The Nutcracker

I was lucky enough to be able to design and make my ball gown/costume for this year's "The Nutcracker."

I started with tapestry and black silk satin, but it didn't match the flow of the existing  costumes in the scene.  So instead, I tired a navy blue poly-taffeta. I may not be a fan of polyester, but it was a great color and fit in well with  the rest of the costumes.

Then I volunteered to make another costume for someone else in the same scene. This one would have Scarlett O'Hara as a shoulder ghost. I had such fun making these and had even more fun twirling in them, on stage.

 

 

The Baby's Quilt

It started with the idea to make a baby quilt for my best friends daughter, Grace and grew into so much more. Our girl little Gracie was having a baby, the first baby of the family. Being the youngest she was hard pressed to be first at most things, so when news of the baby broke minds started whirling.
Her mom, Kappy wanted me to make a quilt for the shower. This was a big deal for me being such a momentous occasion.

 

I started collecting fabric and then thought, "Hold on! This has to have a special something, a special signature other than it being handmade. This is where the father of this precious tike came into play. John had drawn four animals to be framed for the nursery. Four little guys who I like to call - Mr. Bear, Mr. Raccoon, Mr. Rabbit and Mr. Fox - original right? LOL.
I got to know these guys well. I had Grandma Kappy sneak in the nursery and take photos of the drawings so that I could turn them into fabric. Thank you Spoonflower.com Here they are...



 

  

 

I am so proud of this project. I don't embroider, but I did. It may not be perfect, but I spent hours with 4 seasons of Downtown Abbey playing in the background and these little guys spilling a lot of love and thought into a piece that made and makes my heart smile every time I think of it. I think the best things you do come from love.

 

 

 

Blooming - The Floral Dress

Just finished the year-end fundraiser for my job and now with a little down time sewing is in order. Actually, I am a bit obsessed with sewing dresses, especially floral girly dresses. When does floral go out of style? Never! I found (per usual) some wonderful floral prints at Haberman Fabrics in Royal Oak.

This blue ball gown is a cotton pique. So yummy to wear and it has pockets. What girl doesn't need pockets. I think pockets are a must.

Wearing the dress at Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island

The short and long of it...
This wonderful floral is a embroidered cotton. Same style as above, mostly because it fits my figure, but knee length. It has a dropped waist, pockets and full skirt. I like to walk and spin!

On to the next dress...

Shipwrecked

For my birthday I decided to throw a party. I wanted to use the theme of Princesses, but some thought it too childish for a 50 year old, so I went with another love of mine... the Sea. A love of lighthouse, the angry sea and mariners seem to be an interesting idea.

In researching the details and design aspect all that I found were really traditional things - Nautical & Pirates, so this blog is hopefully an inspiration to finding more within a theme. The invitation started with Microsoft word and a picture of one of my favorite lighthouses -- Minot's Ledge Light of the coast of Maine. Minot's uses the flashing signal of 1--4--3 (I love you) something I have carried with me for decades.


For the décor I choose navy and cream as the colors with the addition of orange for accent. Lots of water, floating candles, and roping. For additional atmosphere I used fleece blankets and added an anchor stencil on the corners. They acted as deck throws. Snack containers (orientaltrading.com) for munchies with an added sticker that I printed myself -easy breezy. The wine bottles had their own life vest (amazon.com) and each guest at check-in received an itinerary.

         

Attire: Nauti-Shipwrecked

Costume 1. The nautical shipwreck

I used a stripped knit for the top and blue linen for the skirt. Red roping to attach the sleeves. I shredded the skirt.

Costume 2. Falling off the ship without all your clothes on ...
I made pantaloons and a chemise out of linen and ordered a corset from amazon.com and sewed strips of the linen over the stays of the corset. I added roping to the lacing of the back and tied square knots to put in my hair. I opted for #2 because it was so comfortable and fun. When can you get away with wearing your underwear on the outside!

The Food: A buffet station of "crew chow" beef stew, calm chowder, salad and biscuits. The catering staff wore jeans and flannel shirts and aprons.

Thanks to Edward's Café and Catering and Jazz Café at Music Hall staff.

Fairy Princess

Finished dress without sparkle

I usually buy more fabric than I need. When I am finished with a project I fold up the leftover and stash it. Well, my years of stashing culminated to the big clean out. I wondered what to do with all the left over fabrics; satin, wool, cotton... so I started making piles for new projects like quilting and then thought about all the kids I know. I realized I could give back by making dresses or (dress-up) costumes. So here is the first one.

I had some left-over blush duchess satin from a black tie event and some pink poly satin from a costume I am making for my niece. The pattern is McCall's 6813 and I made it one size larger than the princess who will wear it, just so it will fit a bit longer than a growth spurt.

Princess Petals

Beginning of sparkle detail 

I made the dress in a day, but the sparkle detailing will take some time.  Check back later for the finished dress.



Shoulder detail

Circus Decor

I usually use this blog for sewing thoughts and pictures, but this entry is about other details - Décor. Keep in mind sometimes it is hard to capture the look on film.

The party took place in the Music Hall's main hall. A platform was installed over 15 rows of seating. The guests had cocktails and dinner before the curtain was lifted for the show.

For decorating a plat-formed theater on a tiny budget and the want for a look no one else had, we went about to create it ourselves. It took 42 wood blocks & dowel rods, an electric drill, a couple of cans of spray paint, 480' of tan roping, about 8 books of scrapbooking paper, a multitude of glue sticks
 and two girls on a mission.

Drying in the sun

Spray painting the blocks on my back porch

Organizing the flags

We made two sizes of the flags - below you can see the larger flags hanging from the mezzanine rail in the background and in the foreground one of my designs for the tables.

Below are the smaller flags on the other table design.

The Mylar balloons held the guest's table numbers and were removed for the show.

For the on-stage show sponsor signs, I bought butterfly nets at ACO hardware, removed the nets and replaced them with form core backed signs, which I had made at Kinko's. The reverse side held the sponsors logos and our darling volunteers tuned them as they walked the stage.

 

 

The adorable - Ashten Wallace

Clowing Around

It's all about the dress!



The options are endless when it comes to dressing for the theme of "Circus." So, what would you wear to a Circus party that was black-tie? There is the Ring Master, Tightrope Walker, Trapeze Artist, Juggler, Horsewoman in a Tutu, Clown, Roustabout, Bearded Lady... and then there is the choice of the "Water For Elephants" or "Big Fish" look in color or, as an ode to "The Night Circus," black and white. Ahhhhh, the choices!

 

 I found my fabric at Haberman's in a sample piece by Design Legacy

http://www.design-legacy.com/

and fell madly in love with it. Sure, it didn't fit the criteria of "black tie" because it wasn't the traditional silk or satin. It was 100% cotton and it was meant for draperies.Drapery and upholstery are my favorite fabrics from which to make dresses.

"Hello, Katie Scarlett O'Hara"

 The problem was that the print was a bit big for my 5'4" of height.

How was this going to work? And how could I make it more black tie?

The key was a good fit, really high heels, lots of Swarovski crystal beads, a tube of E600

and a few glittered peanuts!

 

 I think this is my favorite dress I have made so far and my intention is to cut it to tea length, so that I may wear it again.  



Back Stage at Music Hall watching the curtain call

With the Volunteers, Staff and Henry right before the doors opened

Even Henry got in on the act

 

With one of our donors, Paulette