Sis Boom Patterns Blog Tour – A Rainbow Marissa

I’m so excited to be a part of the At School and Play Blog Tour for Sis Boom patterns.  This is my first ever blog tour and I’m privileged to be amongst some amazing sewists and bloggers for this tour. Read to the bottom for a chance to win a free pattern!

I sew clothes almost exclusively for my little and she is a huge part of my sewing process as a result.  I showed her all the Sis Boom patterns on their website and she immediately asked me to sew her the Marissa dress.  “But, I want a rainbow dress Mom…but not like a regular rainbow….a rainbow with cool colours.”  The girl knows what she wants.

Back-to-school means end of summer, and for us that usually includes one last summer trip to Grandma and Papa’s house on beautiful Vancouver Island. We headed to the amazing Cathedral Grove, a temperate rain forest park, to take advantage of the stunning scenary and take some photos.

To achieve the rainbow skirt I made a pieced skirt rather than using a single fabric. From the pattern I determined my length and width of fabric to figure out the size of my strips for piecing. To achieve a similar result,  take your skirt width, subtract the seam allowance and divide by the number of fabrics you want to use (in my case 6) and then add the seam allowance (1/4″ on each side)  back in.  Sew all the strips together in a long piece,  leaving one side unsewn as per the pattern.

I also added a strip of the bodice fabric to the bottom of the skirt to frame the rainbow with “sky”.  I cut the strip double the length I wanted (in this case I wanted a 3.5 inch border)  and added seam allowance.  Fold in half,  press,  and sew the raw edges of the strip to the raw edge of the skirt,  right sides together.  Press the seam allowance toward the bottom and top stitch if desired. You can keep this the same width as the skirt or,  if you want a ruffle, double the width and gather the top edge.

I love the details in this dress,  from the beautiful ruching in the bodice to the zipper side closure.  The dress is simple,  but beautifully constructed.  Sewing time was about 1 1/2 hours start to finish. I fully lined the dress,  including the skirt,  with a lightweight cotton voile.  I think this dress will transition well into the fall with a simple shrug or cardigan and leggings.

Want to win a copy of the Marissa Dress pattern? Comment below and tell me about a back-to-school ritual your family enjoys. Thanks for visiting!

EDITED: Contest is now closed. The winner comment via random.org is #3 – Marsha Law.  Congrats!

Right now all of Sis Boom’s fabulous patterns on on sale for a spectacular 40% off!  Time to stock up for back-to-school sewing with the code BACK2SCHOOL.  Visit them on Etsy. Go now…what are you waiting for!? For more sewing inspiration be sure to join the Sis Boom Pattern Facebook group.