Enjoy Life!

Custom Order: Emma's Pageant Swimsuit!

I {heart} custom orders!  It is SO much fun for me to help someone design something truly unique and special. I love having the opportunity to take that vision and make it a reality. Here's a little peek at a custom order I just finished for a super sweet little lady, Emma.

{The Before}

{The After!}

Emma is currently Michigan's Little Queen and is traveling with her family all the way to Atlanta, Georgia to compete in an international beauty pageant!  She is a total doll and I'm confident she is going to ROCK that pageant!

As soon as Jes told me her vision for this swimsuit, I knew it was going to be a fun project! I love the way it turned out! Bold, sweet, girly yet spunky - just like little Emma! :)

Best of luck Emma, we'll be rootin' for you! :)

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If you have a design idea, or are interested in ordering your own personalized apparel - please contact me! I would LOVE the opportunity to create a unique outfit or gift for your little sweetie!  Please  Email me  or visit The Daydream Believer Shop on Etsy to begin the design process!

They're Hooked! Kissy Fish Bridal Shower!

I LOVE a themed party and I {heart} a DIY project; so when a special occasion comes around; you can be sure a Daydream Believers celebration will be BIG! :)  This past weekend, I had the privilege of helping to host a bridal shower for my sister. It is so fun to plan a great party with friends! I had a great time planning and prepping for this event with my mom (she is a true hostess with the mostess and my #1 party-planning-partner!), Chris (the mother of the groom) and Ryan (my sister's fun friend and bridesmaid). The shower was great and everyone had such a fun afternoon! :)

I love finding inspiration online, so I wanted to share some of the crafty highlights from our event with you - If you have any questions about anything we made/did, please ask I'd love to help!

*****

Our Inspiration:
My sister and her groom are having a destination wedding and have planned a sure-to-be-beautiful sunset ceremony right on the beach. How amazing will it be to be married in the sand with the ocean as your backdrop?! Seriously, I can not wait for her big day! SO exciting! :) We wanted the theme of her bridal shower to compliment the overall tone of the wedding - fun, bright, beach! Since her wedding is going to be so spectacular; we did not want to do the standard "tropical" shower (luau based with coconuts and hula skirts) - we needed something more unique and modern. Her wedding color palette is bright, with a beautiful tangerine as her base. Here's what we came up with:


(click on any picture to enlarge it!)

We made these parasol topiaries following this awesome DIY tutorial. We personalized them for our event by adding a hand tied aqua bow and filling the base with sand. They are spectacular in person! 

The beach candle holders you see, were part of the guest's favors. They featured small painted fish and were filled with sand, mini seashells and an ocean-scented candle. A clear bag with a shiny aqua bow finished them off and made them easy for our guests to carry home.

I made the "They're Hooked" sign for the head table by layering sheets of colored cardstock.  It was easy to make and the bride LOVED it!

It also served as a nice way to highlight the bride and groom when they were seated at the table.

The kissing fish were drawn by hand and cut out of orange glitter cardstock. Inexpensive and adorable! LOVE THAT! :)

Here's a close up of the bride and groom's seats - unfortunately I did not get any good pictures of the guests tables

(doesn't it always happen like that!?) 

Each guest table featured mini fish bowls filled with gold fish crackers, and glass seashell dishes filled with swedish fish candies and gummy sharks.  In addition to their candle favor, each guest place setting also featured a miniature blue suitcase from Martha Stewart's seaside wedding collection. Each suitcase was handstamped to read "thank you" and filled with personalized buttermints (the grooms fav!) and saltwater taffy. The guests loved them- they were really an adorable favor for a destination wedding! We also scattered starfish shaped shells around the tables.

In this picture you can also see a rock candy bouquet. These little sweeties were inspired by an idea the bride saw in a magazine and loved. After a  trip to the local candy store,  we recreated them for the shower. They were an adorable way to reinforce our color palette and we were able to use them for a shower game! :)

The fish you see here are actually placemats that my mom found at The Christmas Tree Shop near her house for only .50cents a piece (score!) - they complimented our theme perfectly, and looked great hanging on the front of the tables and the walls.  Another easy (inexpensive) decoration were the woodblock initials we made for the bride and the groom. We covered them using the same glitter cardstock used for the kissing fish.

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The shower was a great success, and the theme really complimented the bride and groom's upcoming beach wedding trip!

It's a Beautiful Day!

A Big Box of Frills!

I'm SO excited! I just mailed a big ol' box of frills to Samster Mommy for the Tutu Drive!  10 super-sweet tutus all ready for the fabulous Princess Alexa Foundation. Yea! Thanks to everyone who ordered a tutu (or 3!) for this special cause. I LOVE to think of how excited those sweet children will be to receive their tutus; isn't it a great feeling to know you are helping to brighten someone's day? I know it totally brightens my day to think about  how wonderful The Princess Alexa Foundation is! :) I'm so proud of my friends and family for pitching in and helping out this great cause! You rock! :)

BIG thanks to everyone who shopped this week at the brand new Daydream Believers Shop! It makes me happy to say my first inventory is all sold out! :) THANKS for all the support and encouragement! I'm excited to get working on some great new pieces to list in the shop very soon! :) Remember, I *love* custom orders! If you have something in mind for your little sweetie, please contact me! I'd love to work with you to  design a custom outfit or gift!

Fairy Godmother Tutu Tutorial

It's inevitable, your kids, (toddlers especially) will expect you to have all sorts of fairy-godmother, Mary Poppins, Bibbity-Boppidy-Boo magic up your sleeve! You know, that magic ability to provide our sweeties with just what they need at the exact moment they need it. :) Thankfully, my kids aren't asking for pumpkin-coaches (yet) - but the need for new dress up costumes is an everyday occurrence at our house! My little ladies can change from doctors to doggies to brides in 15 minutes time - so our dress up closet can never have too many costumes!

With the tutu drive in full force, I thought I'd share with you a SUPER easy tutu-tutorial. I call this tutu "The Bibbity" because it is SO easy to make, you'll be able to whip one up in the time it takes ol' Cinderella's Godmother to sing that Bibbity-Boppidy-Boo song! ;)

Supplies:

1 yard of 54 in. tulle

1 inch ribbon (You will need enough ribbon to equal four times the child’s waist size) 

{Ex: 20 in waist = 80 in of ribbon.}

Before you begin, you will need to determine two measurements: 

Measurement A = waist size +10 inches

Measurement B = desired length

{The measurements I am using are: A=30in and B=9in. This style tutu is designed to fit a wide range of sizes. The measurements above will make a tutu that will most likely fit children sizes 18months - 4T, or larger!}

--Clicking on a picture will enlarge it!-- 

To start, cut tulle into four pieces equaling Measurement A x Measurement B

{In my example, that meant 30 inches x 9 inches}. 

Stack all four pieces.

Sew all four layers together by sewing a gathering stitch along one long-side.

Tulle is a bit slippery to sew with, but boy, it sure gathers up nicely! :)

Next, cut your ribbon into two pieces. 

The first should be as long as the child’s waist size, and the second, should be three times the size of the first.

{If the first piece is 20 in. then the second piece will be 60 in.}

Locate the center of your tulle skirt. Take your 20" piece of ribbon & find the center of that as well, pin the center of the ribbon to the center of the tulle. Gather and spread your tulle, until the length of your tulle skirt matches the length of your ribbon. Pin in place, stitch together.

Next take your 60" piece of ribbon & find the center. Lay this piece of ribbon on top of your tulle skirt, aligning the center of the skirt with the center of the 60" piece of ribbon. Pin in place. Your skirt should now be layered – ribbon, tulle, ribbon.

Now it’s time to stitch it all together. Starting at one corner, top stitch around the entire 20 inch piece of ribbon.

To finish, trim any loose bits of tulle and “seal” the ends of your ribbon. {I “heat seal” the edges by quickly running them over a flame, but they do sell products (fray check) that will do the job too!}

Done! All set! A super sweet lil' tutu ready for some dress-up, make believe fun! 

These little tutus are SO easy to put together, I made these three while my sweeties were napping!

Give it a try! Then the next time your little lady needs to be a princess/fairy/ballerina/bride - you can dazzle her with your Fairy Godmother magic and present her with a one of a kind, made by Mumma tutu! :) Awesome!

To donate a new tutu to the Princess Alexa foundation please visit Samster Mommy's Tutu Drive 2010 for all the details!

This is my very first tutorial, I hope it is clear! :) If you have ANY questions, please contact me!

Tutu Drive 2010

I love to sign online and read about the different ways people are changing the world. The blogosphere is filled with super great people making a difference in the world every single day! SO inspiring! :)

I especially love it when I come across a way that I can help others! Right now I am SO excited about Samster Mommy's Tutu Drive 2010! Natasha at Samster Mommy has organized a drive to support a super special cause; the Princess Alexa Foundation. The Princess Alexa Foundation gives new dress up clothes to children who are seriously ill; providing the kids with an opportunity to dress up, play make-believe, and escape the reality of their illnesses.  AWESOME! INSPIRING! INCREDIBLE!

Through her blog, Natasha at Samster Mommy is on a mission to send 100 new tutus to the Princess Alexa Foundation. Awesome cause, awesome goal! I am thrilled to help out and I hope you can too!  I  just love the idea of the folks at The Princess Alexa Foundation receiving a big ol' box of frilly tutu goodness and sharing the joy with children in need.

Want to participate in the drive? 

Check out the Tutu Drive 2010 at Samster Mommy for all the details!

Want to make a tutu for the drive, but you don't know how?

Check back here Thursday! I'll be sharing a super simple tutu tutorial!

Want to donate a tutu, but you're not a sewer?
No problem! Contact me through the Daydream Believers Shop. I will gladly make the tutu for you and mail it directly to Samster Mommy (if you want me to!) So easy, so awesome! :)

Welcome!

Hi there! I'm M*; I am a Daydream Believer and a Punk-Rock-Prom Queen
(true story, I even have the crown!) ;)

My adventure with sewing started after my daughters were born. With two little girlies and a mumma who loves to create, our house is a haven for all things sparkly and fun! Unable to buy the frilly-funky clothing and accessories I desired for my girls, locally; I started making my own. A quick Google search for a no-sew-tutu-tutorial led me to discover the craft-blogosphere – and WOW! What a GREAT discovery it has been! Thanks to all the crafty-mummas out there sharing their skills; I am impressed and inspired on a daily basis! I LOVE reading about the awesome projects other craftymummas are making. So, (after lots of nudging from my hubs and family) I've decided to step up and share too! I'm new to the world of blogging, but I'm SUPER psyched to be here! Please, stop by often, see what I'm up to and be sure to say "hi!" :) Have a GREAT day!