Sewn: The Cologne dress

I've started to sew more from scratch this summer. I'd drifted away from it in the past couple of years, but I'm finding my way back to patterns and fabric. Well, to patterns I can hack easily that is. When i started sewing about 10 years ago, I usually followed the pattern exactly, but as years went by and I did more and more refashions, I also used patterns less, or only in a modified way. So, now I look to patterns more as a starting point for my own vision.

Which is why this dress doesn't follow a set pattern, but is rather my own design brought to life with the help of a very simple jersey long-sleeved t-shirt pattern. I used a Burda pattern as the base for the upper part of the dress, but modified it considerably. I raised and widened the neckline in the front and reconstructed the back as a faux-wrap. I also shortened the sleeves.

I used a thrifted lace from my stash and paired it with a fuschia pink knit I bought for this project for the lining. In real life you can see more of the fuschia peaking through, which I like. I used a really cool and easy way to attach the bodice to the skirt using an elastic to do all my gathering and matching. If you're interested, I could do a tutorial on it. Let me know in the comments.

I made this dress for my Cologne auditions back in June, but I guess it wasn't a lucky dress for me. But, no matter, I still like it, and I'm sure it will have better luck in the future.

xo Hanna

Credits // Author: Hanna Saar // Photography: Anneliis Volmer // Photo editing: Hanna Saar

Honeymoon Style: To the beach

Wearing: Top - self-made / Skirt - refashioned / Sandals - really old and broken :) / Sunglasses - Maxima

I'll share more about our honeymoon later in the week, but I thought I'd start off by sharing this handmade outfit I wore to the beach one day during our amazing trip. I always get a special feeling when I know I'm wearing a handmade outfit. Both the top and the skirt are sewn by yours truly, and this is one of my go-to outfits for the summer. I can't remember what I wore before I refashioned this skirt... Funny how that happens, right?

Also, fun fact, my legs are always covered in small bruises for some odd reason, and I don't ever remember where I got them. Oh well...

xo Hanna

Credits // Author: Hanna Saar // Photography: Rein Saar

Super simple dotted t-shirt DIY

Hi, guys! You can barely call this a tutorial, but since I've been on a fabric paint crush lately, I thought I'd share this t-shirt experiment with you. It's one of those I-have-10-minutes-to-make-something kind of things. It's super simple and very fast, so if you have a t-shirt you'd like to update, give it a try.

I found this t-shirt at home and wasn't too excited about it. I knew it needed a little face-lift. I did this makeover in July on a day I really needed a change from cutting out and clueing together wedding decor. But, I didn't want to spare too much precious time doing something non-wedding-related, so I thought I'd play around with my new love of fabric paint for 15 minutes. This is what I did:

All you need is some fabric paint in your color of choice and an old wine cork as a stamp for the dots. The process itself was super simple. Simply lay out your t-shirt and place a plastic bag inside, so that the paint won't run through to the backside. And, dot away! I did my dots in a completely random pattern, but you could use a ruler to mark the place of the dots with small dots first to space them evenly.

Although I wouldn't call this my favorite t-shirt, I do like it a lot more now. I'm thinking about covering the whole t-shirt in dots. What do you think? Cover it in dots, or leave as is? Let me know in the comments!

xo Hanna

Credits // Author: Hanna Saar // Photography: Hanna Saar and Rein Saar