The Louisa dress becomes a nostalgic blouse

 Did anyone remember that my New Year Resolutions were sew 'practical' and 'less experimental'?

No ? Neither did I, when I set about creating this blouse.

And when Marte announced her Compagnie M Sewing Contest, the part of me that can't resist a deadline kicked into action. (I'm a journalist - I simply do not function without a deadline.) And I had such a sense of vision about what I wanted to create, that I couldn't help but start cutting up this stone-coloured cotton linen blend.
I've entered this blouse in the contest - see here

Ever since I made my first Louisa dress, from Marte's simple and perfect dress pattern, where I added a front placket, I had pondered taking this idea further.

 

So, I extended the middle section of the Louisa's distinctive placket to run the full length of the bodice. I also wanted to add fullness, so created the placket with a separate piece with eight pintucks. With a bit of fiddling and thinking, I kept the Louisa's lovely pockets.

 I had a vision to create a very nostaligic blouse,  a little inspired perhaps by the children's clothes worn in the Cotswolds here in England 100 years ago.  A bit rustic, simple lines.

The back closes with a single button, and I moved the Louisa's split back further up and added eight pleats.

 The asymetrical collar was 'borrowed' from Straightgrain's Tinny dress. I made a size 5, cut large, and Missy is only 3 so this is a little big on her.

I sewed this like a demon over a couple of evenings, broke a couple of needles, stitched my finger etc... Then I faced a photographic nightmare. Missy has been ill this week, a fever and a cough, and not in the mood for pictures. And it has barely stopped raining for a second! Literally. There are homes just a few miles away where sandbags are their only defence against the surging River Severn. So work has also been busy for me - reporting on what's going on.

Then this afternoon, it stopped raining for five minutes (yes, really) Missy seemed a little brighter, and I lured her outside with sweets. But brushing her hair properly was a step too far. And we could really only stay out for a few minutes in her new blouse. There's a fierce gale blowing too! So these photos will have to do.

She wore it with a little cardigan and looked lovely later on - like a doll from an old photograph.

I've got this blouse and my first Louisa dress entered in Compagnie M's contest. If you like them please click over and click on the little heart thingy. There are some fantastic creations to browse through - and great prizes. Here's the link to vote for my first  Louisa dress. And to vote for the blouse click over here. I love to have your support! Thank you!!