Have you done Designin' December?

Designin' December

Turning up the hem

The toile curtain dress

Toile curtain dress from the 1950s Wardrobe Pattern

Bodice details of the curtain dress

An original shirt dress pattern, ca. 1955

Simplicity 4530 blouse pattern

It has been such a whirlwind of a December that I haven't been able to sit down at my sewing machine as often as I'd like, but I jumped in last week to make the first of a series of "curtain dresses" out of a green toile given me by a friend who found 30 meters of the fabric in her late mother's stash. She dared me to make dresses for myself and my daughters a lá Maria in "The Sound of Music," so I promptly cut out six dresses...and then had no time to sew! Well, I'm doing my best to redeem "Designin' December" in these last days before Christmas (nothing like a little pressure!), so I'm stitching up my girls' dresses today through Saturday.I thought I'd show the results of making my own dress from my new Ladies' Classic 1950s Wardrobe pattern, as I am super pleased with how it turned out. I opted for the pointed collar and closed the front with a lapped zipper (I'll be sharing that how-to on the blog in January). The fit is perfect and super easy for this nursing mama. I plan to make a bunch more to do some stash-busting and use up fabric that has been sitting much too long in my cupboards! So, how does this fit into "Designin' December?" Well, all my patterns are inspired by original garments and images from fashions past, and the 1950s Wardrobe Pattern is no exception. I have thousands of 1950s images saved that have inspired me over the years. Here are a couple to show you part of what inspired this dress:So, what inspires you? I would love to see what you've been creating this month! Leave a link or comment below to share!