A Velvet Wren

Tilly's turn and she needed a smart frock.
So it was a good chance to use one of my 'pins'.

Pinned from Bon-Point Boutique.

I flipped over this dress and immediately thought of the Wren  by Clever Charlotte.
My sister had been volunteering in a Charity Shop and she found a beautiful piece of light weight upholstery velvet.

Don't you love the boots?

So here is my version.

I am tickled pink!

Thank goodness for the invisible zipper.
I would have been loathe to sew against the pile of the velvet.

I used a special pre-wound thread for top stitching. The bobbins are meant to fit into the bobbin case but were a bit fat for mine.

I remembered with shirring that one hand winds the bobbin so I decided to try that. Perfick!

It is a silky thick thread in a rich cocoa brown.
My machine struggled a wee bit with the unfamiliar thread and thick pleated fabric but it coped and it was worth the trepidatious sewing.

The only change I made was to slightly lengthen the sleeves.

Matilda loves it and made me laugh when she declared that she would have to be cuddled upwards.
(As the nap runs up to give the lustrous sheen)
I made the size 3t which is perfect-to-a-little-to-big, just right for the beginning of Winter.

Modelled pictures soon, I promise!
xx N

PS If you would like to make your own Winter Wren I have a tute here