vintage may 3 starts today!
Jess and i are excited to kick the festivities off with projects for our little gals. i’m calling my look “the midcentury traveler.” my imaginary backstory is that E is getting ready to catch a train to go summering back east with her grandparents in the late 1950s or early 1960s.
and guess what? she’s taking her best friend with her!
JOINT PHOTOSHOOT! Jess and Sadie came to visit a couple weekends ago and we were definitely not going to let the opportunity to take photos of our two cuties together pass us by, nosirree. we had both cameras clicking away and it was so fun to see these little buddies together again (remember when we visited them last fall?).
they were soooooo adorable together and got plenty of comments from passers by in their full skirted, midcentury-inspired looks. we took photos at Union Station here in Portland, which was built in 1896 and still retains its vintage charm. it turned out to be the perfect photoshoot location for us (thanks for the tip, Kelly!), even if the employees there were a bit crabby about our little gymnasts climbing all over the place. heh.
these girls are such a crackup together – E loves hamming it up when she has friends around.
okay i’d better get on with it or we’ll never make it through – too many fun photos to share!
my look was inspired by the straight-fitting summer tops and full skirts of the Mad Men era. her adorable ivory kate headband was a gift from a friend, and her top is actually an adapted Geranium Dress!
i wanted to make a simple top that buttoned up the back, and the Geranium was perfect. i cut a size bigger than her normal size for wearing ease, then added 9” to the size 5 bodice to turn it into a top. i flared the sides out about .5” as well. the back closes with five buttons rather than the three called for in the pattern.
the fabric is a great minty swiss dot from Mill End, and I added little flutter sleeves in vintage white eyelet trim from my Grandma’s stash. it’s lined with white gauze so she can stay cool in the summertime, and i hand stitched the hem, enclosing the lining for a clean look (even though it’s tucked in through most of these photos!).
the skirt, in a really soft black and white gingham voile (also from Mill End), was inspired by Gertie’s classic dirndl skirt tutorial, but mine has an elastic waistband (for kids!) and pockets! i’ve got a tutorial for you today – E loves wearing it, as you can see…
here’s the tutorial…
:: LITTLE DIRNDL SKIRT TUTORIAL ::
MATERIALS
- 1 yard lightweight fabric – shirting, voile, gauze, gingham – it helps to find fabric that’s extra wide for more twirl factor. i’m sure quilting cotton would work too but it’ll give you less of the floaty look.
- pocket pattern piece – use a side seam pocket from a pattern in your stash or draft your own – mine is from the playtime dress and tunic
- fusible interfacing for front waistband – 2.25” x half of child’s waist measurement (mine was about 10.5”)
- 1/2” elastic (a little more than half of the child’s waist measurement)
- basic sewing supplies
METHOD
all seam allowances are 1/2” unless otherwise indicated.
cut your pieces. cut a front waistband at 2.5” high x 1/2 your child’s waist measurement plus 1” (for seam allowance) wide (mine was 2.5” x 11” for a 21” waist). fuse interfacing to this piece. also cut a back waistband piece at 2.5” x the front piece + 4” or so for gathering/wearing ease (mine was 2.5” x 15”).
cut out four pocket pieces (two sets) and two main skirt pieces, selvedge-to-selvedge at the length of skirt you prefer (remembering hem will take about 1.25” in length).
make a mark at the top outer edges of your skirt pieces about 1.5” from the top, then pin all four pocket pieces lining up the top with the marks. you’ll have one on each side of the front, and one on each side of the back.
sew all four pocket pieces to the skirt sides and press each away from the skirt body.
line up your front and back skirt pieces and pin along the edges. sew side seams, pivoting and sewing around the outer edges of the pockets when you reach them. finish your seams by zigzagging or serving. i snip diagonally to the stitching at the top and bottom of the pocket so i can serge in three steps without accidentally trimming into the pocket.
prepare the waistband. fold front and back waistband in half, and press. then open each and iron down 1/2” toward the center crease on each long end.
pin the short ends and sew together into one continuous loop.
sew two rows of basting stitches on the top edge of your skirt, 3/8” and 5/8” from the edge. for fabric this wide it’s helpful to sew separate basting rows for the front skirt and the back skirt so you can gather them separately. stop your basting stitches at each side seam but remember not to backstitch!
gather your skirt to match the waistband – you’ll gather the front more than the back – adding the elastic later will cinch the back up a bit more. unfold your waistband and pin the long edge to the skirt, right sides together, distributing gathers evenly. stitch.
press waistband away from skirt, then fold down the folded edge and press so it just covers your stitches. topstitch ONLY THE BACK (uninterfaced) waistband with a very narrow hem, backstitching at the side seams.
prepare your elastic to run through the back casing you just created. i use a safety pin on one end and a clothespin on the other, so I don’t lose my tail. thread it through the back casing.
once you reach the end, pull your pin through and stitch the elastic down at the side seam. remove clothespin and repeat on the other side seam (be careful and hang onto your elastic tail so you don’t lose it!). then fold down the front waistband and finish topstitching to complete the top of the skirt.
fold the hem up 1/2”, another 3/4”, then stitch in place. you’re done!
i love the skinny waistband and flat front of this skirt, but comfortable kid-friendly back elastic waistband. she loves the pockets and how full and twirly it is! it’s just so lightweight and pretty. i want one.
i think it’ll will get worn a lot.
if you make a skirt from this tutorial, please add it to my flickr group!
now head over to craftiness is not optional for details on the super cute dress she made for Sadie! we knew we’d be taking photos of the girls together and decided to stick with a black/white/mint theme, which turned out really fun. i just love the dress Jess made, the piping is perfection! she has more “behind the scenes” info too.
welcome to vintage may! check back tomorrow for our first guests.
skirt as top 
So awesome! What a great photo shoot. Thank you for the tutorial on the skirt. It is so cute and looks great in the black and white gingham. I also love how you made a shirt out of the geranium dress pattern. Can’t wait to see the rest of the Vintage May line up!
thanks so much! we’re so excited too!
How adorable! That minty swiss dots is beautiful!
I go weak knee’d for a dirndl skirt 🙂 So happy it’s finally Vintage May!!
dirndls are pretty great, eh? yay yay it’s vintage may!!
What a cute little pair. Love this skirt, my daughter thinks I’ve ruined her day when she has to wear any dress that is “too straight” or “too short”. She will love this one.
that’s so funny. these little gals love their twirl factor!
So cute! I love the eyelet lace flutter sleeves, and what can be more little girly than dotted swiss?
they are so cute together! great photos and i love the gingham skirt – super classy! she’s adorable!
thanks gail!
So beautiful, Kristin! They really are adorable together and the photos are perfect. Thanks for the tip of using a clothespin attached to the elastic…that’s genius!
sure, hope it helps ya! 🙂
Adorable! Love the skirt, too- it looks totally doable! Thanks for the tutorial.
So cute and so twirly! And what a great time for everyone! So much fun! 🙂
Oh I love this sooooo much!! The girls look absolutely adorable in their coordinating outfits and they look like they are having so much fun! Great way to start the series – can’t wait to see the rest!!
thanks so much!
Oh my goodness, I can’t even handle the adorableness! They are just the cutest and the clothes are perfect. Such a great photo shoot.
Oh my goodness, cuteness x2! E looks darling in her outfit. I adore the full gingham skirt.:)
So so so so so good! The outfits are perfect compliments to each other and your photos are so fun!
thanks! i haven’t been to the train station that much so i didn’t realize how perfect it actually was until we were there – serendipity!
Your outfit and photo shoot have such a great vibe. I really do feel like I’m looking at travelers in the 50’s. Adorable outfit and girls. So fun!!!!
My favorite month on your blog is here! Sadie’s dress is so adorable and E’s outfit is just perfect! Her blouse looks so light and airy- perfect for the summer! I bet Sadie just loves to twirl with that skirt! How fun for her. Can’t wait to see what’s next! 🙂
yay, thanks! so glad everyone is so excited! 🙂
Love this SOOO much! Great job both of you ladies!
ABSOLUTELY amazing!!!! The girls looks insanely cute and the photoshot is just perfect. wow
The photos (and outfits) are super adorable!
I wouldn’t expect anything less than fabulousness from you, Kristin, and when you combine it with CINO amazingness, well…I’m just speechless. I love love love everything about this (and you know I’m a diehard midcentury fan!!)
wow!! These turned out sooooo great! Love the outfits and the pictures are absolutely perfect. Nice work my friend 🙂
FUN photoshoot!!! This is seriously adorable!
How fun for you guys! The outfits and photos are beautiful!
oh the cuteness is killing me! super awesome photo shoot AND outfits!
so so cute!!!!
Love! I want one in my size! Fun photo shoot too!