My "eclectic, modern, vintage, retro, a dash of shabby-chic, french provincial and whatever else I happen to like" style

I don't know if you could say I have a 'style' as such.  I just like what I like.  So, maybe that means I have an eclectic style?  Which, according to Dictionary.com (my go-to), means:

ec·lec·tic

   [ih-klek-tik] 

adjective

1.

selecting or choosing from various sources.

2.

made up of what is selected from different sources.

3.

not following any one system, as of philosophy, medicine,etc., but selecting and using what are considered the best elements of all systems.

4.

noting or pertaining to works of architecture, decoration,landscaping, etc., produced by a certain person or during a certain period, that derive from a wide range of historic styles, the style in each instance often being chosen for its fancied appropriateness to local tradition, local geography,the purpose to be served, or the cultural background of the client.

Yeah, that's probably me then.  Although, if you looked at my house at the moment, you would say I had an 'early to mid 90s feature wall on EVERY wall' kind of style, with a little bit of DIY mosaicing, for added effect :(

If you're not sure what I mean, my husband likes to say that there are only two walls that meet up in our house that are actually painted the same colour.  Now, that may be a slight exaggeration, but he's not far off.

Yep, we're not lacking in colour, that's for sure.  We've got mustard, red, brown, custard cream, beige and, if we hadn't renovated a quarter of the house by now, we'd still have aubergine (yes, the colour of eggplants) and khaki.  Those last two colours were the walls and ceilings, respectively, of the second, third and fourth bedrooms.  Oh, and don't forget the texturing, just to make renovating life a little more difficult.

Hey, don't look at me, we bought it like that! :)  

Just for a treat, here's a current photo of our main toilet.

Don't you just love the pink grout teamed with the clever use of fish tank pebbles and smashed floor tiles?

My husband is itching to do something temporary with this toilet, purely out of embarrassment, but I'm pushing to wait until we do up the bathroom and toilets properly.  I guess I must use the toilet so much I don't even really see how horrible it is anymore :)  I'd be happy just to put up a sign requesting frequenters to not judge us or our choices by this toilet - ha!

Anyway, I don't know why I've been thinking about my style.  Maybe because I've been sewing clothes for other people's children and you get to see a little bit about them in the fabrics and styles they choose?  Or, maybe because we've been talking about the next renovating stages in our house (exciting!!!!).

When it comes to kids clothes though, I think I tend more towards the modern vintage styles, which is probably why I love sewing with Oliver + S patterns.  I just finished the Oliver + S Family Reunion Dress for the Rosebud and I LOVE IT and can't wait to see her wear it.  She even has some shoes that will match it.  A-MAZ-ING.

This dress has some lovely features.  Like pin-tucked pleats on the front and back of the dress, a button tab, capped sleeves and an exposed neck facing.  Which all combine to create a dress that looks like it stepped out of that movie "The Help" (Which is probably one of the best movies ever.  Even my husband like it, and that's saying something.)

I am totally amazed at how neatly and beautifully finished the dress is.  Admittedly, it took me a whole day to make because the elements are quite involved and fiddly, but in making this dress I have expanded my repertoire of sewing techniques, which is fantastic.  I feel like a better sew-er now, just from making this one dress!

It doesn't matter what angle you look at this dress from, there's something special to see.

I didn't want to buy buttons for this dress so I scrounged through my button stash and managed (just) to find five similar size buttons for the back placket, and four for the front button tab.  I decided to do a bit of mis-matching again (my signature) and went with buttons that are the same colour, but each look a bit different.  The top one is my favourite, but together they look pretty cute.

I've had my eye on the fabric for a while now, so when it came on sale I grabbed some.  It's perfect for this dress.  Another watercolour-style print.

Another addition to the Rosebud's Spring/Summer collection (la-di-dah!).   We're getting there.