Blessing Gown

When my daughter was expecting her first baby, I was thrilled to find out it would be a girl!  Months went by as I waited and waited to find out her name.  My daughter and son-in-law had a list of a few names but they felt like they needed to see her before they named her.  When my son-in-law called to tell me the baby had been born he said, "We had the baby!  It weighs 8 pounds, 11 ounces and is 21 inches long!"  I begged, "What's her name!?!"  He replied, "Noa Alexander!"  I was confused.  "It's a BOY!"  I was still so confused.  Long story short, ultrasounds are not 100% accurate!

At the time of that phone call I was literally working on a blessing gown for the baby.  A very girly blessing gown.  I had spent months working on it.  I was sick to think that it might have been for nothing, I mean, I had hand beaded pearls all over the thing and sewn pin tucks and ruffles, it was not a boy's blessing gown at all. 

About the gown, my daughter chose this Vogue pattern.  Vogue patterns are HARD!  There is so much detail and the sewing is very high quality.  This gown will last a very long time!  My daughter chose the fabric and embellishments.  She has a very modern, straight lines, simple embellishments kind of style.  I used cream dupioni silk for the dress and jacket.  I hand beaded the jacket and a portion of the dress with tiny cream pearls.  So without further ado, here is the gown:

Gown with Jacket, Front

Jacket, Back

Gown, Front

Gown, Back

Detail from top of Gown, Front

Detail from Jacket edge, Front

So, the boy did not wear it for his blessing, but a few years later that same daughter produced the girl this dress was waiting for.  The dress has a liner and my daughter thought it would be a great tradition to embroider the name and blessing date of each baby blessed in this gown onto it.  Here is a photo of Isca's name:

Detail from Gown Liner

Blessing Day, me and Isca

Blessing Day, my daughter and Isca

*Not shown:  I also made a pair of booties and a head band to match.  My daughter packed them up and when she finds where she put them I'll post them!

Girl's Camp Logo

I created this logo for a local church camp for girls ages 12-18.  I used a free program called Smooth Draw.  Other free programs I like to use include Art Weaver, Google Sketch Up, and Project Dog Waffle.

Project Dog Waffle is my favorite and Smooth Draw is really easy to work with.  All the programs have tutorials which makes it fun to work with!

Sketch Book: Divas

Quick post today...just wanted to put up some sassy ladies for you!

glass pendants

Over the last year or two I have really gotten into working with glass.  Here are some fused glass pendants I have made.  I buys sheets of stained glass, cut them to pendant size then add other bits of glass.  I melt everything together with my kiln, add the jewelry piece for stringing them onto a necklace and let them cool.  They make unique and beautiful necklaces!  I can make them in tons of shapes and sizes and I can use tons of different color combinations to coordinate outfits.  Prices range from $8 to $10, or $13 to $15 with a chain included.

Sketch Book: Valentine, Fairy, Mother Mary

Here are a few of my sketches...I love to draw and most of the things I create start out as a drawing in my sketch book!  My sketches can turn into anything from a puzzle to a wall mural.  I love the diversity and the thought that the things I draw can be anything!

Puzzles

I made this puzzle a year or so ago (you can see the grand kids have loved it well!).  I have several patterns that I've worked up.  They include a Barn (shown below), The Nativity, Noah's Ark, Purse, Pickup Truck, School House, Army, Jungle, Birthday Present and Covered Wagon.  LDS (Mormon) puzzles include Lehi in the Wilderness, The Sword of Laban, Abinadi, The Brother of Jared, and The Tree of Life.

I designed each puzzle and I cut each one out with my scroll saw.  I sand each piece before hand painting them.  They make a great gift!

Contact me if you would like to purchase one ($40).

Bracelets

I love making funky non-baby-ish bracelets for my granddaughter and she loves wearing them.  Everyday she wears at least 4 but some days she can't get enough!  My daughter sent me these pictures of Isca wearing her bracelets:

Isn't she adorable?

Price:  $5-$10 depending on the beads used.