A Room With A View

My sewing room is on the second floor at the corner of the house. Although it is damaged, I still go in there to sew and play. It has nice big windows, and here is the current view from one of them:



The window is shattered and broken. But until two weeks ago, if I looked out this window all I could see what the top of a magnificent old oak. It kept me nice and shady in the hot, hot, summertime, too. Oh well.....

Here's the view from the other window, the one that looks out over the former front yard and porch:



But I keep my gaze here, on the beautiful promise of Spring:



It was a cold but fabulously sunny day here today, and the dogwood trees inspired me to let all discord and stress fly away.

Funny how those little dogwoods survived an F3 tornado and are all a-bloom, and not 25 feet away a giant was felled. Food for thought.

Since I had already made the collar and pocket flaps for Golden Tulips, today I just darted around, making darts, of course, all 12 of them. There are 12 because I decided to line the bodice. I put the bodice pieces and lining pieces together with the collar and made this:



A Collar Sandwich!

From the other side:



Yum yum! After sewing this concoction all together, I had the cutest little bodice you ever did see:



This collar is so pretty I just want to kiss it.

Not a single solitary soul figured out the pattern piece jigsaw puzzle I offered up a few days ago. This is the Official Pattern Description for this dress: "The dart-fitted bodice is styled with a V-shaped neckline. The full skirt, gathered at the waistline, joins the bodice at the natural waistline. Style 1 has a shaped double collar banding the neckline of the sleeveless bodice. A little bow in front is used as trimming. Inside pockets at the sides of the skirt are finished with pointed flaps. Style 2 has a wide, shaped collar edged wth scallops. Puffed sleeves trimmed with scalloped cuffs are featured. A self belt finished with tie ends forms a bow in back."

Now that description is not exactly accurate. It gives no hint of the darling little pocket hidden away in the pattern pieces. And since it is not mentioned, I have taken full liberty to name it, henceforth, as The Dart Pocket. Yessiree. The pocket is sewn into a dart, not into the side seams.

I stitched around the dart markings, and slashed down through the middle of it, exactly as is done when making a placket opening. See?



Then I basted the pocket flaps on:



I slashed the dart open on the pocket facing piece and stitched it on top:



I turned and kind of semi-pressed it (and I was really starting to get excited at this point!):



From the outside (no, I didn't press it well at all...):



Then at last, at last, I sewed the pocket to the pocket facing, and had this:

I'm tickled. There is not other word for it. Just think about the design possibilities here. You can put a pocket ANYWHERE with this technique. With flaps. Without flaps. Plain vanilla. Or Double-Dipped Chocolate with Maraschino Cherries, Walnuts, and Whipped Cream. My imagination is in overdrive.

Four seams later, I had a skirt!