When we were young: Sewing like mad
November 13, 2013
It's the 13th of the month again, which means that today, is my birthday!, and time for another post in my When we were young series. This month I am very happy to have my new sewing friend Mie from Sewing like mad guest posting. If you love sewing and you read blogs, you have probably heard of Mie and seen her amazing sewing. We 'met' through Project Run and Play. Mie made it to the finals - woohoo! Her sewing is just amazing. I have not come across another sewer who sews as impeccably as Mie. All her finishing and details are so professional, and I love her fun style. Check out some of her great sewing tutorials (if you want to know how to sew properly, listen to Mie). She sews for her two beautiful daughters and herself. Mie also hosted her first guest series recently - Sewing for Kindergarten which was very popular. I'm sure the Danish fashion house that once were lucky enough to have Mie sewing for them was sorry to see her go when she moved to America with her family five years ago. Here is a sample of some of her recent makes...
1. Amaryllis dress remix; 2. Scandinavian style outfit; 3. Debbie's birthday dress; 4. Mad for Plaid for Project Run & Play.
Over to Mie now to tell you about When she was young, and to share her gorgeous outfit.
*****
This is one of my favorite series so to say I am happy to be here would be an understatement. The fact that I have also become blogging friends with Suz since we both participated in project Run & Play is totally a bonus.
Thank you so much for inviting me Suz.
This post turned out to be way more emotional than I expected. But I will tell you about that further down.
Because first you have to see when I was young, right!
I don't think I have to explain that I am to the left and Evelyn is to the right, ha.
The photo is 32 years old (yes OF COURSE it is taken before I was born, ahem). Okay, so I am skyping with my Mom in Denmark and she shows me a few photos she has found for this post, looks at the back of this one and says: "oh, it is from your 4 year old birthday." And since Evelyn is turning 4 years old in January it could simply not be better timing.
But before we start talking about the outfit, let's get the basics in place.
Suz has sent me some questions.
Where were you born?
I am born in Denmark. On a small island with 45.000 people called Bornholm.
When you look at a map you would actually think it belongs to Sweden, and people there have this funny dialect that is a mix of Danish and Swedish. The island is a bit of a Danish vacation 'paradise' and we have tons of German and Swedish tourists in the summer.
Who did you grow up with?
I grew up with my Mom, Dad and my little sister Karen. We are five years apart so we were pretty much adults before we got a good relationship. But now it is as good as it can get. Love you Sis!
Did you have any childhood ambitions?
I had tons. I LOVED going to school and I honestly thought I was going to study for years and years and years. It did not really matter what is was but I remember doctor was definitely in the running. And when I was a little older I would do something for the environment.
But then I started on the university (studying the intro to economics, politics and sociology) and I absolutely hated it. I felt super stupid (I do not come from a university family) so I stopped and started sewing...and I have never looked back. Best decision of my life!
Do you see any similarities between yourself and your children?
Hmmmm, yes. My oldest got my personality and my youngest got my looks.
My oldest is scared of a lot of things - well used to, I am starting to see some changes - but she is certainly not a daredevil. She is also a girl who very easily gets friends and I have always been like that too.
My youngest IS a bit of a daredevil but she is also totally stubborn and, ahem, I do know who she got that from (sorry!).
What did you like doing when you were little?
I loved reading books and playing with Barbies (mostly dressing them in outfit after outfit).
I also remember being outside quite a lot and playing with the neighborhood friends.
I also loved all sorts of crafts and I always started making homemade christmas tree ornaments in like October. I was (am) not one of those who is very good a crafts but I definitely enjoyed doing it.
Do you live far from where you grew up?
YES.
Now I live in the US on the 6th year.
Where do you live now and who with?
I live in North Carolina with my British husband and our two daughters who are turning 4 and 6 both in January - two days apart actually. Yup, great planning there, ahem!
I knew all along that I would sew for Evelyn since she is the one of my two daughters who look like me. Normally I would probably have said: Who looks a little bit like me - my oldest does not look like me one bit - but after seeing the comparison I think it is safe to say she looks like me.
It actually almost brought me to tears looking at it.
It is really kind of freaky looking at us dressed the same because that really makes us look alike.
Fun and freaky.
I was not able to find a corduroy in the correct color so I used this cotton twill instead. Unfortunately that is a more stiff material so I decided to skip the front pockets on the skirt because I think it would have taken even more drape out of the skirt.
The skirt I am wearing is by the way also homemade. My Mom could not remember whether it was herself or my paternal grandmother who made it. We had a lot of sewers in my family. Which makes it even more weird to think about that I only even considered starting sewing when I was like 20 years old. Buuut I think I have made up for my late start!
So I had to guess how the back looks like and I made it this way.
The front of the skirt is gathered to the front waistband but the back is gathered with an elastic inside. This way it is easy to get on and off. I have buttons on the inside of the back waistband and button holes in the straps.
The shirt is a Japanese pattern that I made more fitted. It had the right details such as front button placket, the collar and sleeve cuffs.
To make it looks like the cotton lace ribbons my original has, I made these tiny ruffles with some baby pink cotton voile.
I know the original also have ruffles where the sleeve is sewed on the bodice, and I did try that but is simply did not work out. It looked silly.
A closer look at the sleeve cuff.
Here in the end I have to tell you a short funny story.
So after the photo shoot we went out for lunch and even though Evelyn did not wanted to wear the skirt or have her hair made before the shoot, yeah we managed with some bribing, she ended up wanting to wear it all the whole day - yup, that a three year old for you.
SO at the restaurant she starts telling the people at the next table that she is dressed like Mommy. Ha, they looked at me and was totally lost. And me? I did not even try to explain that one - too complicated.
SO at the restaurant she starts telling the people at the next table that she is dressed like Mommy. Ha, they looked at me and was totally lost. And me? I did not even try to explain that one - too complicated.
Yeah you know I am a blogger and I am participating in this series and......ohhh, forget about it. But I had to tell you because you will understand!
Thank you SO much for having me Suz. SO much fun!
*****
Thankyou Mie!! You did a fabulous job and I am so glad you enjoyed this sewing experience!!
*****
Thankyou Mie!! You did a fabulous job and I am so glad you enjoyed this sewing experience!!
21 comments
What a beautifully written post AND sewn garment.
ReplyDeleteJust lovely.
What a beautifully written post AND sewn garment.
ReplyDeleteJust lovely.
Happy Birthday Suz - Hope you have a lovely day...although I guess it's nearly over now in OZ!
ReplyDeleteAnd Mie - your outfit is so beautifully sewn. What great detail! And you and your little girl are like peas in a pod!
Wow..how much you two look alike... love the little skirt outfit. Brought back such fond memories.. I made [almost identical ] set for my baby girl [who is now a high school teacher...oh where did the days go? ha]
ReplyDeleteSo enjoyed this post..
Such a fun post, Mie. Don't you have a mini me there! Wow. I never realized how much she looked like you! The outfit is so cute. Love love the tiny ruffles on the shirt!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love, love, LOVE this challenge. What a beautiful idea, and beautiful results.
ReplyDeleteWOW...that is some introduction there - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
ReplyDeleteAs you already know I really LOVED sewing for this series. Really everyone who sews should do that once in their life ;-)
Happy happy birthday....even though it is probably already over in Australia now....but here in the US you have almost a full day of it left....if you can stay awake ;-)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY Suz!!!! I hope you had a lovely day filled with love and lots of hugs and kisses!!!! And Mie, I am not sure who is who in those pictures ;) what a lovely post, it brought a tear to my eye. I am definitely going to have to do this one day too. And I love how the outfit totally fits in this day and age, but then again I am a sucker for vintage clothes. Awesome series, awesome post!
ReplyDeleteSo beautifully done, Mie! And what a great idea for a series! And Happy Birthday, Suz!
ReplyDeleteSo beautifully done, Mie! And what a great idea for a series! And Happy Birthday, Suz!
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday Suz!
ReplyDeleteWonderful post Mie!
Mie the resemblance is amazing. What a great post!
ReplyDeleteHappy B'Day Suz :) The sun must have come out just for you (well, at least here in Bendigo... at times hehe).
ReplyDeleteMie, Evelyn looks so much like you! The outfit is great. Attention to detail is amazing, as always though :) Love the story about your little girl telling strangers she was dressed like mum hehe She sounds so adorable :)
Beautiful outfit Mie! The shirt is stunnng and the dress is so cute. I can't believe how alike you and your daughter are. This series is so fun. I'm going to have to find some photos of me wearing stuff my boys could wear, shouldn't be a problem though as I was a bit of a tomboy.
ReplyDeleteAlso, Happy Birthday Suz, I hope you had a wonderful day.
Thankyou for the birthday messages everyone and thankyou for your lovely post mie!!
ReplyDeleteHappy (now belated for you though still the 13th for a few more hours here) birthday Suz! And Mie you did an amazing job on this post! Love the outfit and Evelyn is truly your mini-me (haha mini-MIE!). :D
ReplyDeleteamazing! Mie your daughter looks SOOO much like you in those photos... how fun!! Suz... I would love to join this series if you are looking for more posters... although I would have to find a girl model since I have no daughters... I do have friends daughters though :o) Lovely!
ReplyDeleteThanks Emily:) my series is booked for the quite a few months.. Hoping to organize a sew along next year:))
DeleteWOW! Mie, she could be you! In 15 years you'll look like sisters =)
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely post, Mie!!! You and your daughter are so much alike. Love all the details in the outfit.
ReplyDeleteHappy belated birthday, Suz!
My goodness. This is darling Mie!
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to comment - it makes my day☼