{ A whimsical Antalya dress }

Yes, people! it is finally summer! finally!

I feel like this year has been a long, very long monday! 

But finally since last week I have been able to enjoy life and my family. 

After a year in which I felt all I was saying to the kids was something along the line of :" Hurry up! put your shoes / coat / trousers... on!!! " or "hurry up ! go get a shower! " I can finally ENJOY them!

I get to see them walk, and dance! I get to watch them swim and I can alctually take time to cuddle and answer their tousand questions. 

I am so grateful for these moments and I feel myself again! 

That said, I also had the time to go back to my much missed sewing machine and I got to sew the Antalya dress I had been dreaming of for weeks!! 

I had been hoarding these fabrics : Wee Wander by Sarah Jane for Michael Miller, for more than a year, knowing I would use them for a special project for my horse loving daughter. 

You can see her in these photos pursuing her favorite activity, dressed up as what we think a cow girl looks like!

She is a fierce horse rider and obstacle jumper. 

She knows how to handle those small horses with authority and loving care! 

But she is also a real princess, precious and fragile and even more so in this new Antalya dress:

So I paired this feathers fabric, with this gorgeous whimsical one!
I really went for that fushia pink including for the exposed zipper.

I usually sew a size 6 for her as she is so thin. But this time, based on what my dear Rachel from Stitched together had written about her take on the Antalya, I decided to go for a real size 8 and even added 2.5 inches to the skirt hems. And that was a great idea. The fit is perfect and it will allow for a bit of growth, so hopefully she will be able to wear it next spring.

I love piping and was really happy to be able to use that pink one on that dress:

Olga from Kid Approved has created a really gorgeous pattern. And although it may look scary  to sew with its round seams and exposed zipper, it really is not. I found it very easy and well explained and everything falls into place perfectly with no effort at all!
It is really the perfect project I needed to get back into sewing after my hiatus.

SO here is to a nice summer! I am planning to enjoy these two as much as I can and thank God as much as I can for their laughters, their happy games and sweet "I love you's" as well as for the patience they are teaching me when they argue!