Lazy Afternoons

I think that every parent of small children knows what I'm talking about when I refer to the "dead zone" of the day. Finding something to do in the zone between afternoon nap and dinnertime can be a bit of a challenge for us. With two birthdays in seven days, a dance recital, school getting out, and a husband who is out of town for the week, this "dead zone" has been a real challenge for me and the girls this week. So, let me introduce you to my new best friend...the bubbler. Target, Bartells, toys stores all carry these little gems. They're essentially buble guns, but I'm trying to refrain from using the word "gun." It seems that Caroline may get a mild allergic reaction to bubble mix, so I have to stay away from the mouth bubble blowers because her lips get all inflamed, so these little fan blowers work like a charm for us and keep the girls completely occupied and happy. Anyway, this is how we spent our afternoons this week and it has worked out pretty well for us. Plus, I've been having a great time with my camera and the bubble hour, and this picture has made me really happy. I've mentioned that I got a new camera (a Nikon D3000) and it has been a real treat to play around with it. Although I bought the "Nikon D3000 for Dummies" and have studied it (kind of) closely, I still have no idea what I am doing!

I also have to put out a little shoutout to little Miss C who celebrated her 2nd birthday today. We enjoyed a good time at the park this morning and then a little lunch at Luna Park Cafe, complete with milkshakes--yum!
Okay, now it's time to get down to business. About a week ago I mentioned that there was a new dress coming up and here it is. As a nod to Wimbleton and summers spent on the tennis court, here is a girl's tennis dress in bright pink. I normally don't do much hand-stitching but it seemed like a hand-embroidered string area on the racket was exactly what was needed on this project. Let's hope this one is a winner!

A Dress Just Right For the Pacific Northwest

I really wanted to create a whale dress for this summer and spent a lot of time thinking about different designs, but never really settled on something...until the grandmother of one of our little friends ordered a special custom dress. I met with my little 6-year old client and ended up with an orca whale dress concept. This was absolutely perfect because orcas are frequently spotted off the beach a few minutes away from us here in West Seattle. In fact, a few years ago, I dropped Kate off at preschool and took the dog for a walk along Beach Drive. As we were walking, I absent-mindedly looked offshore toward the water and instantly saw the tall black dorsal fins that are distinctive of orca whales. It was so exciting to see a pod so close to home and I was thrilled to have serendipitously seen such an iconic example of Pacific Northwest wildlife.


So anyway, back to the dress. My client really wanted a blue dress, and I immediately remembered having seen this Michael Miller print at Fabric Crush in Wallingford. It seemed just right for this orca whale dress because it was geometric print that reminded me of sunlight refracting through the water. I then studied images of orca whales, sketched some out, simplified the coloring on the whales a little, and designed the applique for the whale. After some sewing, voila, the dress was complete but it seemed like it needed a little something else. Hmmm. A few years back, I bought some really cute sailboat ribbon ago at Esther's on Bainbridge Island and I thought would look cute with this little marine-inspired dress, so I used it to create a coordinating handbag. So, now here is a Pacific Northwest-inspired ensemble!

Honk if You Love Trucks Dress

My almost 2-year old is in a huge trucks phase...HUGE! Since she already has strong opinions about what she wears, I knew I had to construct a trucks dress for her but I needed inspiration. When I saw this new Alexander Henry print called Truck Stop, I knew I had found my start. A pair of old, really soft J. Crew jeans were in my stash of fabrics and I had been waiting for a good project to"upcycle" some old clothes into something new...so here we go. Honk! Honk! It's an eco-friendly dress for girls who dig something a little bit different.

Oh, and don't worry, there's a blanket coming too. :)