Dress-A-Day #2: Blue Smocked Sundress

I have an uncanny ability to remember where I got almost every fabric, notion, and embellishment in my studio. When I pull something out, I'm instantly transported to the time and place I first picked it up and thought, I should get this. . . some day I'll make something with it. I love those days when I finally do. I need to do it more often. Lord knows I have enough stuff.

I found 2 yards of this elastic smocked blue fabric at an estate sale and instantly saw sundresses. I may have instantly seen them, but it took me a year to make them.

The elastic straps are from another estate sale a few years ago. I remember standing in this (dead) lady's closet full of 1970s and 80s casual wear and finding a box of multicolored elastic belts that shared an interchangeable buckle. As a belt, it was dorky, I would never wear it. I almost set it down but then I thought, how often do I see brightly colored decorative elastic? They're perfect for sundress straps.

I don't remember where I got the striped fabric I used for the pockets, but I've used it for lots of letters in my banners and pillows.

On second thought, I think I got it at JoAnn Fabrics. No wonder I don't remember it. I prefer shopping in people's houses over that place.

Luckily, McKenna likes these photo shoots. I just follow her around and let her do her thing. Sage always hated modeling my kokoleo clothes. He did recently ask for a new pair of pajama pants though, because he's almost grown out of the ones I made him years ago.

I made this slightly smaller one, but I gave it to our plumber.

For his daughter, I mean. My friend Kathy had been over and seen the dress in my studio and wanted to buy it. I asked if her husband, a plumber, would accept it, along with a t-shirt for her boys, in exchange for extracting an entire sippy cup from our garbage disposal. He was able to do in a matter of minutes what we had been sweating over for two days. Yay! Long live the barter system.