Project Run & Play Season 13 'Greenery' For Two

A new (to us) kindergarten teacher moved in next door to me at school.  Rachel was 'family' before she arrived as she is the daughter-in-law of one of our veteran first grade teachers.  She is a wonderful  teacher and mother of two darling little girls:  Harper and Rory.  It has been my pleasure to sew a few little gifts for them this year.  Harper's coloring is beautiful with the Pantone Color of the Year:  Greenery, so the girls were the recipients of this entry to the Project Run & Play Sew Along Contest.  I will be linking this post to the contest HERE.  Please go and check out all the wonderful garments made for this week!

I again chose to use fabric from an in-house collection called "Botany" from Hawthorne Threads.  There are 24 prints in this collection that features the 'greenery' color.  I ordered three of them  (Lime Trees in Greenery, Lime Trees in Shell, Terrarium in Greenery on White).  For the fourth fabric in my design I used another Hawthorne in-house coordinate called Radiate in Greenery.  

 

I made Harper a shorts set and Rory a tea length dress and bloomers.  My husband questioned my decision of making the little one the dress and I explained that the dress pattern (new Look #6501/DO570) only went up to 24 pounds and that Harper weighs 31 pounds.  Well......the pattern runs so big that it would be large on Harper, too!  The pattern states that a Large size is for babies 21-24 pounds.  Rory weighs 22 pounds but this swims on her.  I will be making the shoulder straps shorter so that she can wear it.  She will be able to share it with her sister and wear it herself for a long time!

 

Harper's Shorts Set:  So feminine with the ruffles and full skirt!

Violette Fields Threads "Ginger" for the Top Size 3

Violette Fields Threads "Kate" for the Shorts Size 3

The Violette Threads patterns were 'spot-on' for Harper.  She is a tiny and very slender little 3 1/2 year old and can still fit into 2T RTW clothing.  When I make this again, I will be careful with measurements and will probably go up a size, depending on the child.  I enjoyed making both of these patterns but changed the construction of the bodice lining on the inside.  The pattern has you just sew/serge the side seams with the lining and front bodice wrong sides facing.  I turned the lining over the top so that it was right sides facing and then sewed my seam, serged, and then flipped the lining back over so that the lining faced out.  You can see in the photos below that the seam is then enclosed giving it a cleaner finish and a smoother feel to sensitive toddler skin.

I like the two channels of narrow elastic for the back bodice.

My husband wanted to know why I brought a step stool to the photo shoot.  My answer:  If you say to sit or stand on the stool you have a greater chance of them not running off!

Next time I think I will make the ties a little longer so that a pretty bow can be made.  The shorts remind me of "Daisy Dukes"!  Remember them?

She is just as sweet as she looks in these pictures!

Good for tree climbing.  Good thing it is a shorts outfit!

She looks like a little dancer here!  

I keep thinking of Shirley Temple and her little dance routines when I look at Harper in this outfit!

Rory's Tea Length Dress & Bloomers:  New Look #6501 size 21-24 pounds (large) Sweet with the ruffles but runs LARGE.

As I stated earlier, I should have made Rory a smaller size but the pattern measurements put her in a large.  I will make this dress again because the overall look is so sweet with the bodice and hem ruffles.  The pattern comes with a darling romper, too.  However, I will change the back placket.  It was annoying to do and I didn't care for the way it was finished on the inside.

What a character!  Rory is so much fun!

I love the ruffle on the bodice!  The buttons on the back were from my large button stash.  The upper right photo shows the buttons on Harper's shorts.  They don't show much but I know that they are there!

 This is why bloomers are necessary for dresses of any length when you aren't quite 2!

It is not easy to stay still when there is so much to see and do!

 

 Outtakes:  I had so much fun at this photo shoot!  I kept laughing because I kept thinking about the saying "It is like herding cats!"

 A parting shot:

I hope you liked the outfits as much as I enjoyed making them!