Sewing has always been a passion of mine. I started in 3rd grade, sewing Barbie clothes from my mother's scrap box. Now more than 30 years later, sewing still brings me great enjoyment. As an adult (in the days before Ebay), I ran a small business from my home sewing wedding gowns, bridesmaid dresses and prom dresses. I have always enjoyed sewing pretty things.After a very long wait, my husband and I were blessed with 2 sons (now 12 and 14). I sewed the most beautiful Christmas sets with plaid tafetta vests and bow ties and velveteen pants. I enjoyed it, and the boys were good sports about it, but they outgrew that quickly. Fortunately for the boys, we were blessed with a daughter in 2000 (pictured above in the 2004, 2005 and 2006 Halloween costumes I made). She loves the dresses I make, and my biggest problem with her is explaining why every dress I make is not for her!
I am a perfectionist in my sewing, and would not sell anything I would not put on my own daughter. I use only the highest quality materials. I will not use sheet fabric, only top quality fresh off the bolt fabric. I do prewash all materials so that you do not have to adjust your size for shrinkage. All of my seams are sewn and serged. This provides the greatest durability and a beautiful finish. There are no exposed raw edges in my work. All the bodices are fully lined. I also center the main design element on in the front of the skirt. If it is an allover print, I center the character upright in the front of the bodice. It always takes more fabric and effort to do this, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
Unless otherwise stated, all of my items are machine washable. While you can put them in the dryer, I recommend laying them flat to dry to keep them looking new as long as possible.
All of my items are custom sewn (unless otherwise stated) so please ask if you have a request for a minor change (like adding or leaving off a bow, changing a sash color, etc.). I try to accommodate whenever possible. If you are looking for something not listed, please email me as I occasionally do custom listings. I love to dress siblings for the holidays. While I don't list boys things as often as girls things, I am happy to do so upon request.
A WORD (or 2!) ABOUT QUALITY: There are a lot of seamstresses selling on Ebay. It can be really hard to know exactly what you are getting without having a piece of their work in front of you. If you shop right, the quality you receive will be BETTER than what you will buy in the store, not worse. I urge you to consider the following as you choose your seamstress:
1) Look through ALL of their listings (even the ones you don't intend to purchase) to get a feel for the quality of their work. If you are unsure, email them for more pictures. Maybe ask them for a picture of the INSIDE of an item. They should be able to turn it inside out so you can see it quite easily.
2) Even though you might not be buying a blouse or petticoat, take a look at the ones they offer. Look at the collars. Are they well rounded? Pointed edges on a round collar indicate a MUCH lower skill level. While I don't sell the dresses you see listed on this About Me page, I put them here so you can see the caliber of my work.
3) Do the front collars overlap? They should not and this would indicate a lower skill level.
4) Is the item well pressed (including collar and sashes)? A good seamstress will spend as much time at the ironing board as the sewing machine. Shortcuts at the ironing board while sewing will result in problems with the garment you cannot press out later. Do not assume all will be well if you just iron it later.
5) Are the skirt gathers even? If they are not, this indicates they are not taking the time with their items that they should.
6) Do they serge their seams? I would never recommend buying something with unfinished seams.
7) Do they sew with just high quality dressmaking fabric, or do they use bedsheets? This is a little harder to tell on a computer screen, but you can ask if the fabric is all cotton or a poly/cotton blend. Many (but not all) of the poly/cotton blends you see are dresses made from bed sheets. While you can find some pretty prints in sheets the feel is usually much rougher than a nice dressmaker's cotton. Some of these fabrics are thin enough to see through. If you are unsure, then you should ask. I once bought an entire bolt of what I thought was dressmaker fabric on Ebay, only to find out it was sheeting cut to fit a bolt. It was very cute and would have looked adorable on a dress. But it was just a lower grade fabric. I eventually just sold it by the yard identified as sheeting. I would not make dresses from it.
8) Are jumper bodices lined? Petticoat dresses often are not, but seams should all be serged or encased with bias tape. ANY jumper dress bodice should be lined.
9) Do they show LOTS of large, high-resolution pictures? Do they picture the back of the dress? The back should be just as pretty as the front and you should ask for a picture if one is not provided.
10) Use of fabric: 2 seamstresses can start with the same fabric, even the same pattern, and the end result can be very different. Take a look through their listings. Do they center the main design element on the front of the bodice in an upright position? Do obvious lines run straight across the bottom of the bodice and skirt of the dress? This is a clue as to how adept they area at using the fabric to its fullest potential. Do they center the main border element on the bottom of the skirt? All of these things can be done. It just takes more time (and fabric!) to accomplish them. If your seamstress cares about the end product, these things will be a high priority.
11) Of course you should check their feedback. But take some time to look at what items the feedback is for. You want to see strong praise for the QUALITY of their work. And make sure the feedback you are looking at is for the items they sew (Many sellers sell a wide variety of items. Good feedback on other items does not mean you will get a high quality custom sewn item). Click on the item number to see. If the feedback is for a recent item, then consider clicking on the buyer's ID and contacting them for their opinion.
SIZING: (**Please note that these measurements are of the dress, not the child)
12/18 MONTHS: 22" Chest, 18" length
18/24 MONTHS: 23" Chest, 20" length
2T: 24" chest, 22" length
3T: 24" Chest, 24" length
4T: 24" Chest, 25" length
Size 4: 25" Chest, 26" Length
Size 5: 26" Chest, 27" Length
Size 6: 27" Chest, 28" Length
Size 6X: 27" Chest, 29" Length
Size 7: 28" Chest, 30" Length
Size 8: 29" Chest, 32" Length
Size 10:30" Chest, 34" Length
I usually recommend choosing a size 4" greater than the actual chest measurement of the child. The length is measured from the shoulder straight down to the bottom of the dress. Please choose your size based on the chest size. I am happy to alter the length upon request. If your little one is too wiggly to measure, I recommend using a dress you like the fit on. You can lay it flat and measure easily.
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