The Purple Elephant

Ahnalin loves "The Purple Elephant!

I do too!

The "Purple Elephant" is a darling

chapter book that was written by my friend

Donna Gielow McFarland.

Ahnalin loves to read and

has been enjoying Donna's stories.

So Donna sent Ahnalin 

a copy of "The Purple Elephant"

to review. 

So here is Ahnalin's review: 

I think that the book Purple Elephant is a 

very funny book, 

because it is about going on 

adventuring and having fun.

My favorite parts were when the

purple elephant sits on a stack

of hay and the prince is under the hay

and my other favorite is when

they introduced Dianna the dragon. 

So there you have it. 

Ahnalin loves the Purple Elephant!

Ahnalin is 8 and loves

reading fantasy stories

with adventure.

The Purple Elephant fits perfectly

into her taste in reading.

The story is exciting 

and funny and 

the characters really

draw the reader into the story.

You can purchase 

"The Purple Elephant" 

in paperback or

in the Kindle version

at Amazon.com

Donna, thank you 

so much for this book.

We can' wait to read

more about Prince Carmel

and his adventures!

Congratulations To My India!

Do you see this tiny little bug?

She was 3 years old,

on her very first visit to Disneyland.

She fell in love and said she wanted to 

live there when she grew up.

She is now this beautiful woman

who is so excited to be going back

for her second term of the Disney College Program!

India was a student in the Disney College Program

during the Spring and Summer of 2011.

She had the time of her life and learned so much.

India's favorite attraction of all time

is the Storybook Land Canal Boats.

Her dream came true when she was assigned

to the boats for her role in Disneyland.

And she was amazing in this role!

She adored her classes and

learning so much about the business

of show business.

She truly blossomed.

Crowdfunding

And now, India must

raise the money for her program fees

for this next semester of the Disney College Program.

We would be so grateful

for any help or support

so that India can realize her dream.

India has 8 days to raise

the funds for her fees

and we are still dealing with

Don's job search due to his lay off in July. 

Any amount would be such a blessing to our girl!

You can click on the "Go Fund Me" widget

and it will take you to India's fundraising page.

Thank you so much for celebrating with us.

And please keep our family in your prayers.

We are so grateful!

India is Twenty-Wonderful!

Do you have any idea how much I love this girl?

India is the only treasure that I carried under

my heart for 9 months.

And she has been my joy for every day of her

21 years.

I am so grateful that she is mine.

She loves a good adventure!

She is goofy and knows a good cuppa' when she sees one!

She knows how to wield a fry pan when necessary!

And she is completely wonderful in every way.

Today,
as my darling girl is still battling
a nasty cold,
and awaiting news of her (hopefully!!!)
impending acceptance for another
term in the Disney College Program,
I pray peace and health for her.

I pray joy and love.

I pray tenacity and strength.

I pray trust and courage.

I am so grateful that
21 years ago,
God gave me the desire of my heart,
and gave me this jewel.

Happy Birthday Princess India.

I pray all your dreams come true.

Love,
Mommy



(Photo credits go to her darling friends Sigrid Forsythe
and Jayne McKenna)

My Ahnalin Was VERY Blessed!

Ahnalin received a package in the mail last week!

Inside was one of the most beautiful dresses

I have EVER seen!

A wonderful bloggy friend,

Jan Boyd

of Jan's Smocking Blog

had created this amazing dress for Ahnalin!

Ahnalin is crazy about it

and especially loves the sparkly 

crystal beads and tiny lavender pearls

smocked onto the bodice.

The smocking is truly exquisite!

And the fabric has a rich crispness to it

that feels very princessy.

This was one of the

many hand smocked dresses

that Jan entered into the Western Idaho fair

and won prizes!

She is amazing!!

I am so grateful that Jan chose to bless

Ahnalin with this treasure.

It is long and will fit her for a few years,

which makes this mama very happy!

Ahnalin wanted to make sure

this dress was shown off

in her "Classic Ahnalin" pose.

Thank you so much Jan!

WE LOVE THIS DRESS!!!

Pretty Bridesmaid Dress For Stesha

 

This lovely lady is going to be a bridesmaid

in her sister's wedding in a few months.

And I was blessed to sew her dress for her.

I get to sew her younger sister's matching dress as well.

They are both just gorgeous girls!

 They chose Butterick 5457 for the dress pattern,

and we made a few modifications.

I made a muslin for each girl,

and I am so glad I did.

According to the measurements,

Stesha would have worn a size 12,

yet a size 6 completely swam on her.

If the pattern had come in a size 2,

that may have been close to fitting her.

I am showing the dress on my child size 7/8

mannequin. 

I had to keep taking it in and taking it in,

so that muslin was pretty marked up

by the time I cut into the shantung.

I love how the bodice is tucked.

The pleats are sewn at the top and 

where the bodice meets the midruff,

but they are loose through the length of the bodice.

But the pleated bodice and rouched

midriff really make a lovely, feminine garment.

This doesn't show up very well,

but there is a small ruffle of shell pink organza sewn

to the lining under the skirt.

I love the ethereal look it gives. 

I cut 3 inches off the bottom 

of the lining front and back pieces.

Then I cut the ruffle strips 7 inches long by the full

width of the organza fabric.  

I sewed two strips together  and then

folded them over, encasing the seams, 

so the organza was doubled.

Then I slightly gathered the doubled strip

and attached it to the bottom of the lining,

serging it in place.

I took many notes on the changes I made to this pattern,

so I can reproduce it for the next dress.

I really liked this pattern, 

but I am so very glad I made a muslin.

I get a little frustrated with how inaccurate

the sizing is in the major pattern companies.

But the end result was a really pretty dress.

And I think it showcases Stesha's beauty quite well.

If you have not entered my giveaway for the current
issue of Sew Beautiful Magazine,
where you will find an article that I co-wrote,
go enter HERE.

Happy Sewing!

My First Sew Beautiful Story- A Giveaway!

Look! Do you see my name?

That is my name right next to 

 Janet Gilbert's name!

 Yes, much screaming and jumping up and down

was done by me when I saw it!

You see Sew Beautiful

is my very favorite magazine.

I have learned so very much of sewing,

smocking, 

embroidery,

construction,

design,

and inspiration 

from this magazine

and it's writers.

Janet Gilbert is my favorite!

(Yes, she knows that I was a stalker fan before

we finally "met" and now we are friends!)

And look!

Our story is even a "cover story"!

So Janet and I worked on this article together.

It features 3 of my skirts

and 3 of Janet's skirts.

One of the skirts is my 

Monkey Girl Bloomer Skirt pattern.

You can buy the pattern here from my blog,

or "You Can Make This.com"

Or from my Etsy store

Sivjegoose

Or from Fairytale Frocks And Lollipops

The corduroy A-line skirt with zipper trim

is featured in the article as a free pattern!

My photos are awful but the photos in the magazine are 

much better!

And the free tutorial for my "Math Skirt"

pattern are featured on the 

Sew Beautiful Blog!

There are many, many more

wonderful articles,

ideas and patterns in the Back To School issue

of Sew Beautiful!

So to share my joy and excitement,

I am giving away a copy 

of this issue of Sew Beautiful Magazine!

If you would like to be included in this giveaway,

please leave me a comment 

with your email address.

Thank you for sharing my joy!!!!!

Happy Sewing!!!

Sivje

The First Day Of Third Grade Dress

Today is the first day of third grade.

And Ahnalin had definite ideas of how she wanted to look.

The first item in building her look

was the saddle shoes.

You see, my father loves saddle shoes.

So when Ahnalin saw these in a store window,

she told me to take a picture of them 

and send it to her grandpa.

Minutes later, a text came saying

Grandpa John John would buy them for her.

Ahnalin was ecstatic!

So the decision was made that 

she must have a black and white outfit

for the first day.

My friend Janet had sent me

this fabric from her stash

and Ahnalin had been eyeing it

since it's arrival.

I had already made the "Vintage Natalie"

dress pattern that Janet Gilbert

designed for

Sew Beautiful

earlier this month for Ahnalin's birthday dress.

Have I mentioned that I love this pattern?

Well I do!!!!!

So Ahnalin negotiated for what she wanted,

and the design was sketched up!.

She wanted puffy sleeves,

so of course she got those.

And she wanted the collar to be in black

with red trim.

I had this red whipstich piping

already in my stash.

She also wanted one of my 

Mary Engelbreit scottie dog

buttons on a belt style sash,

instead of a bow this time.

I liked the whipstitch piping for the whole

dress, especially the panel down the front.

She thinks it looks like candy canes.

This photo is blurry,

because she was swinging the skirt.

But I made a banded hem 

and added the piping at the top and bottom

of the band.

I cut the skirt at the "knee" length of the pattern.

And I cut the dress a size 6, 

which is perfect for her.

She is 8 years old and very thin.

I adore the back on this dress.

It is so classic!

Ahnalin is crazy about it.

She said she feels like a 

"50's diner girl".

We have to have a "Classic Ahnalin" pose

every time.

Ahnalin bought this black and white

polka dot trench coat at "Forever 21" with her

birthday money from Grandma Barbara and 

Grandpa John John. 

She definitely had a theme in mind.

Happy First Day of Third Grade

Ahnalin.

This is going to be an exciting year.

I pray that my darling girl 

grows and learns wonderful things.

I am so proud of her.

Happy Sewing!

Ahnalin Was A Flower Girl

Actually, both of my girls were in the wedding party.

The bride was a beautiful girl named Ashlee,

whom we have loved since she and India met

in the 7th grade.

India was honored to be Ashlee's Maid Of Honor

and she was so thrilled to be there for her.
Thankfully, I didn't have to make the bridesmaid
dresses for this wedding.

And Ahnalin was asked to be Ashlee's Flower Girl!

So this gave mama the opportunity 

to make a special dress for her to wear.

Ahnalin refuses to wear anything that scratches or itches

or is slippery or makes noise when she moves.

And the temperature was to be around 100 degrees

at the wedding.

So, that meant that I needed to make something 

that was comfortable for Ahnalin,

yet beautiful and "wedding appropriate".

I chose to make the bodice out

of one of Ahnalin's favorite styles.

As usual, I didn't use a pattern,

because I just measure her chest and 

waist and cut it out.

I had to made this dress in a short amount of time

(due to a crazy packed sewing schedule!)

and a very limited budget.

So, I grabbed my bolt of white Imperial Broadcloth

out of my stash, and started creating.

The vintage cotton lace had been in my stash 

for a while too.

I had purchased it about a year ago from 

a local crafting thrift store in Sebastopol

called"Legacy".

Ahnalin did not want a slip or any tulle

under her dress,

so I decided to make the skirt with an overskirt.

She wanted it to overlap like a tulip.

I added the lace at the hem as well.

Ahnalin felt that it made the dress

look more like a dress from

"Thoroughly Modern Millie".

She said she felt like a real bride in this dress.

I had these clear lacy buttons in my 

button jar just waiting for the perfect dress.

The bride had chosen silver accents

for the bridesmaids dresses she chose for her girls.

So the silver dots on the buttons were just right!

I also added sash carriers

so that the green ribbon 

would stay somewhat in place,

even with my active Ahnalin.

Ashlee had chosen silver shoes for herself

and her bridesmaids.

So I was very excited to find these

"Cinderella" shoes at the Disney Store

for a very reasonable price.

How very princess-like!

Ahnalin wanted me to take a picture with the 

lilies in our backyard.

Both of my girls looked lovely at the wedding

and had a wonderful time celebrating 

Ashlee and her new husband Jeremy.

Eventually, India tried to teach

Ahnalin a little line dancing.

But then Ahnalin got tired 

and asked if she could play games on my iPad

to chill out for a while.

The wedding was beautiful.

Ashlee and Jeremy are now "man and wife".

And we are back home in time

for school to start this week!

I am back to work sewing,

and have openings for customs again.

But tonight,

I must make a "First day of school" dress

for the little bridesmaid. 

Happy Sewing!

Sivje