2 white dresses...

When Cambri was born, I made her Blessing Dress.  So, to start a little tradition with my girls, I decided to make their baptism dresses as well.  It was a hard decision to make because I don't really have a great sewing machine, nor do I have a surger...which is essential for heavy duty sewing projects.  I kept going over and over in my mind that I would just buy a dress because I didn't want to sew a dress that was going to fall apart because I didn't have a surger...(and I HATE zig-zagging all the edges!!!)  However, when it came down to it, I knew I was going to have to make the dress.  I wanted it to be something that had "love in every stitch," and something special for Cambri.  My Grandma Aoyagi made my baptism dress for me, and I LOVE IT!

So, I started brainstorming about what dress would take the LEAST amount of sewing.  A KIMONO!!!

HA HA, VERY FUNNY!!!

I made a kimono for my niece's blessing dress, so I had a rough pattern already made out.  I realized that I had hand-sewn most of that dress, so I figured a "less sewing is more" was good for Cambri's special dress.  I found the online website I had used for the basic pattern.  It's cut to fit a doll...so I had to blow it way up to fit proportionately for Cambri.  The pattern was cut out of gift wrapping paper because I didn't have anything else that was long enough to make a full pattern out of!  (by the way-if you're going to use this pattern, MAKE A TRIAL PIECE...I had to add  an extra 5 in. to the bottom, and about 6-7 inches extra in the front width because humans don't squish like dolls!!!)

Next, was choosing the fabric.  Brocade is the best to use, but I was thinking we wouldn't find anything completely white in that type of fabric because, if you've ever seen a kimono, they're rarely WHITE.  However, once we got to the fabric section, we saw it and both of us just went right up to it and said, "this is it!"  Choosing the fabric for the "obi" (the waist wrap) took some compromise.  She wanted red, I wanted something more subtle.  Her favorite color is purple, so she fell in love with the color, and I fell in love with the pattern on the fabric....cherry blossoms.  I cleaned out 2 of the 3 JoAnn's in the Phoenix city of their brocade in white and purple...which wasn't much...in fact, just about the right amount...WHEW!

Three days later, and a LOT of zig-zagging...yes, I zig-zagged EVERY edge in that dress to prevent fraying, a lot of tiresome hand-sewing, and a few hungry children later, we had our end product.  (The white flip-flops were found in the clearance isle of Target, and the umbrella in the Halloween clearance isle of a party store!  I love winter!...)

There are few projects that I absolutely love when they're completed.  Call me a perfectionist, but I rarely find a final project as what I was looking for in the first place...that's why I never finish projects.  BUT this piece of art is PERFECT!  The main reason why is because it belongs to the most beautiful 8-year old girl in my family.

So, I present to you:

Cambri Reiko Craner

(getting) Baptized on Dec 4, 2010

Pictures were taken in my front foyer archway, with a black sheet draped over the top of a shower curtain, and with my dinky 10 mp camera...not bad!!!