Crafting/Photography: Father's Day Present

Okay, so many of you know I'm an amateur photog. I love taking pictures, and of course, now my favorite subject is Avery. So naturally, the idea for a First Father's Day present came easy. A picture frame of Avery holding the letters to spell "DAD". It turned out great!

So the whole process took just a couple hours, and (don't tell Andy) cost less than $20. 2 letters - $6. The frame was on sale for $10, and I printed the photos out at Walgreens for about $1 each (5x7).

I went to Michael's and got one "D" and one "A" I thought about getting another "D" in a different font, but I liked how the same "D" would look on either side of the "A." You could do whatever you like! You could paint the letters, or use hodge podge and really decorate the letters, but I was running short on time, so I didn't even paint them! I just went with the white!

I knew I wanted to the white to pop out, so I had to think about where to position the baby, and how the lighting would work out. I had thoughts of having her on the lake front, with the skyline behind her, or with a brick wall behind her, or maybe sitting on our made bed, looking all cozy...but ultimately it ended up being super hot and humid out (scratch the lakefront) and overcast (lighting looked terrible in our bedroom - so scratch that) and when I tried in front of the brick wall, the "D" just didn't stand out enough. So option #4, I turned our black leather loveseat around to face the french doors. This way, she had a black background, and great lighting.

Then, it's just prop up the baby, give her the letters, and snap away! Not every picture is a winner, and after picking my favorites, I sent them thru Picasa, to increase the shadows, take out some of the detail from the couch. So it's just a short walk to Walgreens, a little assembly time, and there you have it. A Father's Day present, any dad could love.

Sewing: Black and White Brocade Tutorial

 

Okay, so getting back on track and getting settled in has been a little more crazy than I thought it would be, but I have been able to keep up with making more baby foods for Avery in different flavors, and starting to combine food - but that's another post!

I love this pattern for fabric, it's kind of a brochade-y fabric but I'm not bold enough to make curtains, or anything else with it, but I did make this darling little dress :-)

This pattern actually came on a handkerchief from Hobby Lobby, so I bought 2 to make a dress in the style of a pillowcase dress.



 So, first  I sewed both sides together, right sides together.

Then, I cut off 4 inches using a rotary cutter.

Then I marked 4 inches across and 4 inches down and used a dinner plate to make a nice circular pattern to cut out for the arms. I folded the fabric in half and only did one drawing and one cut so that the arm holes would match.

Then I folded over the edges and pressed with a hot iron. then roll over again and press again, before sewing. 

Also at this time, I took the top and did the same double fold over technique, but made the folds about 1 inch each.

Then sew one ribbon on each end of the top of the dress. Each ribbon should be about 6-7 inches long.

Then sew down the top, making sure to sew as close to the edge as possible to make room for the elastic. 

Now it's time to get the elastic in place. I put a safety pin thru one end of the elastic, then feed the elastic thru the top of the dress.  Then pull it tight, and sew off the other end off with an secure both ends with zigzag stitch. Cut off the excess with scissors.




Then just tie the ribbons in bows, the bottom was already hemmed, because I used the end of the handkerchief as that hem line :-)

 

 Grandma found this great little monogram pin, that I just added to it for a pop of color.