It's been a while...but here are my wedding photos.

I haven't posted in months! Mostly because I have been crazy busy with my shop making wedding gowns for other brides which I am loving!

Well......my wedding didn't quite turn out as I had hoped due to a terrible monsoon that came through just seconds before I was ready to walk out the door and down the peach orchard. Fortunately my bridesmaid; who was standing under the pergola that fell did not get seriously hurt. She got a good nick in the head but it could have been a lot worse. My entire reception was turned upside down and thrown into the pond. There was nothing left. Not to mention the photography was 3 hrs late to the wedding. Everything was going so smoothly right up until that storm cloud came in and we all sat waiting for the photographer to show up. I had a good cry and several drinks handed to me...haha. I tried to make the best of it and ended up crashing out and leaving my party behind. Sigh.....well maybe we can try for a second vow renewal in 10 years.

I can say I am very grateful for all the wonderful help I received from both sides of our family. I think this may have been a lesson for everyone or sign from God to show us that even through rain and disaster we all came together as a loving family and helped each other out. All the fancy details don't matter when we all we need is each other.

Handmade Vintage Bridesmaid Dresses

So I have finally finished all 5 of my bridesmaids dresses. A couple still need a lining but that is easy peazy. Now I need to find zippers and they are complete. My sister's made of honor dress was the biggest challenge only because we couldn't find a single floral dress we liked online nor could I find any floral fashion fabric I liked that would coordinate with the wedding colors and theme. Then when I was looking for vintage fabric on Etsy last week I came across this gorgeous taupe floral fabric with hints of peach and mustard. SCORE!!! There was just enough fabric for the bodice and to make a bow tie and some to spare..... (pillow cover)?

I just combined a couple simple dress patterns and mixed and matched bodices with skirts to create these.

The Making of My Victorian Inspired Lace Wedding Dress

Well you all know from a previous post that I have discussed making my wedding gown. I have the skirt partially finished. It just needs lining and a waist band. The beading and fabric flowers have been sewn on and I am beyond ecstatic with the finished product....holy cow it is gorgeous.

I ordered my sequins from Cartwrights. I used light peach, buttercream and night lights sequins, pearls and opaque seed beads. The fabric flowers are made out of chiffon, satin and linen. I ordered the star ribbon flowers on Etsy.

So here are the before, progress and after pictures.

Before- Bustier

Progress- Lace Appliques

After- Fabric Flowers, Sequins, and Beading

I'm so in love! My wedding skirt is coming soon. This is the Vogue 8003 pattern I used to create my vision. I was inspired by my favorite wedding dress designer in Israel. Inbal Dror. I'm madly in love with her designs. Sexy, romantic, divine.....

I changed the back a bit on skirt C because I only wanted cinching in the butt area so it was more fitting. I used beige lace, ivory silk chiffon and ivory crepe back satin with a lace trim on ruffles.

Inbal Dror designs that inspired me- Now I am only renewing my vows so I didn't go super extravagant with the train to make me look like a real bride.

Alright- UPDATE!!!!!

I had my sister try on my gown even though there are still a few things to finish like the lining and some pearl trim on the lace ruffles. The sash needs to be finished too. It looks so amazing on my sister.

DIY Triangle Denim Tote Re-purposing old jeans.

I know I haven't been on here in a while but that is because I have been a busy bee with my Etsy shop. I have so many things to share lately! Well most recently I was organizing my fabric stash and and wanted to use up some of it and put some things into my shop when I came upon a pile of leftover denim pieces from cutting up pairs of jeans. I got this idea to turn them into grocery totes. Here in California we are getting rid of the use of plastic bags to save the environment and we are really encouraging people to use there own totes or buy store re-usable ones. 

Today I am sharing my idea on how to re-use the legs leftover from cutting denim jeans. I got the Charlie Bag pattern from Burda. Honestly I always eyeball everything only because I am an experienced crafter and designer. So I actually didn't use their pattern it was just inspiration to make one very similar. Also the legs are not as wide as pattern. I actually like the longer/narrow looking tote better.

So I cut the denim legs up one side and opened them up so they were layed flat to see how I was going to position the pattern (I created my own). The pattern is cut on the fold so you have to figure out where you want the seam to run down the bag by folding in half. 

Cut out pattern. Sew pieces together. Use a serger or a zig zag stitch around the edges of handles to prevent fraying...or if you like the fraying just do a regular stitch about 1/4 inch away from edge.

Now comes the fun part. I wanted to make this more exciting by adding a design so I pulled out my extra stencil sheets and cut out a triangle (use a grid or 45 degree angle) to create this fun and hip little triangle design. I used Tulip craft paints and gold metallic paints from Michael's and sponge brushes to apply paint.

Maybe I will add a pocket for coupons....hmmmmm

Very simple tote project that has many uses whether a grocery tote, beach bag or just a casual summer accessory! Just remember never throw away those awesome denim pieces! 

Also you can fine these in my Etsy shop for $12 at www.Etsy.com/shop/FlorabyGraceDesigns

Just Opened My New Etsy Shop Flora By Grace Designs!

Yes! I finally have my shop up and running again. Please come VISIT ME.

Baby items, aprons, kitchen accessories and more!


FIRST TEN CUSTOMERS RECEIVE FREE SHIPPING!!!

Make Your Own Fruit Stencil for Napkins.

Apparently peaches are really hard to find on anything. I searched high and low for napkins with peaches on them and I even searched for fabric with a peach print. Of course I found nothing. I came up with an idea to create my own stencil. I found an image of a peach I liked and blew it up to a size I wanted on my laptop screen and very carefully traced over it. You can also print out the image and trace over it and that would probably be safer for your computer screen but I like to live on the wild side. I found a set of blank stencil sheets at Michael's for $3.99.

Before I actually applied this to my linen fabric I did a test image first just to make sure it came out the way I wanted. I used Tulip fabric paints and Folk Art metallics for the leaves and stem. Use a small sponge brush and dab paint around the edges and fill in.

Day 1 of Diet

I decided to write a post about my healthy diet and weight loss goal for this summer's wedding. First I'm going to attempt the Paleo diet since cutting out grains (carbs) sound like the best idea. I love veggies and protein anyway so it can't be that bad. I just have keep my sticky fingers off Flora's yummy graham cracker sticks.

So I am aiming to drop 20 lbs even though I gained 30 lbs from pregnancy. Sounds like a reasonable goal. I have been doing a mixture of workouts since I get really bored. They range from a 45 min walk to the park, 1 hour gym workout with weights and cardio, Jillian Michael's 30 day Shred (LOVE), free Pilates  workouts on YouTube as well as the Nike Fitness app on my smartphone. All are excellent workouts with a combination of cardio, interval training and muscle toning.

I was excited when I hit the grocery store last night and was able to grab enough items for 3-4 healthy dinner meals + stuff for salad for just $127. (included essentials like milk, eggs, yogurt...etc). Granted I had a few items already but that is still pretty good. I really try to look at my pantry and frozen items and work off that before I just dump a ton of money on new items. That's how food gets pushed to the back of the fridge/cupboard and goes to waste. Canned and frozen veggies can easily be thrown into a soup. Add some pasta or rice with a protein and you have soup for a couple of meals. 

Last night before I went to get groceries I looked in the cupboard and saw a can of tomatoes and some pasta; threw it together with garlic and topped with cheese. Baked for 30 min and Adam had an easy meal when he got home.

Here is my meal plan for the week. 

Beverage:
Coffee
Water w/lemon
Caffeine free iced acai berry tea (no sugar)

Snacks:
Veggies & Hummus
Celery or apple with Peanut butter
Yogurt
Handful of Nuts- Almonds, walnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds


Breakfast:

So this week I am making protein shakes for breakfast.

Mixture of kale
frozen strawberries
half a banana
scoop of yogurt
scoop of protein powder or nut butter
flax seeds 
almond milk.

YUM!

Lunch:

Grilled chicken (frozen)
Romaine and Arugula salad
Fresh strawberries & blueberries
Avocado
walnuts or pumpkin seeds
sauteed onions
goat cheese
Squeeze of lemon, vinegar & olive oil
Salt & pepper

Dinner:

TACO SOUP

I Found this recipe when searching Paleo recipes on Pinterest. I thought it looked delicious only I am adding some black beans, red peppers and a little jalapeno to spice it up. Soups (broth based) are the healthiest and easiest way in my opinion to lose weight. Plus it's February and it's freezing! Of course I want soup.

Later this week I will make citrus salmon with sauteed kale (buy mine fresh and then freeze) and onions.

Reuben roll-ups with mashed garlic cauliflower. The Reuben roll-ups are made with egg roll wrappers but I am using cabbage leaves for the wraps....Adam can have the extra calories...  ;)

     --Taco Soup by Kitchen Beast

The Planning of Our Rustic Vow Renewel Ceremony

Since Adam and I did not have the opportunity to have a proper wedding we decided to wait until we were settled in California to plan a celebration. I came up with the theme "Rustic Victorian Peach Wedding".

I have been working on the invites the past week and I finally came up with a creative way to use the fabric scraps I had left over from the wedding napkins I'm also making. I designed everything in Gimp and found free font downloads on Pinterest, 10" paper doilies on Etsy and printed them at Staples on pearl card stock. My mom made the peach tags for me. The mason jar was a clipart image I had found on Pinterest as well but I have seen it in a rubber stamp form. Not sure where the real source is because it has been replicated so often.


Please forgive my photography skills. I am still practicing with my new Canon Rebel camera so hopefully in time my images will look more professional. 

The Final Touches on Invitations

I added a couple stems of dried lavender and a little pearl on the twine.. You can buy this by the bundle for $8.99 at save-on-crafts. The pearls are from Michael's in the scrap booking aisle It smells so pretty!!

Practicing the centerpieces

I ordered some dried lavender, wheat and preserved roses from www.save-on-crafts.com. I plan on using fresh roses for the decor but the preserved are for my bouquet.Very simple and inexpensive way to decorate. Re-use wine bottles and decorate with ribbon and lace. I made my own chiffon fabric flowers by cutting out clover shapes and using a flame to curl the edges and then sew layers together. They turned our gorgeous. I used an old button for the center (flea market find).

My handmade Napkins.

Embellishing my Wedding Bustier.

I fell in love with a couple of wedding dress designers in Israel and they have the most beautiful dresses I have ever seen. They are glamorous but with a vintage flare. I had a custom gown made for me that didn't turn out to be my dream dress so I steered towards a different direction and made a very ballsy decision to make my own. So I sought out a bustier and I actually found the exact same one on I fell in love with on Pinterest. 

Here is the picture I found on Pinterest that I was going to use for inspiration to make a reception dress.

So I plan to embellish it with vintage lace appliques that that I found on Etsy. Fabric flowers and lots of pearl beading. This is not a difficult project it's just time consuming sitting and hand sewing everything on.

So far I have the lace appliques on next is fabric flowers and beading.

I'm going to wear this with a high waisted lace and chiffon skirt I plan on making. I found an Edwardian style skirt pattern for $40. Then for the reception I will change into a shorter more casual skirt for dancing.

Skirt Pattern-- Design on left. Top of skirt will be lace and the ruffled bottom will be silk chiffon. The pattern is more of a loose fit in which I will make it more form fitted in the hips and ruching in the back will be very fitted to create a more cascading look to the chiffon. 

Check out the rest of my wedding dress on this post!

DIY Body Form

I will eventually own a professional seamstress body form but for now I needed one that was affordable and that actually replicates my true body shape. I looked at several different tutorials on the web and found the most simple one. Make sure you have a partner because you can't really tape yourself. Supplies can be found at Home Depot or Lowe's and Joann's.

Supplies:

• 2-3 Rolls of Heavy Duty duct tape (I did the last layer in white but you could use gold, pink, blue, pattern)
• Piece of card board
• 5-6 packages of stuffing
• wooden dowel
• bucket
• fast setting cement
• turtle neck, mini dress, skirt ( or any piece of old clothing you don't mind cutting)

I had my handy husband help me with this project. 

• He wrapped my entire body with duct tape using long and short strips starting at my hips and moving up. It is important to do at least two layers so it holds a shape. I am slightly claustrophobic so I had him do my neck last. Yes you will sweat so I encourage you drink a lot of water before and to do this in a well ventilated area (outside).
• Once you have covered your body with duct tape cut directly up the middle of your back. 
• Remove the form and tape back together securely.
• Begin stuffing your form without causing lumps. There maybe a little distortion when done but that is why it is important to stuff carefully and a little at a time.
• Next stick the wooden dowel through the middle of form until it goes through the top. Tape in place.
• Cut out an oval (measure length and width of opening) to fit the base opening of your dress form. Cut a hole in center of card board for the dowel.
• Tape card board securely.
• Mix up your cement and pour into bucket.
• Stick wooden dowel into cement and prop form against wall so it is straight as possible and won't fall over.
• Cement should set within a couple hours. 

And there you have it. An inexpensive body form. I plan to make another one when I have lost a few pounds and I will take better pictures of the process.

Aprons, Aprons, Aprons!!

I absolutely love Anthropologie. One day I stumbled into their store while touring Washington D.C. and I happened to walk by all the aprons on the way out. I stopped dead and said "O.M.G. Adam these aprons are soooooo adorable". Of course he didn't buy my ooohhhing and awwwwing over an overpriced cooking apron (his opinion, not mine). I immediately went home and looked up all the sewing patterns for aprons (Etsy & Ebay), bought a few, mixed and matched and viola here are a few designs of my own. The fabrics I used were all from Joann's.  (yes I'm there 1-354 times a week).

My Favorite Apron patterns:

Butterick 5474
Butterick 6567
Butterick 4945
McCalls   6177

DIY Tiered Maxi Dress

During the summer months I wore maxi dresses all the time because not only are they comfortable they also hid some of my extra baby weight. I wanted to make my own so I went on a search to see how much fabric I would need. I came across a tutorial that re-purposed an old top and created tiers out of different fabrics. I went on a search to all my favorite consignment shops along the coast and found a pretty ivory top to chop apart (yes I hesitated). I hurried back to Joanns to grab the last yardage of this gorgeous peach fabric.

Tutorial here.

Baby!

When I was pregnant I became inspired to make all these baby items as well as my aprons (will share later) and so I thought I would share a few of these items. I used to have a little etsy shop but I decided to put that on the back burner due to time needed to plan our wedding this summer.

I fell in love with these little diaper clutches that are perfect for carrying on-the-go and fit at least 3-4 diapers, a wipes case and a changing pad. You could easily squeeze in rash cream and your cell phone ;)

Fabric is by Heather Bailey Fresh Cut Mums. Fat Quarters were perfect for this project. 

When Flora was about 5mths old she started to outgrow her fleece sleep sack that was given to us by my sister-in-law so I rummaged through my collection of fabrics and remembered I had bought this one for who knows what. I just loved the print especially for a baby. I Googled DIY tutorials for sleep sacks and came across a kimono style pattern. However I did not buy her pattern I just improvised but I do have to give LouLouJames credit for inspiration. Click here for pattern.

My creation. She wore this for a while until we realized she needed to move those little legs around and learn to stand. So sadly we packed it away.

Who doesn't love tiny baby shoes?!! Ummm seriously I could never get tired of making these. Her feet grew too fast! The denim pair are a pattern I made myself and the other's were free tutorials I found on Pinterest.

She wears the white ones the most. Mini Toms??!! I discovered that the elastic helps keep the shoe on. I have to make another pair of these but with slip free soles. I found the pattern at Sugar Bee Crafts.