Neon Pink Summer Dress

I'm slightly obsessed with neon pink right now.

I want to sew it on everything, and anything.

And maybe it's because because the color goes so well with Boardwalk Delight Fabrics?  

Or maybe it's cause I just plain-old love bright colors, and the 80s.

Either way, Melissa from Melly Sews is hosting her annual 30 Days of Sundresses. And she asked me to be part of it!  And to make it extra exciting, she's also sharing her new book called Sundressing to go along!

 

 The book has so many darling designs for women, children, teens, and plus sizes.
I was so, so tempted to make this cute yellow dress and copy it exactly. Ahhh! Love it!  I might still need to make it.

 

And maybe this one for Clara too.  Who doesn't love a "ballerina dress" that can be worn in every season?

 

The cool thing about Melissa's book is that she teaches you how to modify pattern pieces.  In fact, you pick out your age/size and then there's really only one pattern piece you need.  Melissa shows you how to change up that one basic pattern piece to make many different dresses.

I love this coral Olive Dress.  So beautiful and classic.

I would definitely say this book is not for a beginner. It will take some sewing experience and previous pattern reading to following along the modification instructions.   But with so many Beginner type books out there, it's nice to have something for intermediate/advanced sewers...something that teaches you a new trick and gives you new confidence!

There's a lot of good information packed into one book.

And for my little Clara doll I decided to make a dress inspired by the Bellevue:

 

I switched it up quite a bit, adding a V-neckline, a High-Low hem, no chiffon, etc.   But that's also the beauty of the book.  She encourages you to take your own spin on things.

I also added some basic KID shorts under the dress since the fabric was a bit see-through (and I taped the two pattern pieces together just so I could skip the side seam step--like I did here).

And then at the last minute I cut a scrap of fabric and tied it around her waist, and liked it even more.  Cause I'm sure there's some gray area between "lingerie" and "children's wear"....but I'm calling this a Sundress. 

The best part is, on Saturday I asked her to go get dressed and this is what she picked out!
And we knew exactly where she was all day at Owen's baseball game.
I guess Neon fabric is practical afterall!

Okay, do you want to try out Melissa's book Sundressing??
Today we're giving away One Copy!

GIVEAWAY RULES:
• Leave a comment, that's it!
• Open to US residents only.
• ONE winners will be picked via random.org
• Giveaway ends Sunday night, 6/19/16 at 10pm Central time.
Yay!

And now head over to Melly Sews to see all the other Sundress creations.
For THIRTY days, various bloggers and sewers are sharing their dresses!