Project Hunting {as a garment newbie}

Confession: I originally chose that Paint Roses Black rayon for Rora. But when it arrived, I was inspired to make something for me instead! Now I'm hoping to squeeze a dress for Rora out of my leftovers. It's the way of quilters, yes?

Actually getting into garment sewing reminds me so much of being a brand new quilter. Last night I sat down at the computer to browse for dress options for baby. I was looking for a dress with some sort of sleeve for fall/winter. Google and Pinterest searches failed me. I tried looking at my favorite fabric stores in the pattern section, but wasn't too inspired by the limited selection, especially as many weren't for Rora's tiny size.

I know this is just how a new quilter feels. You have a general idea of what you want, but don't know where to go to find the pattern. And you don't know enough about what you want (or have the skills!) to design it yourself. What seems so easy to someone experienced (i.e. adding sleeves) is not something a newbie wants to engineer herself. At least, not this newbie!

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Today after a bit more fruitless browsing, I thought to visit the blog of my friend Rachel at Stitched Together. She's the garment sewer I want to be when I grow up (wink!). Seriously though, the way she sews for her girls and photographs them is truly awe-inspiring. And "awe" is the right word. For real.

Juliette Dress, by Rachel at Stitched Together

Well... that was the right things to do! I found two exciting dress options for Rora right away at Stitched Together: the Juliette Dress and the Geranium Dress expansion pack. See, blogs are so useful! Rachel already has her finger on what's going on in the girl's garment world and since I share her style, her projects are an ideal lead to follow.

This morning I purchased and downloaded the Geranium Dress expansion pack from Made by Rae. This style has separate bodice/dress portions, which will help me use my fabric leftovers. Plus, I'm already a fan of the pattern, so buying the extension makes tons of sense. Now I only have to choose: straight sleeves or puff sleeves? a waist sash and bow? a hem band?