Bean's Latest Request ...

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Mommy will you make me a VOLCANO DRESS for Easter?
Those were the words uttered by my sweet 3 year old daughter.
My first thought was, Dear God!
What in the world could she possibly mean by that ...

So I started to spin those creative wheels in head
and this is what I came up with


I'm not sure if this can be classified as a Volcano Dress ...
as she was not engulfed in flames and ashes
But I guess you could say there was an



EXPLOSION OF TULLE

Oh please take note of the beautiful Silpada bracelet that the Easter Bunny brought Miss Willow,
cuz she lost it in under 3hours ... Aughhhhh!
Thank Goodness for the kind Waiter who humored me
and took a second look at where we were seated for Easter Brunch. 
Not sure when she will get to wear it again ...lol!!!

This is one of my favorite pics from the day.
She looks so thoughtful 


Brother and Sister
Nothing could be sweeter

If I only knew what secrets they were sharing.

Hope you had a Happy Easter!

DIY Grocery Store

Monday, April 2, 2012


Last summer I did a guest post on Someday Crafts.
It was an awesome honor to post there.
I thought it was time to repost it here on my blog.

Today I'm going to show you how to knock off the PB Kids grocery store.
First my husband constructed a wooden frame from 1" x 2"s.
He used angle brackets to secure the corners of the frame.
The finished frame measured 49 1/2" tall, 24" wide,  and 19" deep.
Then I began covering the frame with canvas;
you could also use a drop cloth, old drapes, or even bed sheets
would work for making the frame cover.
 First I pinned a 1 1/2 yard long piece to the frame.
I made sure to place the selvage edge along the right back edge and pinned it to my frame
By placing the selvage edge along the outer frame I save myself from having to clean finish that edge.
I then folded the fabric allowing for some seam allowance along the right front corner. 
(see above far right photo)
Using straight pins I pinned along the frame edge; this will be my sew line.
After I sewed along my pin line I used my sewing sheers to slice open the fold.
Press your seams open and you are ready to cover the left side.

Again make sure you line your selvage edge along the left back side and pin to frame.
Pin along the left front corner to create your sew line.
Run through your machine making sure not to run over any pins.
Cut off extra fabric along seam and press open.
Hem the bottom pressing under a 1/2" and then fold over an 1" 
Top stitch to give your hem a clean finished edge.

Next I printed out the letters to spell the word
 GROCERY
I just played in Microsoft Word experimenting with different font styles 
and sizes till I found the one I liked.
 "Heat n Bond" was ironed to my fabric.
I pinned my computer printed letter pages to the fabric 
and cut them out.
I then peeled off the backer paper exposing the adhesive.
 Pin the covering to the frame with your hem line flush with the floor.
Pin the letters to the front of your store.
Positioning them to fit your taste.
Use straight pins to secure the letters until you can iron them in place.
I used a 1/4" wide grosgrain ribbon to outline the store front window opening.
I eyeballed the placement of the ribbon while the cover was pinned to the frame.
Just fold the ribbon over when you reach the corners.
I edge stitched around both sides of the grosgrain ribbon to secure in place.

To make the windowsill I pressed a 3" wide piece of tan fabric to the heat n bond.
I made sure the piece was longer than the window opening.
Remove the paper backing and position your windowsill while the covering is pinned to the frame.
Remove fabric covering from frame and iron to fabric windowsill in place.
The greatest part about using the "Heat n Bond" is that if you want you can leave the 
sill as is.  There is no need to finish off the applique edges.
I chose not to finish off the edges of my letters because I felt it took away from the print I used.
But, I used a satin stitch to go around the edge of my windowsill to add a little dimension.
I also thought this opening would see a lot of wear and tear,
so by finishing off the edge I am strengthening the opening.

At this point you may add the roof to your store.
I attached a piece of ribbon that was 18" long to the outer corners of my store to form the "ties".
These "ties"will be used to secure the cover to the frame.
I also placed some in the seams above and below the window frame opening.

 We are almost done!
At this point I gave the frame cover one last good pressing.
Place it over your frame and tie into place.

Using tiny sheers I cut along the inner edge of my window.
Making sure not to cut into the ribbon or the fabric windowsill.


The store is now completed!


We are OPEN and ready for business!

If we could only get some customers ... LOL!





Baby Fiona

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

A few weeks back I posted a sneak peak of my latest christening project. 
I recently received photos from Fiona's parents that were taken at the actually christening.
Oh they were so worth the wait!

If you live in the Philadelphia / South Jersey area please look up
Such Amazing Photos
of such a special day for the family




Happiness is ...

What brings you happiness theses days?

5x7 Folded Card

Black Line 5x7 folded card
Put your photos on your Christmas cards this holiday.
View the entire collection of cards.

A Sneak Peak

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

I know I have said it before, but I love what I do.
I get to take someone’s most precious garment ...
their wedding gown and turn it into a family heirloom.
Below are some “BEFORE PICS" I took from a recent project.
I loved the lace details on this gown
And ohhhh the green sash....

LOVE THE SPLASH OF COLOR!


Hope I have peeked your interest to see how this wedding gown
was transformed into a christening gown!
Check back later this week to see how it turn out.

Say I Do to Pink, but a Pink that isn't too GIRLY

Wednesday, January 4, 2012


Recently I had the great pleasure of slipping the following piece for the sweetest teenager you'd ever meet!
Her mother wanted her to have a cool hip room for her to hangout
in with her friends
and this chair was
the piece de resistance!
They wanted something bold yet feminine.
I think we nailed it!
What are your thoughts?





My favorite part of this whole project was
the box pleated grosgrain ribbon.
Who says you have to use pipping on all your cushions ...

My Little Halloween Warrior

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

How Do you know when Halloween was successful?
Simple When your child comes home looking like this ...


For the last 10 weeks little Miss Willow has been talking non-stop about being
a Mermaid for Halloween
She also decided that her big brother should be a shark!
Gotta love my son because he just went along with it ... He truly is a "Team Player"
Anyway when the night started out she looked like this ...
Notice the perfectly styled hair,
how there are two shells on her dress,
and the necklace is all neat and tidy.

This kid is a trooper all she cared about was getting
MORE CANDY!
I couldn't help but giggle at the way she looked. 
She seem to resemble a disheveled beauty queen.
Take note of how she carries her candy bucket just like it was a purse!

As the night was coming to an end The Bean announced,
"Daddy you carry me!  Mommy, you get the CANDY!"
This little one has no quit in her.
Hope your candy buckets were over flowing with lots of loot!
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