Flower Child

This is the pattern I am using for the little smocked dress that has given me so much trouble. It is the Flower Child design:

I may or may not use a contrasting collar. At this point it depends on whether I have anything suitable in the fabric repository. This design is in this issue of Australian Smocking and Embroidery, No. 86:

 This is the fabric I am using, a soft as butter 100% cotton that is firmly woven yet still has a luscious softness. This one has lived in the repository so long I can't remember exactly where I got it.

And here is the smocked little devil so far. I cannot explain the trouble I have had with this little thing. I am still going to add more to it, maybe little bullions, maybe little buttons, just not sure yet. It is still talking to me. For the smocking I used DMC 155, 333, and 3815.

The smocking pattern itself is completely made up. After putting in a total of six rows, taking it out, putting them back in again, and taking them out once more, I realized that the second row had too many wave stitches.

I pondered (for 15 minutes, I tell ya) on whether or not to just cut the thing into teeny tiny little pieces with my giant scissors and then chew the whole mess up in the garbage disposal.

Then I decided that a little bitty dress was not going to defeat me. So I just left the wave stitches as they were and winged it.

So, there, little bitty dress, I will win in the end.

I hope.

More later.