Dressing Room

I'm a pretty frequent shopper and recently I've noticed some changes to the dressing rooms and I like it! 

Halloween Treats

I saw these online last year and made them for our Halloween party. I'm making them again this year for work and a party. They are REALLY simple and REALLY tasty!

Ingredients: Nutter Butter cookies, Chocolate Chips and Almond Bark 

Directions: Melt almond bark. (be careful not to overheat) Dip Nutter Butter in white chocolate. Place on wax paper. Use chocolate chips for eyes and mouth. Refrigerate and enjoy!

                            

Ruffled Sleeves

I saw this dress on Kelly Osbourne last year and loved it! I love the ruffled sleeves. Strong shoulders are really in, so I knew I wanted to make a dress with some type of poofy sleeves.

I used a pattern for the dress and then experimented with the sleeves. For the most part I don't really know what I'm doing, so I just play around and then sew things together and hope they work out. I'm not very good at starting over when I mess up, as I am not a perfectionist. I generally do the best I can and hope no one notices any flaws. I have to say these sleeves are definitely flawed.

I ran into a few problems with this dress. For one, I made it at least 2 sizes too big, and therefore the v-neck is a little off (not too noticeable). Secondly, like I said, I really didn't know what I was doing with the ruffle sleeves. Basically I just cut long strips and gathered them. I tried sewing this all together and my machine just wouldn't budge. It was too thick for the needle to go through. I ended up sewing them on by hand.

There were many lessons to be learned with this dress. If I were to make it again I would maybe use a thinner material for the sleeves. I would also figure out a way to get rid of the thickness and be able to use my machine instead of hand sewing. My mom gave me a few helpful hints so you may see this dress again. Maybe in another color?!?

Here's a look at the finished product. It's a tad too short, so I'll have to lengthen it before I wear it out. Holiday party anyone?!?

 

I found this similar dress by French Connection. 

LBD

I made two little black dresses last week for a wedding we attended this past weekend. I ended up not wearing the one I originally planned to wear to the rehearsal because I thought it was a little too dressy. I'll post it later.

Here's my inspiration for this dress.  Found on Modcloth.

My first attempt at the bodice turned out WAY too low. I tried to cut the sweetheart neckline without a pattern and it just didn't work. I would have danced my way out of it, if ya know what I mean. Dan suggested I work on my dance moves and keep my hands down. No fists pumps? Yeah right! So I remade the top frantically Thursday night because we had to leave Friday after work. Whew! 

Excuse my terrible camera I can't seem to get a clear picture. Also I took the second picture after it had been worn so its a little wrinkled. 

a steal

I often tear ads for clothing out of magazines. As seen in my previous post Upcoming Projects, I have a few inspiration boards for dresses I want to make or outfits I would like to put together on my own.

I tore out this dress a few months ago because I really liked the whole outfit. 

I'm proud to say I found the exact same outfit for much less than the ad!! 

I found my dress at Pitaya ($29). The clock necklace is from Target. ($9.99)

I recently saw the dress at Forever 21 as well. They have it in both black and navy. I forgot to check how much it was there, but I would guess under $25. 

**I didn't end up wearing the red belt when I wore it out, but either way its a cute look for the fall!!

Feathered

I want it. 

Sewing Along...

Working diligently to finish 2 dresses before this weekend. Wish me luck! (I don't have a back up plan) Ahh!

Wedding Update!!

I thought I would be able to say I have a dress, but not just yet. (more on that later) We have however, chosen our DJ and wedding photographer!!!!

I have always known I wanted to use Jason (our DJ). He was my DJ when I was an event coordinator and he is THE BEST!! Seriously, He is great! He will have great music and keep everyone entertained all night. I know I have nothing to worry about and that everything will run very smoothly. Having a good DJ is incredibly important and I couldn't be happier! Anyone looking for an excellent DJ in the Indianapolis area contact AMS Entertainment!

I am equally excited about our photographer!!! I have been following Amanda's work for awhile now and couldn't wait until it was my turn to "inquire" with her as a bride. She has photographed a few of our friends weddings and I know she will do a fabulous job with ours as well! I get excited just thinking about the pictures! You may have seen her work on my blog before. But check her out! Amanda Fales

Currently I'm working on our mode of transportation for the wedding while Dan works on our invitations and save the dates. He is designing everything! We are still going back and forth with colors but already have some great ideas.

Next up: meet with the caterer, priest, and florist.

Fun Fall Shoes

Busy, Busy, Busy!

I've been a bad blogger this week! Sorry bout that. I've been really busy. Doing what you may ask? Well.... I've been working on 2 dresses for our 9th (and last) wedding for this year. I'm really excited about both dresses and I will post next weekend after I wear them! I've also been deep into my own wedding planning and will hopefully have an update after this weekend.

Here's a peak at the awesome material I'm using for the dresses!

Happy Friday!!

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

I found this recipe on my friend Lauren's Blog. Project 593  I tweaked the recipe a bit and made them for a tailgate this weekend.  Enjoy!

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Cookie Ingredients
1 1/2 c. Flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/2 tbsp ground cloves
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I used applesauce)
1 1/2 cups chilled pumpkin puree
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla

Cream Cheese Filling Ingredients
1 1/2 cups powder sugar
1/2 stick butter
4 oz. cream cheese softened
1/2 tsp vanilla.

Preheat Oven to 325 degrees.
In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and powder, cinnamon, and cloves.

In a separate larger bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and oil (applesauce) until well combined. Add pumpkin puree and whisk until incorporated. Add egg and vanilla.

Mix in flour mixture 1/2 cup at a time until thoroughly combined.

Scoop onto baking sheet with parchment paper to desired cookie size.  Dip fingers into water and flatten dough into disks.

Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies start to crack.

"Whoopie" Directions

Use electric mixer to cream the butter. Add cream cheese until combined. Add sugar and vanilla. Mix until smooth.

Once the cookies have cooled completely add "whoopie" to the underside of one cookie. Press second cookie on lightly to make sandwich.

Refrigerate and enjoy!

To Clog or Not To Clog?

I've had my eye out for the perfect pair of clogs for a few months now. I really didn't want to spend a lot of money on them because I'm not completely certain I am into the trend. Nevertheless, I envisioned myself wearing said clogs with skirts, dresses with tights, jeans, etc. So I decided I needed a pair and set out on a mission.

 

 

Jessica Simpson, Phillip Lim, LAMB, Steve Madden

           

Mission Accomplished!! 

NYLA Clogs. Found at TJ Maxx.

I'm a Shopanista! 

I am so PUMPED I found these! It is match made in (shoe) heaven. The only pair of clogs in size 6.5!! It was meant to be. Plus, the back strap will be helpful to keep them on when I wear them with tights. AND they feel pretty comfortable! 

Baby Dress

As much as I love dresses, I'm getting to the point where I have run out of occasions to wear them. So I decided to tackle baby dresses.  I made this jumper for my niece. Looks easy enough huh? Well it was a tad more difficult that I thought and I still don't know if it fits her. Sewing the little straps proved difficult to stay at the 5/8" mark. Also this was my first attempt at button holes. I did several practice trials. Button holes are a piece of cake!!

All in all, this dress wasn't as easy as I thought it would be, but it's definitely a good start and helpful practice for the future!

I bought my niece polka dot tights and a turtle neck to match.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Last year I made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies and honestly they didn't taste like anything but regular Chocolate Chip cookies. Today I found a new recipe and I'm pretty happy with it. They are really soft almost cake like cookies! Very tasty! 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup canola oil OR Applesauce (to make it healthier)

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup chocolate chips, or any chip you like

Preheat oven to 325 Degrees.

Stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until smooth and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix the oil, pumpkin, and vanilla until blended. Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it. Mix in the chips. Scoop on cookie sheets using ice cream scoop or 2 spoons. 

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, about 16 minutes. 

Dust the cooled cookies lightly with powdered sugar (optional). The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

                            

Dear Santa,

Is it too early to have a Christmas list? Nah! I've heard Christmas music playing in stores and plenty already have decorations up! On my list is a dress form. (take note Dan) I want an adjustable dress form. It will be so helpful to not always have to try things on myself running back and forth to the mirror to pin  fabric. Also it will be helpful in making dresses for others who are not my size. I feel like this will take my sewing, dress making and designing to the next level!