The Daygown

Having three children under five has made it difficult to blog much.

Who could have seen that coming?

In fact, it has been difficult to do much of anything not directly related to kids, housework, or (more commonly) both at the same time. But I try to stay productive, and have some project near-to-hand for those odd moments of leisure that crop up, a few minutes at a time. We've joined the YMCA, and I utilize their childcare to steal a few hours a week. I daresay I am the only member that wraps up a workout with an hour by the pool, handsewing.

Also, Spring is a thumbsucker, which makes her an amazing sleeper. If I'd known how effective it was, I'd have put chocolate syrup, or something, on the boys' thumbs in their infancy. Anyway - this gives me at least an hour or so every evening after all the littles are in bed.

Having fallen in love with the daygown mentioned in the previous post, I wanted to try my hand at making another, in hopes to carry on an heirloom tradition. So I decided to try out the pattern and lessons at Jeannie Beumeister's blog The Old-Fashioned Baby, which I've followed for a while. Spring's room and much of her clothing fall into the "shabby chic" style, and Jeannie's blog gives me great ideas for further froo-froo of that nature. Plus her photos and Southern Lady charm make me long exquisitely for my native Baton Rouge.

Here is Spring, in her newly finished handsewn daygown:

She has found effective ways of avoiding the paparazzi:

I absolutely adored doing this. Having a bit of a love/hate relationship with my sewing machine, I was both anxious and eager about handsewing, but it turned out to be easier than I expected, and a very relaxing, soothing, almost zen-like activity. Any slow process seems to slow thought, and my frenetically-paced days suddenly slipped into a meditative stream when I picked this up.

Of course, this also meant it took a long time to finish, even disregarding my lack of experience. Each of the seven lessons were only supposed to take an hour; I probably took more like three or four with some of them.

The whole project was nearly derailed when Deuce (now an eager and exploratory two-year-old) found my work foolishly left out somewhere in his reach, and decided to experiment with Mommy's scissors. The damage he did was mostly in an area that would become seam allowance. I had to fudge it, and make a larger allowance than was called for. I am still upset about this, as it renders imperfect a garment that otherwise was working up flawlessly, and it was too late in the game to start over (I was on lesson six at that point.) MRB says it gives the dress character and a "story". A man's answer! However, the alteration is minor enough that nobody will ever notice but me...I'm not entering this into any contests.

There was embroidery involved:

 Note: working on embroidery at the YMCA is a fantastic conversation starter with women, particularly with grandmotherly types, many of whom, it turns out, used to do it.

The entire thing took me almost four months. Spring is now wearing 6-9 month sizes, and I was terribly afraid that she would not fit into this by the time I finished it. I'm afraid my final work was rather rushed, and the stitches at the hem pucker a little. But overall, I am pleased, and I hope to do more things like this.

Maybe I'll learn smocking next! Then I can finish the next project by the time she's four!

And yes, I am enjoying having a girl. Need you even ask?