Pretty Little Ruffle Shorts

These couldn't be any cuter...or easier!

I had some leftover ruffle fabric from this skirt and thought some shorts were in order.

(Um...Does my 2 year-old-look 5 in this shot or is it just me?? Her legs look crazy long.)

The fabric speaks for itself. I didn't have to do much. I traced some shorts I own and sewed up the legs and sides. Then I sewed a casing around the waist and used a 1/4" elastic (I think. Anyway, it was really small.) I didn't need to make the waist look neat and I didn't need to hem the legs. The ruffles cover up all the raw edges. Yay!

She can wear the shorts with a top to just hang around, or she can wear a skirt over the top to look extra fancy. I TOTALLY love this idea (layering was actually the impetus for these shorts. How cute is it to see some ruffles peaking out from under a skirt? And, who doesn't want their daughter flashing the neighbors as she cycles around the block??)

Yeah, we're diggin' these EASY ruffle shorts.

* A note on the fabric. I found it at Joann's! Shocker! I love the vintage flower look of it and snapped some up. At $16/yd, it's not cheap, but hello 40% off coupon (and no shipping costs) Love those coupons. Keeps me coming in. (Especially now that I have the Joann's App, which saves all my coupons on my phone. Sooo convenient. I admit it: I love Joann's.)

Summer Seersucker Shorts!

Shorts!

I am very excited to be able to join in with Sessa at Designs by Sessa for her Shorts on the Line summer sewalong!

My daughter has been in dire need of some summer shorts, so motivation was already at hand. And now that there is so much eye candy over at the sewalong, there's even more motivation to join along in the fun.

I made these shorts out of some thrifted seersucker fabric, knowing that it would be light and airy for the summer months. I wanted some poof and definitely got it with this fabric. To make these shorts, I simply traced some pants my daughter already owned, adding a good 1" - 1.25" around the edges of her pants (which were slender to begin with) to make sure there was enough room for poofiness.

I made a front and back pocket and lined them with some coordinating ribbon that I just happened to have. I hemmed the legs, and then sewed a line with some elastic thread in my bobbin, about 1" above the hemline. Don't you love the look? I sure do.

 Here's the back view (never mind the non-matching blue shirt).

 hello belly!

Be sure to check out all the other pretty shorts in the Flickr group for the sewalong. Lots of great ideas in this pool!

Every Little Thing Dress

 This is the Every Little Thing Dress made from the pattern by Shwin&Shwin. I really love this pattern and can see so many possibilities with it. I made the tunic from this pattern last month and was very excited to make the dress. 

I used fabrics I bought at a yard sale and put some small red buttons on the back, along with a crocheted flower on the front (bought on Etsy a long time ago).

The pockets are, again, one of my favorite parts.

 I put leggings on my daughter as it was a little cool in the morning...

 But as the sun warmed us all up, you can see that the leggings got quite baggy. Oops.

 And just for fun, I added a little FUN label.

 I can't wait to make some more of these dresses and tunics! Finding time just always seems to be the problem. 

So much to do, so little time...

Simple Skirt

 This was a very fast and gratifying project. The fabric came second-hand from someone who didn't want it (along with some other freebies that I was very eager to snatch up) and though at first I didn't think this fabric was my style, or anything I'd ever pick out myself, I quickly changed my mind when I saw it as a skirt for my daughter.

 The person who owned this fabric before had already done some stitching in it (maybe for a pillow case? not sure) so really all I did was trim, sew a hem, and put in a casing for an elastic -- and it become a skirt! So easy. The pattern follows Dana's Simple Skirt tutorial. She has great pictures and directions on her blog.

 It's a funky print. I wasn't sure what might go with it, and so this ensemble was kind of thrown together. But I think it kind of works maybe in a kiddie bohemian way. I've got more of this fabric too, and now I'm debating what to do with it. 

Matching skirt for me??

I couldn't resist putting in a homemade label. I get a kick out of doing these, hehe.

Well, not bad for a fast, free project. Now, I'm looking around thinking...what next?