Baby (and mama) gift

My good friend Dasha had a baby this winter - her fourth adorable little girl.  I wanted to send her a special gift but it took me awhile to figure out what to make.  It had to be something that I could do well so that I wouldn't embarrass myself, as she is a fantastic seamstress.

I settled on an Oliver+S Music Box Jumper.  It is a very easy, basic pattern with a clean finish.  I didn't love the pattern until I saw a few versions with a closer fit and a longer bodice/shorter skirt than the pattern calls for.  Then I bought it and have already used it a couple times for gift sewing (though not actually for my own kids yet, I just realized!).  For this version, I chose view A in the 6-12 month size, but decided to gather the skirt rather than pleat it.  I also lengthened the bodice by 1".  I used a pretty green linen-rayon blend that I grabbed from Joann's remnant bin during our last home leave, and lined the bodice with some quilting cotton left over from an Ice Cream Dress I made for N over the summer.  I also did a few rows of topstitching at the hem, a la the Family Reunion pattern.

Since I sewed the dress with the intent that it be worn as a sundress, I decided to make a little shrug to go with it.  My mother-in-law recently sent me New Look 6236, which includes a cute little bolero pattern.  I have been hoarding this Valori Wells Karavan jersey forever - I don't know why I only bought 1/2 a yard of it - and it was just enough to make the 12-month size.  If I had planned ahead, I would have made sure the lining of the dress was a better coordinate for the bolero; but the bolero was a late addition to the ensemble.

The shrug sewed up very quickly -  I used my serger for all but the sleeve hems.  The pattern instructions don't provide for a very clean finish to the inside - it just has you sew both the band's raw edges to the shrug's raw edges and then finish them together.  I think that it would be a pretty easy fix to fold the inside of the band over to cover the seam, rather than stitching the band to the body all in one seam.  It IS nice and quick the other way, though.

Mamas are often forgotten in the mad rush to send gifts for new babies, and I wanted to make sure D knew I was thinking of her, too, so I stitched up this quick infinity scarf.  I was seriously tired when I cut and sewed it, and it is LONG.  A whopping 120" in circumference.  But the material is very lightweight, so it works.  I like the print too; it's from Girl Charlee.

I finished off the gift with a few luggage tags (pictured here) that I sewed earlier in the year - the fabric is also from the Valori Wells Karavan line.  I used this tutorial to make the tags - very fun to sew and a great way to use up small scraps.

I hope she likes it!