Recent Comments
Subscribe Via Email
Find us on Facebook
Follow Us on Pinterest
Oldies, But Goodies
Jan0 PostsMay0 PostsJun0 PostsJul0 PostsAug0 PostsSep0 PostsOct0 PostsNov0 PostsDec0 PostsAug0 PostsOct0 PostsDec0 PostsJan0 PostsFeb0 PostsMar0 PostsApr0 PostsJan0 PostsMar0 PostsJul0 PostsAug0 PostsSep0 PostsOct0 PostsNov0 PostsDec0 PostsJul0 PostsNov0 PostsDec0 PostsApr0 PostsJan0 PostsFeb0 PostsMar0 PostsApr0 PostsMay0 Posts
Jul
20
We couldn’t sit this one out…..the more we thought about the possibilities,
the more we knew we had to participate {or at least share our ‘flip’ with you}!
It all began with the name: The Roller Skate Dress….
And, then, the memories came like a flood!
You see, the roller skating rink was THE place to go back in our elementary days.
What’s to remember? The sights, the smells, the atmosphere! Brown skates with orange wheels. Stamped sizes on the back. Tickets for skaters to claim skates and turn in shoes. Carpeted floors. Birthday parties. Icee pops. Limbo. The introduction of music videos – projected on a wall. A disco ball. Need we go on??
So, we went with it – trying to capture as many of those memories in a garment for EA. You’ll be pleased to know we opted to not hone in to the carpeted look OR do a ‘Thriller’ throwback. Instead, we based the outfit primarily on the roller skate itself – khaki tones with a few pops of orange throughout. {source: tumblr; but it sure does look like the local skating rink to us!}
How did we ‘flip’ it, you ask?
Starting with the top, we rounded the neckline – creating an oval {like a roller skating rink},
and piping around it to draw attention to this subtle detail.
The waist of the dress was an ode to the laces on our skates of yesteryear, placing fake ‘grommets’ {ie: snap sections} on either side of the elastic casing for lacing purposes. We saw this technique done by RaeAnna of Sewing Mama RaeAnna for a guest post, and decided it would work for our project as well…
This was by far the most time consuming portion of the ‘flip’…..48 grommets later, we were tickled to see this portion done! We also cut the elastic a bit longer to feed through the casing, in the hopes it would gather…but hang.
We added a color-blocked section to the base of the dress, with ticket fabric, of course!
Because…if you wanted to skate, you had to have a ticket for a shoe exchange….
As a separate area within the color-blocked section, we embroidered a piped, size tab. Technically, it should have been the shoe size….but we couldn’t bring ourselves to embroider an eight on this size of dress. Talk about confusing!
Also, since we are being technical, the tab should have been placed in the center back
{near the seam stitching}, but again – we claimed “artistic expression” and put it on the front.
The side seams, neckline area, and back seams all were accentuated with large, hand-embroidered stitching – again, as a tribute to the large stitching evident on the roller skate seams we previously wore.
Finally, a roller skating rink isn’t complete without a disco ball…..
so we set off the back of the dress with just that: EA’s own personal disco ball!
*Thanks to our Instagram followers for helping us in the decision-making process of this number…
it’s not every day one needs to accessorize with a disco ball.
We had a ton of fun with flipping this outfit from beginning to end:
the thought process, the walk down memory lane, the photo shoot, etc., etc.
It was “love at first sight” for EA! She spotted it on “Martha Jane,” and hugged it repeatedly, played with the cording around the waist, and eyed the disco ball longingly. HILARIOUS!! We had never gotten quite this reaction over past outfits sewn for her…
While it is still a tad large {we’ll take that any day over the alternative},
we think it will be a great transition into fall wear!
Now, if only we can teach this child some disco moves….
because it will be quite some time before we test out the skating coordination with this one….
Don’t forget to go and vote for your favorite FLIP! Poll closes Sunday at 11:00 pm CST.
*Did you know the Oliver and S, Roller Skate Dress is also “challenge two” of the Super Online Sewing Challenge?? And, any ‘flips’ sewn between July 8 – September 10 are eligible to enter for some sew-along prizes from this contest! We’re entering ours….and hope to see many of your creations popping up there as well!
39 Comments
Follow Us on Pinterest
Oh my goodness – you two are simply AMAZING!!! I can’t wait to meet you in person on Tuesday!!! You all are rollerskating ROCKSTARS!!!!!
You’re so funny!! Looking forward to meeting you as well, but don’t expect any rockstar moves during the evening!!
WOW! This dress is amazing! I am in love with the hand stitched details and those grommets.
This dress is really wonderful!
I love it. Looks like she does too!
This is perfect! Love the waist and accent stitching –
Amazing, as always! I love the color choices. You are so creative.
This dress is absolutely perfect and darling and all out amazing…it came together beautifully!
Oh, you SO DESERVED A SHOUT-OUT in this post…..putting up with our indecisiveness, etc. We were pleased with the result even though it was a bit ‘out there’ for us!!
So adorable! Love the cording crisscrosses so much – so original. Awesome job.
Wow, gorgeous and full of detail! Love this series, looking forward to next month, already bought the pattern!
Awesome!!! Can’t wait to see how you flip the tinny….
So pretty dress!Amazing details!very good job!
hugs
Wonderful. It’s very “authentic” yet manages to look like a beautiful dress instead of an old boot! Well done
Maybe our title should had been, “Better than a Boot”….it has a good ring to it, doesn’t it???
Absolutely beautiful!
Ok this is seriously awesome. I love the ticket fabric showing just a peek as the lining at the under arm. You ladies always have the best details. And now I totally get the disco ball reference. I was dying to see what you were making
We’ve told ‘sister momma’ that the disco ball can easily be replaced…..but she has assured us she likes it the way it is!!!
Awesome flip! Your creative talents show no bounds.
I remember my roller skating rink days, thank you for the “blast from the past”!!! Your flip is awesome, taking memories and incorporating them into wearable art…inspiring to say the least. It all flows together so beautifully !!
xx
Well, we didn’t know if most rinks were the same or not….but went with our experience. ‘Wearable art’…..I like it!
Every single detail is super clever!
And I don’t think I would have the patience for 48 grommets!
We almost didn’t have the patience either….truth be told.
Wow, great job. I love all your details. The handstitching looks so nice on the dress.
I love how you incorporated your memories into the dress! So neat! My favorite element is the grommets. Great job, love it
Heidi @ handmadefrenzy.blogspot.com
Awesome pattern flip! Love the orange details and the handstitching!
Oh my goodness!! The dress is so cute! Great job, ladies.:)
I love the roller rink theme..and the lacing and the disco ball are just perfect! What little girl doesn’t like a bit of bling
We are afraid this little one may like her ‘bling’ a bit too much to our liking!!!
It is amazing! Love all the details in the dress. It is a very original version of the roller skate dress.
I LOVE this!! Orange is usually not my thing but this combination is lovely
I need to push my colour boundaries. Inspirational 
What a great flip – I can definitely see your signature trademark in this version (and I can see why she loves it! It’s so unique and the colors were made for her)
Thank you all for those sweet comments…..this definitely pushed us out of our comfort zone, yet we thoroughly enjoyed to result it turned out to be!! Now, to give some serious thought about the month of August!
you two are SEW creative!
VERY well done!
designdreamer
I love this flip! The stitching is my favorite detail… it really does remind me of skates. =) It obviously works well, but I’m curious why you chose to use snaps instead of grommets? Isn’t it wonderful when the little people are so excited about something you are making for them? =)
We rethought the snap vs grommet decision numerous times through the process…..never having done grommets we didn’t have the necessary tools to install them without traveling about an hour to purchase the equipment. RaeAnna’s snaps seemed to be doing the trick, so we went with it. One exacto knife, a pair of tweezers, and small fingernail clipping scissors were the tools used to complete each hole. It was painstakingly slow. On a plus note: if we had done grommets, skin would have been showing…..this way, the hole was just large enough for the cording. So, it all worked out.
I completely understand not wanting to travel for an hour to finish a project… and the skin not showing is a definite advantage of using snaps! =)
wow, this is so, so fabulous! i love all of the details! it’s so creative, too! well done!
[…] the Oliver and S, Roller Skate Dress {size 18-24 mo}: A COMPLETELY “flippable” dress {sewn once before with minor flips}, but for this one we left it practically as-is and detailed […]