Christmas Tulips (and a discount code!)

When Katrien and I designed our Tulip pattern, we had summery dresses and tops in mind. Those of you living down under are very lucky to have warm days right now, but here in Belgium it's way too cold for summer dresses. Time to prove that the Tulip pattern also works well for winter dresses!

Due to my health problems, I haven't been sewing anything for over a month now. My mind is full of ideas but my body needs rest... I felt sorry for neglecting the blog for this long, so I'm very happy to finally post something again! I sewed these dresses on a sewing weekend with some blogging friends back in October. The fabrics used are all by the Belgian textile designer Lotte Martens. She designs and handprints each panel herself which makes them all unique. I simply love the brightness of the prints and the quality of the fabric, so good!

I sewed the dresses for Lottes daughters, just like I did here. She spends so much time printing the fabrics that she hardly has time left to sew for her own girls! When hearing that I immediately proposed to sew for them and that was such a pleasure. The girls were so happy with their new dresses and kept twirling and dancing.

The blue dress with birds in copper is a size 7. Mona is five but with a longsleeve underneath the size 7 fits her perfectly. Isn't she super cute?

The fabric is so beautiful in itself that I didn't add any "special touches". Just some copper-colored piping at the tulip petals, that's all. This way all attention goes to the bird print!

For Suse, Mona's bigger sister, I did change something to the pattern. I simply omitted one tulip petal, which gives the dress a completely different look.

The last one was sewn for Jutta, a friend of the girls. However, on the day we planned to take pictures Jutta turned out to be ill so Suse had to be the stand-in model. Jutta is a little smaller than Suse, that's why the fit is a little tight on her. I promise it's better on Jutta!

 

Critical readers might have noticed that I made a mistake here. I accidentally changed the order of the tulip petals! I guess sewing and talking at the same time is not always a good idea ;) 

The matching long sleeves and leggings were sewn by Veerle, a friend of Lotte's. The knits are super soft and also designed by Lotte!

The cotton fabric comes in panels of 60cm high (about 24 inches). For each of the dresses I used one panel.

We did a photoshoot after the girls came home from school and it was already dark outside, which explains their tired faces and the poor quality of the pictures. But oh well, we had fun!

Did these dresses inspire you to sew a New Yaer's dress for your own girls? The discount code "TULIPPARTY" gives you a 10% discount, valid for both the Dutch and the English version of the pattern until December 31.  Buy it here!

Blue dress for Mona

Pattern: Tulip dress in size 122

Dress fabric: Buteo 038, Lotte Martens

Knit fabric used for longsleeve and legging: Corax 02, Lotte Martens

Shoes: Eli, bought at Hippe Schoentjes

Grey-greenish dress for Suse

Pattern: Tulip dress in size 134

Dress fabric: Buteo 019, Lotte Martens

Knit fabric used for longsleeve and legging: Corax 05, Lotte Martens

Shoes:  Eli and Angulus bought at Hippe Schoentjes

Kneesocks: Condor bought at Hippe Schoentjes

Lichtroze bolletjesjurkje voor Jutta

Pattern: Tulip dress in size 128

Dress fabric: Tur Tur 08, Lotte Martens

Knit fabric used for longsleeve and legging: Corax 03, Lotte Martens

Schoentjes: Eli and JFF bought at  Hippe Schoentjes

Kneesocks: Collégien bought at Hippe Schoentjes

BewarenBewaren

Tulip international blog tour - day 5

We have come to the last day of the Tulip international blog tour but the super talented seamstresses from Portugal, Australia and France I'm presenting today are certainly not the least!

Sara (Made by Sara) sewed a Tulip top in size 7 for her big girlie. Isn't the purple color matching perfectly with her hair? I also love how she replaced the piping with a piece of lace ribbing. Paired with a pair of jeggings this top is both sweet ànd cool! More pictures on her blog!

The cutest Tulip on the tour was definitely sewn by Jenya (While she was sleeping). Jenya has been so kind in her e-mails and I was really happy to have her in our test team. Baby L looks tremendously sweet in her vintage floral Tulip top, don't you think? Hop over to Jenya's blog for more flowery pictures!

The last Tulip of the tour is sewn by Isa (Le LabO* d'Isa). She only speaks French so her post is in French too, but I bet you will be blown away by her pictures anyway! Her style is so special and unique that we really wanted to have her on the tour. She added a flutter sleeve to the pattern and combined the dress with a grey tee and stockings. Little Lucie is all ready for winter now! Definitely take a look at Isa's blog for more pictures, since every single one of them is stunning!

After 5 days of touring around the world, Tulip has already gained ground in 14 countries on 6 continents. Not bad, right? Did you sew a Tulip in a country that is not yet on the list? Please let us know so we can add it to the map!

In case you have missed some of the tour contributions: here is an overview of all the stunning Tulips blogged last week! I can tell you: reading the posts and scrolling through the pictures is totally worth it!

StraightGrain ▲ The Itinerant Seamstress ▲ Fairies, Bubbles & Co. ▲ Liivi & Liivi

Leven met Liv ▲ Coffee + Thread ▲ Sisko by Mieke ▲ Just Add Fabric

Sewpony ▲ While she was sleeping ▲ Made by Sara ▲ Le labo d'Isa

Are you looking for even more Tulip inspiration? I collected all Tulips that have been blogged or shared on Instagram in one Pinterest board. Please keep on sharing your Tulips with the hashtag #tulipdressandtop so I can find them and add them to the board!

Did the tour inspire you to sew your own Tulip? The English pattern and instructions are now for sale in the shop for 8€ (app. 9$), but the code HAPPYTULIP (in capitals) gives you a 10% discount until tomorrow. Buy it here!

Tulip international blog tour - day 4

Once again I have the honor to present you two sewing authorities in our Tulip international blog tour. One of them has her own pattern shop, the other one is a Petit à Petit family member.  Pretty great, huh? Every time I received a reply to my "do you want to participate?"-email, I felt so honored that these great ladies were willing to put their time into answering me ;-)

Emi was the first one to reply to my question. I discovered her blog through one of StraightGrains pattern tours and since then I've followed her sewing with great admiration. Her Instagram account is such fun to follow too; her daughters just make the craziest combinations with their mama-made clothes and they always make me laugh. In her answer, Emi said that she'd loved to participate in the tour but that she thought her blog wasn't "famous" enough for that. Uh, what?! You must know she was on top of our sewing bloggers wishlist and I'm so happy she eventually said yes. Head to her blog for more about her Tulip dress, and don't forget to leave a sweet comment. She really deserves it!

Suz of Sewpony is presenting the second Tulip for today. She is an indie designer herself and when she replied she was working on a new pattern so she probably wouldn't have time to sew ours, I completely understood that. Great was my surprise when I discovered she had added her name to the blog tour calendar! Suz sewed a colorful Tulip top and combined it with skinny jeans. I really love the combination of the fluttery top with the slim fit pants! More about her gorgeous Tulip here!

Tomorrow is already the last day of our Tulip blog tour, but the sneak peeks I've seen so far are very very promising!

3/10⎮StraightGrain ▲ The Itinerant Seamstress 

4/10⎮Fairies, Bubbles & Co. ▲ Liivi & Liivi

5/10⎮ Leven met Liv ▲ Coffee + Thread ▲ Sisko by Mieke

6/10⎮Just Add Fabric ▲ Sewpony

7/10⎮While she was sleeping ▲ Made by Sara ▲ Le labo d'Isa

BewarenBewarenBewarenBewaren

Tulip international blog tour - day 3

Day 3, and I've got three Tulips to show you today! Isn't that a perfect coincidence? :)

Yesterday we had a very international Tulip bouquet, today we stay a little closer to home. Moreover, I know two of the little models in person!

First up is Mieke, blogging at Sisko by Mieke, who lives only an hour drive from my home. We met at a blog meet three years ago and kept in touch since then. Last year she even helped me out with one of my university assignments. At that time I also met her daughter Janne, a five-year-old with the cutest smile in town. A five-year-old with lots of energy too, so it didn't quite surprise me when Mieke e-mailed me to ask whether the armholes of our pattern would be big enough to get a plaster cast through. Janne broke her elbow but she still manages to model her Tulip top with a natural flair! More pictures at Sisko by Mieke!

Another blogger child that has a little place in my heart is Liv. Her mom Riet is the most creative pattern designer I know: all of her patterns (like the One to Hug baby jacket, the Mix 'n Match satchel or the Just Knot It dress) are so refined and unique. One of her sewing books has even been translated to English now, and it's full of cute little sewing projects! You should definitely take a look at Sew Snappy if you hadn't heard of it before. But before that you should take a look at the Tulip top she made for the tour!

Last up for today is one of my favorite international bloggers: Olga from Coffee + Thread. I have to admit I was a little scared when emailing her with my invitation for the tour, since she is such an authority in the blogging and pattern designing community that I felt too humble to contact her ;) But Olga was so friendly and she gave us some really useful tips for the fit of Tulip and future patterns. And the Tulip she made is just amazing! She used a very special fabric for the tulip petals and a plain blue one for the skirt, which gives the dress an artistic touch. As always, her pictures are real artworks too. Hop over to Coffee + Thread for more!

Enjoy today's inspiration, and come back tomorrow for more!

3/10⎮StraightGrain ▲ The Itinerant Seamstress 

4/10⎮Fairies, Bubbles & Co. ▲ Liivi & Liivi

5/10⎮ Leven met Liv ▲ Coffee + Thread ▲ Sisko by Mieke

6/10⎮Just Add Fabric ▲ Sewpony

7/10⎮While she was sleeping ▲ Made by Sara ▲ Le labo d'Isa 

Tulip international blog tour - day 2

Yesterday our Tulip pattern started its journey around the world, today it travels to the UK and to Israel. Two countries I have never been myself, so it felt a little special to send my pattern baby there :-) But see what Maria and Maarika have done with it! Both of their dresses are gorgeous!

Maria blogs at Fairies, Bubbles & Co. She is a Portuguese lady living in the UK right now, but I think her style still can be called "Portuguese". She sews lots of classic style dresses and blouses for her daughters, often playing with collars, ruffles and floral fabrics. She chose a Nani Iro double gauze for her Tulip dress and what's not to love about that choice. Double gauze is perfect for this pattern! Hop over to her blog for more pictures of this beautiful ice blue dress!

Next up is Maarika, a German lady currently living in Jerusalem. Our Tulip bloggers for today are quite international, aren't they? 😀Although autumn is coming in Jerusalem, Maarika tried to hold on to summer a little more with her choice for this colorful floral fabric. However, the kneesocks and brown boots make it perfectly adapted for fall! All about this cute little girl and her Tulip in both German and English at Liivi & Liivi! 

Portugal, England, Germany and Israel. Four more countries to add to our Tulip world map!

3/10⎮StraightGrain ▲ The Itinerant Seamstress 

4/10⎮Fairies, Bubbles & Co. ▲ Liivi & Liivi

5/10⎮ Leven met Liv ▲ Coffee + Thread ▲ Sisko by Mieke

6/10⎮Just Add Fabric ▲ Sewpony

7/10⎮While she was sleeping ▲ Made by Sara ▲ Le labo d'Isa

I want to finish today's post with two Tulips that aren't on the tour, but just too nice not to show you! Belgian bloggers An and Annick let their magic work on our pattern and I'm totally amazed by the results. 

An is mom to two boys so she doesn't do a lot of dress sewing, but as a part of Kids On Tour (some sort of Secret Santa swap project between a bunch of Belgian sewing bloggers) she sewed this super cute Tulip for Dorothee's daughter Noortje!

Annick was one of our pattern testers back in August and we were very lucky to have her beautiful daughter Eloise as a model for the Tulip photoshoot. After her first tester Tulip she sewed three more and I love each of them just as much. Yesterday she posted her latest dress, in a very special Owl fabric by Bambiblauw. I just couldn't resist showing you this gem!

Here it is: our Tulip pattern!

Today is a very special day to me. Our Tulip pattern has finally been launched in English! Katrien and I designed the pattern for this dress last summer and the Dutch version has been for sale since August. As the first Tulips appeared on blogs, and especially after this stunning one was featured on the KCW blog, we repeatedly got the question if and when the pattern would become available in English. Well, here it is!
First some more about the pattern itself! Tulip is a pattern that stands out because of its special design: two tulip-shaped petals that overlap on the chest and a gathered skirt that peeps from underneath them. The pattern gives you the option to choose between a top or a dress version and a closure with a hidden zipper or buttons. It comes in sizes 1 YO to 10 YO. Detailed instructions and step-by-step pictures guide both beginners and experienced seamstresses smoothly through the sewing process. The pattern and instructions can be bought for 8€ (approximately 9$ or 7£) here. After purchasing you will receive an e-mail with a download link that allows you to download the pdf files with instructions and pattern in sizes A4, A0 and Letter.
All pictures were taken by me during a photoshoot we held especially for the pattern launch in August. Five little girls did a great job modeling the dresses and tops we made for them. It was still summer here so the girls all wear summer Tulips, but I hope the blog tour will convince you that winter Tulips can be just as beautiful.
Have a look at StraightGrain's, for example. She sewed a dress for her eldest daughter Norah and I think Tulip looks super cute with tights and boots! Katrien and I owe so much to An. Not only is she one of Belgium's greatest pattern designers (see for example the Tinny dresses, Jaanu dresses or Berlin coat I made using her patterns), she is also a very friendly woman who unselfishly answered all our questions about pattern design and webshop stuff. Thank you so so much An! For participating in the tour, for your proofreading, for your kind words, but also for all of your help in the past few months! We love you! 😘
Let me just include another picture of An's dress, since it is absolutely gorgeous. I love the autumn colors and the simplicity of the fabric. Most Tulips I saw and sewed myself were made in printed fabrics but I have to admit that plain fabrics pull even more attention to the design of the dress. Something to try in the near future!
The second blogtour participant of today is Masha, aka The Itinerant Seamstress. Masha has been following my blog for a while now and she always left such sweet comments that I couldn't resist asking her for our tour. Although her sewing agenda is really busy these days she was willing to participate, which I thought was really kind of her! She sewed a dress with a hidden zipper (her first one!) for her little niece. Hop over to her blog to read the extensive description of her sewing process and her honest opinions about our pattern!
More Tulip inspiration is to follow in the next few days, when these tremendously talented seamstresses will show you their versions!
3/10⎮StraightGrain ▲ The Itinerant Seamstress
4/10⎮Fairies, Bubbles & Co. ▲ Liivi & Liivi5/10⎮Leven met Liv ▲ Coffee + Thread ▲ Sisko by Mieke6/10⎮Just Add Fabric ▲ Sewpony7/10⎮While she was sleeping ▲ Made by Sara ▲ Le labo d'IsaWould you like to order the Tulip pattern yourself? It costs 8€ (approximately 9$ or 7£) and is for sale here! As a thanks for your enthusiasm and support on my Instagram, Facebook and blog, I'm offering you all a 10% discount on the pattern with the code HAPPYTULIP (expires October 9).
The English pattern is alongside the Dutch one in the shop, so when you order make sure to choose the right one. The difference can easily be told since the English version will cost 1€ more than the Dutch one. This price difference is entirely caused by international taxes, not by us wishing to earn more money 😉
I really hope you like our pattern, so it can start its journey around the world!