The sewing community is abuzz with excitement!

The Oliver + S, Building Block Dress is FINALLY here!!

And the sewing, designing, and creative community collectively rejoices . . .

As for us?

We enjoy sewing and creating unique clothes for our nieces.

With a pattern . . . and directions. Errr, make that GOOD directions!

Pure and simple. . .

While we wish {and aspire} to be one of THOSE sewists . . .you know the ones . . .the ones that have a vision / see a creation and miraculously sew a creation based on the “said vision” WITHOUT the use of any pattern . . .

We are a FAR, FAR CRY from making that a reality.

We use Pinterest like many of you – to pin beautiful creations, and then scour the internet to find a similar pattern. Needless to say, frustration ensues when you can’t find the pattern you need to recreate the pinned item.

Or, as luck would have it, finding the perfect vintage pattern, only to have it available in one size – a size that isn’t even close to what you are needing to sew AND priced as a rarity.

Thank you, thank you, thank you Liesl for giving us the directions to become successful in recreating Pinterest pins and/or vintage patterns . . . based on our vision / design!! We may, or may not, have been some of the SAGA attendees referenced in the acknowledgement section who “provided enthusiastic feedback on the concept.”

No more frustration.

No more scouring the internet {except for researching a design – not a pattern, or to purchase some navy hideez (affiliate link)}.

That said, if we can design / create a garment based on the meticulous Building Block Dress directions, ANYONE {that’s us screaming at the top of our lungs} . . . ANYONE . . .can! SERIOUSLY!

We began simple with our first garment, using the techniques gleaned from Liesl’s SAGA workshop – two years ago. Then, we sewed a 2nd creation {sorry, friends . . . you are just going to have to wait on that one} . . . again, keeping it simple and checking the fit / sizing for EA.

Yet, for the Building Block Book Tour, we wanted to “step it up a notch” and test the waters on HOW GOOD this book really is {ie: Could we truly build a “new dress” using only Liesl’s Building Block pattern pieces and directions?}.

You may have heard the adage – “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Well, Liesl’s book has 642 photos and illustrations, making the book 642,000 words longer than actually written {per the adage}. Just imagine, if you will, the WEALTH of knowledge within the 152 actual pages of the book.

When we first received the book, we spent countless hours . . . well, days . . .pouring over those photos and illustrations.

GAWKING might have been a truer statement.

And then, the realization set in.

Okay, okay . . . we have known it all along. We are INDECISIVE!! Flat. Out. Indecisive. Goodness, we can’t even decide where to eat when visiting our sister and nieces for the weekend.

And now, we had 60,481 design possibilities at our fingertips.

Ummmmm. . . *insert crickets chirping here*.

Our favorite pages of the book quickly became the two pages of contents! These are GENIUS!!

Each design element has been photographed, labeled, and page referenced with thumbnail images. Yet, again – a picture is worth a thousand words!!

After familiarizing ourselves with the layout of The Building Block Dress, we reviewed our Pinterest Children’s Sewing Inspiration Board, and opted to make a variation of the Antoinette – a dress we had wanted to sew for YEARS, long before EA fell into the size range available.

Obviously, it was a loose interpretation of the dress, yet it kept a key feature – THOSE POCKETS!! Swooooooooonnnnn.

Using Liesl’s worksheet {provided in the book, as well as a downloadable version for your convenience}, we decided on the following design and features for EA’s dress:

The “dress making worksheet” is a phenomenal resource to help you stay organized!!  Given the options available for design, it is a wonderful tool to guide you toward the outcome desired.

Of course, we used our fair share of post-it notes as well . . . marking various reference pages throughout the book!

While this dress appears to be a classy, simple, and sophisticated design, it is the subtle details that we might be most proud of . . .

Such as the piped, lined sleeves and hem facing – continuing the theme of the contrasting fabric of the collar and pockets.

We were shocked at how much both of these showed while EA was wearing her new dress . . . especially the hem facing! It REALLY added to the features of the dress.

The princess seams were another detail added to the provided Building Block bodice pattern. These were used to accent the lines of the pattern, AND continue the “said lines” into the curve of the pockets as well as line up with the inverted pleats on the back skirt.

Please note: the princess seams were not used to create a more fitted dress {although Liesl provides step by step instructions on how to do just that} – again, it was just for the lines!

If you have followed our sewing adventures for any length of time, you know we LOVE to add piping!! For this creation, however, we used a thicker cording to accentuate the piped areas even more!

Wow . . . we may have to use thicker cording for some upcoming creations!

Speaking of upcoming creations . . . two things:

1. Once you’ve gone to the effort of altering the Building Block Dress to “fit your design / inspiration”, make sure you utilize those alterations. In other words, make more dresses for your lucky recipient – using different combinations of fabrics, etc. – before she outgrows that size range. That is what we plan to do!! So, reader: BEWARE!! There will be more . . .

2. We have our hearts set on sewing a Building Block Dress for the youngest niece as well! Imagine: an a-line dress, with an external facing at neckline and inverted pleat in the center. Lovely, right?? That, or we might try our hands at a sailor-style garment!

So, there you have it – a creation . . . .as well as big dreams for other ones to come!

This book, and the subsequent inspiration / creations from many of you, is sure to lead to sleepless nights of visions and sewing plans!!

Yet, THANK YOU, Liesl . . . THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts! We couldn’t have chosen a better way to be inspired and guided in the design process!!

**Please note: The Building Block Dress was given to us, but as always everything written is our honest opinions.

If you would like to read more about The Building Block Dress, be sure to check out Liesl’s introductory posts {HERE and HERE} that give a GREAT overview of the book’s features!! Or, take it a step further, and sign up for one of her workshops. While the Building Block Dress provides you with everything you need to be successful, it’s always fun to get together with other sewing enthusiasts, as well as talk to / learn from Liesl herself!

Also, if you choose to order your book HERE by Saturday, September 24 at 11:59 PM, EST, you will receive 10% off {no coupon necessary} and an invitation to an exclusive Building Block Dress Facebook page.

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