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Oct
9
The journey of this creation actually began 3 years ago.
We don’t remember what we were thinking about making, but our dear sweet sewing friend {aka: our jedi master} pulled out her copy of the oliver + s music class pattern and asked if this pattern might be an option. I feel certain Emily was more stealth, but I actually wrinkled my nose in slight disgust. Why, you ask? Well, because dresses are for little girls and skirts are for ladies. Period.
Fast forward about a year and half. We broke down and purchased the music class pattern, but for the love of the blouse and its collar. And, I do mean LOVE – we used this pattern for one of our favorite sew-along entries in Project Run & Play, and also for our Signature Style when we competed. The blouse is truly a classic that every little girl’s wardrobe should have.
So, what about the skirt? I think it is fair to say our sewing has matured to the point that we think skirts are adorable on little girls, and we’ve actually sewn quite a few ourselves! Not to mention, skirts are VERY practical when encouraging independence in potty training. And, skirts are typically quick sews which is also a major plus!
For those of you have followed us for sometime, you are aware of our love for oliver + s patterns. Some of you may share our love, while some of you may never have sewn using one of their patterns. So, why do we love them so much?
1) When you open the pattern or print the pdf, you want to do your best work. The pattern is laid out professionally with diagrams for ease of following the instructions. Professional quality pattern = professional end product.
2) Oliver + S patterns give a beginner needed confidence. When we first started dabbling in sewing, we learned handwork first and the sewing machine frightened us. Seriously. The instructions in these patterns allowed us to progress through the creation of a garment with quickness and ease. In fact, their patterns are rated one scissor (easiest) to four scissors for difficulty. If you are a beginner and are interested in where to start with oliver + s, these posts {boy and girl and knit patterns} are organized to show good starting points for the beginner.
3) Helpful Hints. Think of these as little addendums to the pattern thrown in to make your pattern more professional and/or make the previous instruction easier to achieve success. Many of these helpful hints can easily be incorporated into other sewing patterns too.
4) No guesswork is involved. Pleats, darts, buttonholes and all the extras are marked so there are no questions about their placement. Interfacing is shown on most patterns, or is listed in the instructions. Notches are also included to guarantee that the pattern pieces are matched accurately.
5) Help Forum. So, what happens if I get stuck or need help? There is a wonderful group of ladies that are always there to help on the forums. In the help forum, the patterns are categorized so that you can read where other people have run into difficulties, or you can choose to post a question of your own if your particular topic hasn’t been covered.
6) Price. I know there are those of you right now thinking, “what?!?!?” and yes, haters are going to hate, and scoffers are going to scoff, BUT for what you are getting the price can’t be beat. You are truly getting a sewing class when you purchase an oliver + s pattern. The music class pattern cost $15.95, when have you ever paid that for a sewing class? This pattern offers 6 size options AND 3 views (2 blouses with 2 options for the collar and sleeves and 1 skirt). Still too costly? Well, be sure to sign-up for the oliver + s newsletter and follow their blog because typically they run a 50% off sale on paper patterns twice a year and often you’ll run into a 20% off promotion on all their patterns. . .so be sure to stay tuned. And. . .there is always Christmas.
7) When we pull out an oliver + s pattern, we smile and proclaim that we are in “our happy place”.
We could go on and on. . .but we must get back to the infamous skirt.
The skirt that we now LOVE might be our favorite skirt pattern that we’ve ever sewn.
Let’s just say, we got in touch with our “Inner Belgium” on this creation!! Honestly….doesn’t it look very European, or something our Belgian sewing buddies might have sewn?
We love how the skirt turned out, but the construction of it is even more interesting that the final garment itself. While this pattern is rated two scissors on the oliver + s scale, it is most likely because of the blouse. The skirt, I believe a beginner could sew and end up feeling like a professional with the end results. It showcases cute pleats and pockets that any little girl would love! The only modification to the pattern we made was the addition of piping on either side of the center front and center back panel.
Our gut says that our readers are ‘more mature’ in their sewing than we are, but we must ask how do you feel about skirts on little girls? And if you are a lover of skirts, do you have a favorite pattern? There’s no turning back now. . .
Thank you Lemon Tree Fabrics and Project Run and Play!! The fabric used in this creation was purchased using some of our winnings…
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I started sewing skirts before i ever sewed a dress for my daughter. So never have i thought that skirts are not for kids. When i started sewing, skirts were the least difficult things to sew (conpared to blouses and pants), so i love it! The only digital pattern i used for a skirt is one from Schnabelina(.blogspot.com), a german seamstress who makes and shares loads of free patterns (only tricky bit is that you have to understand german…). Her roeckli is a nice and easy swing skirt for girls (and comes in adult sizes too…).
Other than that i use patterns in sewing magazines (dutch: Knippie, and the european magezine Ottobre).
YES!! Skirts are MUCH easier….and we LOVE them now :). Sometimes we are a bit slow in coming around…
Ha ha, I had to laugh out loud with that title
It does look very Belgian indeed! The color combo, the piping… But most of all, it is super adorable!
Belgium, country of beer, waffles, chocolate, and adorable home made kids’ clothes! :-)))
We hoped our Belgian friends would see it as such…. We love that sort of style, yet don’t branch out and sew it nearly as often as we’d like to…
Thank you for asking how we feel about skirts! You might say we have a little problem with skirts. You might even say we have a FIXATION with skirts. And we swoon for Oliver + S skirts. We have them on the list for our All The Skirts series.
We had to discuss all the O+S skirts not sewn by us….after seeing this comment!! Looking forward to following along.
I adore this outfit! And your piping makes it even more adorable! I’ve had this pattern in my stash for over a year but still haven’t made it. I better get to it!
My favorite skirt pattern has got to be the O+S Swingset skirt.;)
We can’t believe you haven’t sewn the Music Class yet….it will be adorable when you do :). We’ve sewn the Swingset Skirt a few times, but still don’t think we’ve sewn it “just right” yet!
I love skirts on little girls you don’t have to change the whole outfit if they get one piece dirty. I love dresses on little girls because they can pick their own clothes and not end up with a wacky-looking outfit. 😉
This is a cute outfit, and yes it does look rather European. =) I like the way the tucks on the shirt echo the pleats on the skirt.
Thanks, Charity!! And, yes….so true about skirts vs. dresses and children’s wearing of each :)!
What a great post!
Glad you enjoyed it….there are so many excellent resources one can find through the Oliver and S site {besides the thorough pattern directions}, we just had to share a few!
Oh I’m so glad you liked the skirt. the first time I made it I was DLEIGHTED. It’s so nice and quick to sew (without piping!) as you can finish all the seam together then topstitch them. Speedy, yet it looks so classy.
This particular skirt is a bit more mature (ie it’s not twirly) in it’s style. But if my daughter can wear a skirt that I’d wear myself that’s a good thing, no?!
One of my favourite Oliver + S patterns, and you’ve sewn it up brilliantly here. Lovely!
We’ve liked this skirt for some time…but hadn’t taken the time to sew it. It’s suffice to say, there WILL be more :).
I am so happy to see this Music Class blouse and skirt. Everything you make is a work of art. I have sewed with dozens of Oliver and S patterns and this one has always been one of my favorites and not one I see very often on sewing blogs. I am looking forward to more versions.
What a compliment…THANK YOU! We were talking the other day as well about the scarcity of this pattern on sewing blogs. Not that it isn’t out there, but that it is rarer than others. We’ve got another one “in the works” already, so there will DEFINITELY be more :)…
oh that is soo cute! I love all the fun details on both the shirt and skirt!!
Thanks, Emily!!
I started out sewing skirts, as well. At the time it was mostly cutesy holiday fabrics and such, but that has matured as my skills and children have. My girls really prefer a skirt over a dress most of the time. Can I make an admission? I have actually never sewn and Oliver + S pattern! This one is definitely on my list now! The gorgeous piping you added to this blouse and skirt really set it off, and those little pleats on the side are so fun! I see an opportunity for fabric mixing here!
Oh…..yours will be LOVELY!! We can’t wait to see, and YES!! One could definitely have fun with some pattern mixing…