Like A Kid In A Candy Shop

Here's another "Clara" for you. This time I went for a bit of a gingerbread theme. The dress is made from a gingerbread colored fabric, thank you Moda, with tiny little white pin dots and it's all trimmed out in red and white and lots of eyelet. Abby and I decided the best place to take these pictures was at our favorite candy shoppe! She's so clever...but, even she realized that buying candy so close to Halloween was probably not such a good idea. So, we managed to escape without any goodie bags. I have to apologize for the wrinkles. But if you could only see what Abby and I go through to attempt to get great photos for you. She is such a trooper. Changing in the car in busy parking lots. Honestly, we must look like a scene out of a 3 Stooges movie! This time it didn't work out so well. However, I still wanted to show you this dress so you could see yet another version of Clara to spark your imagination and get you thinking about all the sweet ways you could make this dress for the holidays.

Dawn

I Have A Surprise for You!

"Clara" is all done! E-book completed and paper patterns sitting here ready to be shipped! This time I decided to wait until I had everything ready to go before I said anything. I just need to load everything into my shop and I hope to do that later tonight after we go out trick or treating. I am so excited about this dress and I'm sure you are all going to love this design. I made this one using some absolutely gorgeous royal blue feather wale cord that looks and feels more like velvet and did all the trimmings in white and silvery gray. I just love all the details on this dress. lace, ribbons, tiny little covered buttons...it doesn't get much better than this! Okay, so while I take the kids out... start thinking about all the wonderful color combinations and start planning your holiday dresses. I have another Clara to share with you, but that will have to wait until tomorrow. I promise to get the patterns in the shop no later than tomorrow, they are all just sitting here waiting.

Update ~ All the new patterns are now available at www.Olabelhe.com. Happy Shopping!!!

Dawn

The Original "Clara's Dress"

Wow! Thanks so much for all the wonderful emails and comments about "Clara's Dress"! Many of you requested to see photos of the original dress that I made for Abby last Christmas. We took these photos at  a very special location right down the street from us. Lucky us, Santa has a satellite office right here in Williamsburg and he visits quite frequently. Evidently, he really loves the weather here and it's a nice little get-a-way from his home at the North Pole. Sadly, the day we went to take these photos he wasn't in, but one of his helpers told us he had to rush back to headquarters because the elves were unhappy and were threatening to go on strike if Santa didn't comply with their wishes. It was rumored that they were demanding additional milk and cookie breaks throughout their workday and they also wanted more comfortable shoes! Abby was a little sad that Santa wasn't there as she was really looking forward to having a chat with him to let him know how fantastic she had been and she also wanted to remind him how badly she wanted a kitten for Christmas. I have to admit, I was secretly thrilled that he was out for the afternoon. We had a great time visiting anyway and Abby signed his guestbook and I snapped a bunch of photos. So, here is the dress that started it all . . .

Dawn

A Little Something Else I've Been Working On

Can it get any more Girly? Here's another design I have been working on. This is "Clara's Dress". Inspired by one of our favorite Christmas traditions. . .  "The Nutcracker". This is actually the same design as Abby's Christmas Dress last year that I came up with and I thought that perhaps I should turn this one into a pattern as well. "Clara" is filled with so many pretty little details and lots and lots of lace and ribbon. Perfect for an extra special holiday dress. "Clara" also features a squared neckline which is something a little different from all my other designs. Then of course, it just wouldn't be complete without a pretty sash that ties into a big pretty bow in the back. Abby said "she felt like a princess in this dress". I hope to have this pattern available by early November-ish. Just in time for the holidays. I have had so many ideas for making this design. Just imagine it in a gorgeous jewel tone silk, or better yet how about in velvet! Think Emerald Green, Scarlet, or even in Sapphire. Oh, this one has endless possibilities! What do you think?

Dawn