make every. single. thing. in this book.  And I have never said that about a pattern book before!  I decided immediately that I wanted to make this dress for Azy... 

... and then pretty much five seconds later I decided I wanted to do this one for Sephira.

Later, I decided I needed something more for Azy's dress since I didn't want to take away from the simplistic beauty of the pattern, I decided I would make a fun apron for the top from this pattern.

So are you ready for my versions??? I feel like there should be trumpets.  Can you all close your eyes and imagine trumpets blaring for me?!

BAM!

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Sephira

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Azriella

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Now where oh where to start?!

Gosh I am having such a hard time right now deciding which one I want to talk about first!  Hahahahah!

(mental "rock paper scissors" game... ....the results... Azriella!)

Okay!  Azriella's look is up first!

I think I always sorta knew what I would do for her dress. color blocking.  It's just such a sweet shabby cute dress!  I went with a pastel pallet and decided to do either gray chevrons or just gray for the collar.  In then in, just gray won.  It's funny, Max, and I were having one of our bajillion conversations and when I showed her the fabrics she asked me how I come up with my color combos and I was startled because I had never had that question posed to me before.  I think I responded "an internal process of elimination!"  HA!  Really, that's all it is usually... Every now and then I'll get an idea that is outside my stash realm but most of the time I try my hardest stash bust.  With that being said, I didn't do that at all this time!

The pattern is meant to be flow-y; not fitted.  It was really easy to follow too!  I didn't have any problems with it at all!  I got to do something special, button-wise, that I had never done before:  blending colors.

I blended a couple of colors for the back pink buttons.

I also decided that if Azy was gonna wear this after Easter, it had better have pockets!  So that was all that I altered to add to the dress.  I am so proud of the outcome!!!  It couldn't have been better, to me.

As for the apron, that was the last of all the items that I did.  I specially ordered a fat quarter combo from Thailand on Etsy from this shop.  I knew it was going to be a headache, and it was about what I expected, considering my modifications.  I had one goal for her apron.  It must have cut-outs!!!  After seeing them in this book, Sewing with Whimsy and the the incredible Cath Grace in some of her PR&P creations, I just knew this was the time.  So of course, Easter egg cut-outs were the obvious choice!  I decided to fuse them to some pink felt for stability and so they didn't look weird from the back.  I did a panel near the hem and a panel on the bodice, with with binding to add stability there as well.  I also felt that the top needed a ruffle, I mean, come on, it's Easter for crying out loud!  It's her only ruffle, can you believe it?! Thank goodness the pattern called for super deep pockets for her to shove her little Easter findings in them!!!

And gold buttons for the front. 

Of course, I wasn't done there.  The girl needs accessories!  It's no secret that I am in love with the mini top hat look for little girls.  It's very a Lolita style and I'm just a sucker for it!  But how to reinvent yourself...bunny ears! 

How fun is that!  She came home from school and was all giggly over her hat!  She went hopping all over the house in it! Sigh, I just love that girl.

On to Sephria's look.

Oh geez you guys, I have been sitting on a bombshell ever since the ever amazing Rae revealed her Washi Dress.  Not the pattern per sa (although I do think it is pretty darn cute and have contemplated getting it a million times) but that washi print!!!

True love guys.  True.  Love.  From that day I got the itch to make something that would simulate the look of real washi tape.  I have waited and waited for the right application. And for the super fun part? I mean, it wouldn't be a sew chibi Easter without some kind of pocket reinvention!  

I call them Plinko Pockets...  (like the Price is Right Plinko game) because the idea of scattered set in pockets made me think of that game I guess!

Those two ideas made me feel like Smeagol a little bit... They were "my precious" and I held those ideas like jewels in my mind. Does anyone else ever feel like that about a new idea?  

So where are the six pockets?

Hidden amongst the "washi" strips of course!  

The pattern for this tunic is so cute but Sephy is in the "almost" sizing for the smallest sizing and I just decided to go for it.  She's growing like a sprout, that one!

The stripey tee underneath features half length sleeves and a polkadot woven bias binding to match her tunic and subsequently Azriella as well.

And the bloomers.  Well, the book doesn't actually say how to make those particular bloomers so I had to alter one of the other patterns and measure around Sephira's legs and added up from there to make them pooftastic!!!  I totally have a crush on these little guys!

And for her little accessory, I found inspiration in this pin I found a while ago!  So I whipped up a little flexible bunny eared headband for her??? 

Want to make one for you little gal for Easter?  Come back tomorrow when I do a tutorial on my Behind the Seams on these outfits!!!

Oh!  I almost forgot the shoes!!!  After a losing battle with two pairs of Toms-making, I decided that shoes would not defeat me.  I whipped up two pairs of gray vinyl ballet flats for the girls right before the photo-shoot!

Check out the behind the seams on these outfits.

And just wait'll you hear about what else I've been cooking up!!!  It's a good'n!

Until then!