Carter’s 1st Birthday Party at Plantation Heritage Park

I had the pleasure of first meeting Carter and his mom at his buddy Jacob’s 1st Birthday party a few weeks earlier.  But on October 12, it was Carter’s turn to celebrate his birthday with family and friends.  Fully taking advantage of the cooler South Florida fall weather (read 80s instead of 90s), the party took place at a park, under the shade of a beautiful big tree with a lovely lake and clear blue skies as a backdrop.  When the breeze blew, it almost felt like fall!  Carter started off the afternoon with some tears, but when bubbles were blown and he had something to eat, he showed us what a great smile he has!  Happy birthday little man – so glad I was there to capture these moments for you!

          

A 60th Birthday Celebration of Wine, Women, and Words

I have a fellow photographer friend who does amazing work, with a focus on weddings.  I told him if he ever came across anyone who wanted photography for a smaller event to please let them know I’d be interested.  Last Monday, I got an email stating this referral had happened, and asking me if I was available on Thursday for the event.  Why am I including these seemingly boring details?  Because it’s a small world after all.  The person who sent the email is friends with my aunt, and it turns out I knew her, and my aunt would be at the event!

After making my way through traffic (which really wasn’t too bad for after work in South Florida), and snapping up a quick pic of a peacock in the parking lot, I arrived as greetings were concluding, to a room beautifully decorated with red roses and candles.  Everyone sat down, opening remarks were made, as well as an opening song.  The birthday girl’s friends and family took turns toasting (and roasting) her with speeches that had the crowd laughing and crying.

After each speech, hugs and kisses were exchanged.  And I’m not talking about the kind of hug you awkardly exchange socially because you think that’s what you’re supposed to do.  I’m talking about genuine love and affection between this women.  It was really beautiful, and I was honored to be there to capture these special moments.

                     

Sew You by Erica Sue: Lady Skater #2–Jay Godfrey Summers Color Block Copycat

I loved my first Lady Skater so much, I had to make another.  I knew I wanted my next dress to be color blocked, so I turned to my favorite trusty source for inspiration, ‘Google Images’, and searched for ‘colorblock dress’.  One of the dresses that popped up in my search was this awesome dress, which Nina Dobrev wore on some red carpet somewhere (wouldn’t have known who she was if her colorblock dress didn’t appear in my Google search).  I searched further to find better pictures with more angles in the black and white version.  Check out my Pinterest board of sewing ideas for dresses for some of the other great color blocking inspiration I found.

 

I got to work refining my pattern, and cut it up and added 1/4” seam allowances per this great colorblocking tutorial.  I also added back the length that I had removed from the skirt the first time I made the dress because this time I made sure to have enough fabric on hand.  I used solid Interlock from Joann, 60/40 poly/cotton I believe.  I didn’t realize until after I was done cutting my navy fabric that the stretch was directional and the stretch should have been along the width of the fabric.  I caught my error when cutting the raspberry fabric, so my effort was not lost. 

When I assembled the dress, despite my accurate measurements when piecing the pattern, the assembled pieces didn’t always line up.  My Engineering self is still puzzling over that one.  It was basically within the seam allowance in most cases, so I just went with the flow.  In the final dress, one side has a perfectly aligned waistband, the other side not so much.  It still fits great and I love the design, so I’ll wear it with enjoyment.  And of course, I had to add another patch pocket (5” x 6” again) to the back so I could wear this one for photography too!  (Disclaimer:  photography and sewing don’t always mix, like the work in progress camera phone photos above).

As with the last dress, I did a sway back adjustment, but it was built into the pattern based on my adjustments.  I also added bust darts again.  The hem was a bit challenging, b/c the cut is circular, and folding and ironing a circle was rather odd.  This is one of the many reasons I love sewing with knits, though. They're so forgiving, and you can't tell there's any hem issue in the finished dress.  Can’t wait to edit and post the birthday party photos I took today, wearing this dress!

   

Dress photography credits to my older son.  I set up the exposure on my camera, and have him stand on a stool to snap some shots of me.  Good job little buddy – mommy looks great in these photos!

Jacob’s 1st Birthday Party

Last weekend, I had the privilege of taking photos at Jacob’s first birthday party.  He is a happy little boy with a beautiful big sister, loving parents, a loving family, and lots of friends to play with.  He had a lovely get together at his house, and there were so many great moments for me to capture!  Here are some of my favorites.

                                 

Sew You by Erica Sue: Lady Skater #1 – Black Chevron on Emerald Green Heather

When I saw Sara from Sew Sweetness post about her Lady Skater, I knew I had to make one.  I’d had green and black chevron in my stash, from when I pinned this dress from Make It Funky.  I live in Florida, and all I’ve been wearing this summer are dresses.  I’ve also been really into knits.  I particularly like sewing with knits because I find them very forgiving, and they don’t require a zipper.  I don’t have issues with putting in the zipper, but when I have to rip things out to fit with the zipper (which I usually do), knits are just easier.

 

I purchased the pattern from Kitschy Coo, and after assembling my pdf pieces, I made some changes right away.  Based on the other dresses I’d seen, I shortened the bodice by about an inch using the shortening line.  I also shortened the skirt.  I had to shorten it more than I’d intended because I only had a yard of fabric. I also made the armholes slimmer so it would look more like a tank than a sleeveless dress.  During assembly, my knit needle and stretch stitches were behaving rather funky, so I just sewed the whole dress with a regular needle and straight stitch, and since there's plenty of ease, I'm not worried about straining the seams.

After I had it all assembled, I had to do some fitting.  I added bust darts around the armpits, which is actually an ideal spot for them because it fits great, and they’re barely noticeable in the finished dress.  I also took it in at the shoulders by about an inch, and had to do a MAJOR sway back adjustment.  I usually don’t do FBAs, but I have done several sway backs.  I actually didn’t know this adjustment had a name until this project.  I read about it on Amanda’s site, where she gives lots of helpful hints for fitting the pattern.  I got more info about this adjustment here.  The photo below shows the piece I removed from the back bodice, folded in half, and where I’ve removed the same piece from my paper pattern for future editions of this dress (and reading what I’ve handwritten will give you a clue as to what’s coming in Lady Skater #2). 

Because I only had a yard of fabric, the dress came out a bit too short.  I had to order another 1/2 yard of fabric.  Girl Charlee, my primary source for knits, was sold out, and Etsy came to the rescue.  I used the 1/2 yard to create a hem band.  I cut 4 strips of the fabric 4.5 inches wide, pieced two together for the front and two for the back, ironed in half, and sewed it to the bottom of my skirt, right sides together, with a 3/8” seam allowance.  The length correction is a happy accident, because I really love the visual interest the opposite directional chevron creates.  I also added a back pocket so I would have a place for my lens cap and could wear this dress to photo shoots!  For the back pocket, I cut two pieces 5” x 6” and sewed them right sides together with a 1/4” seam allowance.