The Start of a Handmade Summer Wardrobe- Part One

I just wanted to share some stuff I made awhile back or am currently working on for my daughter's summer wardrobe. It's been so fun and fulfilling to work on these and I'll be starting on my boys' wardrobes soon too- although the youngest will most likely be just fine with his big brother's hand-me-downs so he'll probably just get a few new pieces. That'll cut down on the sewing for boys edition that I plan to work on next! But for now, here's just a few pieces that I managed to get pictures of!

These are some paper bag shorts that I made with a striped blue chambray that my daughter HATES because she says it's made from "boy" fabric. Huh? I absolutely love them! I even sewed in a pink cotton lining on the inside hem but she doesn't care- she won't wear them aside from donning them for a quick photo. I will most likely be giving them away, sigh...luckily I have a handful of nieces who might not have as big a princess complex as my daughter!

This is the Black Bird tunic from the previous post and although it's also striped, it looked great with the shorts!

See- adorable, isn't it?! But she hates the shorts! No matter how I flatter her about them, she won't voluntarily wear them. At. All! 

Here's an oh-so-cute plaid peplum blouse with a tie back. Luckily, she loved this one so it's a keeper. I sewed pleats (love them!) at the neckline and they help give the blouse some shape.  

She's awfully cute in peplum and it's so flowy around her waist that she calls it a "mini-dress." She wears them here with some gold skinny pants that were refashioned from a pair I had bought but they were so baggy in the crotch, I decided to chop them up for her instead. Hey- I thought I could fix them, ok? But they're much better as her gold skinnies anyway, I think!

And here's the latest dress I've been working on. It's almost complete- just need to finish the back but can't decide if I should do a zipper or buttons. But isn't it cute? I love mixing patterns and colors to create fun, energetic looks. All of these pieces above, with the exception of the tunic, were created from my own vision and seeing them come to life is oh so satisfying! Designing and sewing has become not only a hobby, but an addiction and I encourage everyone to give it a try!

So I truly hope I was able to provide you with some inspiration today to get you started! I'll be back later for part two and show you some more pieces! Until then, happy sewing!