Hello Hive

It is the last Sunday in the month of February and most churches in Nigeria term it to be a testimony and thanksgiving Sunday. We often celebrate this Sunday to appreciate God for the journey through the Month and appreciate for the testimony and manifestation of his presence among us.

But one thing is always striken, there is hardly a Thanksgiving Sunday without cultural attire.
Trust me we Africans love our cultural heritage so much that any small celebration placed a demand on us to put on our cultural attire.

Just this Afternoon my neighbor knockef on my door and pleaded that she wants me to see a cultural attire for her daughter to wear to church by morning today. I almost rejected helping her out because I was already exhausted for one week but after reviewing how her cute little daughter often dance happily and playfully in church I decided to give her a touch of design to complement the celebration tomorrow.

There will be cultural talking drums that people will be dancing too both the old and the young and this is another opportunity to put smile on someone's face. I had admonished the mother to always take caution and prepare for Sunday services much earlier to avoid inconveniences like this.

Sometimes my Preparations for Sunday outfits often happens during the midweek as Saturdays might be a deadline too close to achieve some uniform designs for some occasions if need be

Without further Ado, let's get to the making of the outfit.

We will be using our cultural Aso-oke fabrics.

• First I cut out the front and back piece of the fabric after joining the several pieces of the Aso-oke fabric. This fabric is often produce in bulky length of 50-60" and width of 10". To make a dress you have to join the widths first so that it can be up to the size of a human bodice

After taking the measurements I cut out the front and back block here.

Next I cut out the facing for the necklines and the strap for the sleeve lines.

Then I moved on with the sewing
First I turned the necklines of the dress outward with the facings

Next I joined the seam allowances and proceeded to join the straps of the sleeve go give the dress an additional sleeve length.

Next I made a tiny bow which the baby will be wearing on her head. But I was too tired to add an elastic fo this. I will likely make headband of the bow for her to wear to church with the outfit by morning.

This is the process of how we cut and sew boubou gown from traditional Aso-oke fabrics.