I'm so glad to be back sewing garments again! Our sweet little son was born on June 18, and now that I feel back to normal I'm taking advantage of the long newborn naps to get some summer sewing done. A lot of these have been on my list for a long time, delayed because of the pregnancy, so I'm buzzing through them as fast as I can until the next big project comes along. 

This fun fabric is an adorable novelty print by Liberty Cottons in the UK. Riley Blake Designs distributed it in the USA in several colors, and I had to snag some of my favorite for a dress. (It's out of stock now, but if you want some, I still have some yardage available in my vintage sewing shop The Timely Tailor.) 

Because the print was so busy, I needed a pattern without a lot of details – something that most 1930s patterns often feature. So I pulled out a dress pattern that I've made twice before and knew would fit me well, without a lot of tweaking. 

As usual when I make a duplicate, I try to change it up a bit. This time I added rickrack points to the collar, made the neckline different with the placement of the panel, and tried a new sleeve pattern.

I didn't end up liking the sleeve pattern as is, but I tweaked it until I liked it. A knot of rickrack trims it, and ties in the collar edging. 

Since I had already made it twice, it was super quick and no-fuss to make again. I hardly had to look at the instructions.

Though I will wear this as a house dress, I wanted to photo it a little more formally since a lot of my accessories don't come out of the closet as much as I would like.

Whether you think it's beach umbrellas or Japanese parasols, I think it's the perfect summer fabric!