A Dress for Miss Julia

The raw materials

Becky’s old boss was getting rid of a sewing machine a few years back and I told her to grab.  We did not have one and I thought it could prove to be useful down the line.  Becky’s recollection is that I planned to make drapes, but I do not recall that part of the story.

Regardless of the reason why we obtained a sewing machine it sat in our shed for 4 years collecting dust.  That was until this week rolled around and my inner muse inspired me to make Miss Julia a dress.  Becky went and bought a pattern, material, scissors and thread.

The finished product

The last time I sewed was in Home Economics (Note: it was required for everyone) when I was in 8th grade when I made a blue football with a large M on the front.  I unfolded the  dress pattern and it might as well been the schematic on how to build a nuclear power plant.  I read and reread the directions.  They made absolutely no sense and the “drawings” on how to lay out the patterns were useless.  I finally made up my mind to cut the fabric using the pieces called for in design D.  I ended up with 4 fairly straight squares of varying size.

When I went to sew the pieces today the sewing machine did not want to cooperate.  I read the directions but it would not stitch.  I thought I threaded it properly and by 10:00 p.m. I became aggravated, declared the sewing machine “broken” and turned on the Braves game.

Miss Julia in her new dress

Today when I got home from work I decided to give it another shot.  I threaded the machine and noticed that last night I forgot to put the thread though the needle.  Oops.  Amazingly the machine was no longer broken and I practiced sewing on a scrap of material.  When I felt comfortable I moved onto the four pieces of fabric sitting in front of me.

It took me about an hour and I sewed the dress without directions.  There are some blemishes on it but I think it turned out pretty well.  When we tried it on and it fit Miss Julia perfectly! She looks adorable in it and we will keep  the dress for Jules when she outgrows it.  Years down the road when she looks at it, I hope she remembers how much her Daddy loves her!