Bonjour! C’est moi encore! (That’s French for Hello! It’s me again!). I am Lo from the Seams Sew Lo Blog. You may remember me from Easy Costume Ideas and How to Center Your Fabric Panel blog posts I have written for Ellie and Mac in the past.
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If you follow my blog, you may already know that Halloween is our family’s favorite holiday. In fact, I make everyday dress up clothes for my children all year round. Baby Girl’s DIY Skye Costume using the the I love the 90’s dress sewing pattern is still one of her favorites. Skye has been an absolute favorite character of hers for a long time. She still loves Skye, however she is starting to branch out a little more.
We recently starting reading the Fancy Nancy book series. You may find some here. Baby Girl randomly picked one at the library one day and we both could not love the books more ever since I speak French and have been slowly teaching Baby Girl a few words here and there. She is really starting to pick them up, so the books were right up our alley. Then one day we turned on Disney Jr and found the new Fancy Nancy TV show! We were elated!
In the middle of the night one evening, I started thinking about what I could make. I ended up lying there in bed for hours, not able to sleep with all kinds of ideas. Then I decided on a Fancy Nancy dress with the School is Cool sewing pattern. My first version of this dress I used for Back to school in some Belle Fabric here. After a sleepless night of planning, I decided to add a mesh overlay to the School is Cool sewing pattern and show you how is easily it can be done.
I am not going to walk you through the entire School is Cool sewing pattern, as you can watch the sew a long here. I will present how to add the mesh overlay to the circle skirt. Even though Fancy Nancy technically probably has a tulle skirt, I wanted this dress to be something Baby Girl could wear anytime and be comfortable, so I decided up on this nylon mesh fabric. Nylon Mesh is soft, does not fray, and also has some stretch. However, you also need a lot of patience.
First, start by double folding the fabric. That's Fancy for folding your fabric in half, then folding the folded fabric up towards the center. I like to line my double fold with one of the lines on my cutting mat.
Then line up the side folds. This is where you need patience. Nylon mesh is a beautiful fabric; it is light and airy, so it moves easily. I probably adjusted the fabric a good ten times before I was happy with fold, especially since I was taking photos. Once you have fold in the position you desire, place weight on that area while adjusting the rest of the fabric. You can use fabric weights or I just held it down with my arm.
When you have your folds lined up place the pattern piece on top of the mesh fabric. I skillfully line up the top opening of the circle skirt first. It is most important the opening is the correct size to match the underskirt and the bodice.
Next, line up of the both side edges. Let the lines on your cutting mat guide you. Then place fabric weights on top of the sewing pattern piece. Make sure to use plenty of them.
Place a new blade in your rotary cutter and cut the fabric around the pattern pieces. I like to place a new blade in my rotary cutter, especially if I will not be hemming the fabric. This will reduce jagged edges. Fabric scissors tend to give more jagged edges as well.
Quarter your circle skirts. That's Fancy for placing a clip (yes I am a clip fan, I use these) on both the sides and the front and back. You will literally mark the skirt in quarters. I used a fuchsia double brushed polyester from Simply By Ti Fabrics for the underskirt. You may find it here.
Place the nylon mesh skirt over the underskirt with both right sides facing up. Match up the quartered clips, then clip the fabric between the quarters as well.
Take your skirt over to the sewing machine and baste stitch the two skirts together along the top. That's Fancy for adding a long loose temporary stitch. I generally use a non stretch stitch and set my machine at the longest length possible. I also sew the stitch within the seam allowance, so my serger will cut it off when attaching the skirt to the bodice. Now, the two skirt pieces have become one piece. Continue to follow the rest of the sewing pattern as directed.
Baby Girl was ecstatic for her new Fancy Nancy dress! I asked her to a do a fun pose and she gave me this while saying "Oh la la, Magnifique!" Which is French for, "So Beautiful!" Oh la la has become Baby Girl's new favorite phrase thanks to Fancy Nancy and I adore it.
The mesh overlay also aided in the twirling of the beautiful dress. Next time, I may add more than one layer of mesh; how fun would that be? The School is Cool sewing pattern is parfait (that's French for perfect) for every little girl that loves to twirl!
How could a little girl be so Fancy without her how own Horse and Carriage Ride on Toy? This is one of Baby Girl most elusive toys. She plays with it all the time, so does every one of her friends that come over for tea. You may find one here. Feel free to add your own feather boa as well.
At first, I had not decided on accessories for the Fancy Nancy dress. I just happened to have the blue ribbon in my stash. Baby Girl asked if we could "decorate ourselves" yesterday. That's Fancy for she wanted to wear some of her late Great Grandmother's jewelry. Which led us to playing her all time favorite board game, Pretty Pretty Princess!! During our last visit with Parents as Teachers, we were introduced to this marvelous board game. Bad part... They do not make it anymore. :(! You may buy it on Amazon, however brand new is going to cost you. However, what I did was click that little used button under the Amazon price and purchased a used version for much less. When you see one at a good price snatch it up before someone else does. Here is the original Pretty Pretty Princess version, the Cinderella version and the version we purchased which was Sleeping Beauty. The Sleeping Beauty Pretty Pretty Princess has a pink container which I knew Baby Girl would adore. I was right! She wore both the crown and the purple necklace from the {Pretty Pretty Princess game. You may also check Ebay for the game as well.
The Fancy Nancy outfit would not be complete with out the striped leggings Fancy Nancy wears in the Disney Jr. show. I did not think I would find the perfect fabric with so little time. However, a quick trip to Joann Fabrics and I found the almost perfect fabric. (I could not find it online, however the code is 400158653972) The colors of the stripes were exactly what I desired. However, the stretch was going the wrong way. No way to make leggings with it, so I improvised. I made her pants with the Kids Joggers sewing pattern. I used some double brushed polyester for the waistband and turned the fabric the opposite direction (that had stretch) for the cuffs. Voila! A tres chic (that's French for very stylish) Fancy Nancy outfit for Baby Girl. I think Fancy Nancy would approve!
About the the author: Lo creates fun and unique fashion for her family over on the Seams Sew Lo Blog. She also hosts a Sewing Deals Calendar to find all of your favorite Sewing Deals. Follow Seams Sew Lo on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter. Have you downloaded the new Seams Sew Lo Sewing App yet??? It is available on Apple and Android! Find and Rate all of your favorite indie sewing pattern designers and fabric companies. Plus, find all of their latest sewing deals! Download the App NOW:
