Asymmetrical French Country

Weird title for a signature look, right? Well there's a story. But first let me tell you how hard it was to get these pictures...sick kiddo and frigid weather (why oh why didn't I have the outfit done when it was 65 degrees 4 days ago?!). But we did it and may I present:

Asymmetrical French Country

 Now for the outfit and the story behind the name.  It started with a gray shirt my husband was getting rid of (this outfit almost became the one for last week). I looked at the gray fabric of the shirt and envisioned this skirt with a separating red zipper down one side. I think I've liked the gray and red color combo ever since seeing this family picture session over at Design Mom. 

Well the skirt evolved a little to include pleats and the natural curve of the back of the shirt and a button with a little bling that Clara picked out from my button stash. 

I've always had a thing for the French kids clothing companies (my favorite is Bonpoint). And as my outfit evolved, it seemed to fit what I saw in their lines, so hence the French Country look.

 The thing about me is I'm not really bold when it comes to my sewing. I rely on the little things to grab your attention. Instead of bright colors or bold patterns, I go for the subtle eye grabbers. That is where the asymmetry comes in. I wanted the zipper offset to the side. I wanted to yoke to meet at the side of the shirt, so everything became asymmetrical.

And as I sketched out the outfit, I thought about how asymmetry draws your eye in and how that works really well for this little gal of mine and here is the story. When she was born, she appeared to be cross eyed, but as she grew the next couple of months they noticed that although she appeared to be cross eyed (especially in pictures) she didn't test for being cross eyed. Finally they measured from the middle of her nose to where her eye starts and it turns out they are not symmetrical. The flap of skin is just a little wider on one side when compared to the other. What does this mean? Nothing except she appears cross eyed in pictures and people are drawn to her big blue eyes. Turns out we humans like symmetry and when something is just a little off our human brains are then focused on that. Her big blue eyes will always get noticed because of that (not sure if that will be a good thing when she is a teenager:). And this little outfit, will hopefully catch your eye as well.

 The outfit consists of 5 things:

1. Gray skirt from men's button up shirt with red, separating zipper---makes it seem like a wrap around skirt in a way.

2. Simple, self drafted peasant top from red and white striped shirting (JoAnn's), with gray piping, off set buttons and off set pleat.

3. Blue knit leggings self drafted from another pair of her's

4. Knit hat from my own pattern with cool yarn that had sparkly sequins

5. Leg warmers from a sweater that didn't get used for last weeks look

There is definite mix and matching potential with a lot of things from her wardrobe.

 And here are a couple more pictures of this cute gal of mine as well as some close ups of the outfit. 

 She really wanted a picture where it looked like she was holding the suitcase like she was getting ready to leave. 

And there you have my signature look for Project Run and Play.