New Look 6209 -- Sheath Dress

One can never go wrong with an animal print, that's what I say. Well, sometimes things can go wrong, but in this case, I'm happy with the outcome. This is a sheath dress from New Look 6209. My fabric is a stretchy woven cotton blend. The print is reversible -- one side is black with tan "spots" and the other side is tan with black spots. I decided to do a vague sort of color blocking by using the black background for the top yoke and the side sections. The color transition isn't that obvious, which surprised me.

The stretchy fabric is nice because it allows for a closer fit and I even got away with omitting the back zipper. I cut the pattern a little bit larger to start, especially around the waist area, and I ended up doing a lot of trimming to size it just right. I adjusted each of the seams bit by bit until I got the fit I wanted. This pattern is really good for doing that. The center front panel also has two small horizontal bust darts which I've never seen before. Those two little create a really good fit at the bust line. I think it's a great basic sheath pattern. It doesn't call for a lining, but I didn't need it with this medium weight fabric.

Vacay Photos from Miami, Miami Beach and the Florida Keys

I thought I'd share a few photos from my recent vacation to Miami, Miami Beach, and the Florida Keys. Miami and Miami Beach is a large metropolitan area that's difficult to drive in even with a GPS, but it has a certain edgy, artsy, worldly vibe. The Florida Keys, and especially Key West, definitely have their own form of laid back charm.

This first photo shows the front of the Wolfsonian Museum in Miami Beach, which is a design museum. The murals are left over from an exhibit of Dutch design.

Here's a classic scene of the beach in South Beach, Miami Beach.

One of my favorite neighborhoods in Miami is Little Havana. It's a thriving area with great art galleries and colorful chicken sculptures everywhere.

Back at Miami Beach, we checked out the very impressive Holocaust Memorial.

The next five photos are scenes from the Everglades National Park, including my arm with some sort of giant colorful cricket.

We had lunch at the lovely Morada Bay Beach Cafe in the heart of Islamorada Keys.

This photo is of a funky shop with arts and crafts on Islamorada Keys.

This is a view of the harbor from our hotel room at the Margaritaville Resort and Marina on Key West.

The Hemingway House on Key West has tons of six-toed cats. The cats have their own staff.

There are also wild chickens everywhere on Key West.

Here's a cruise ship coming in for a landing. The view is from Fort Zachary Taylor State Park beach.

A colorful shop building in Key West.

We stayed one night on Key Largo. This is the sunset from our hotel beach.

Back in Miami, we checked out the arts district with its galleries and this great outdoor public art.