Guys, I did it. Finally. I made an actual article of clothing! I kind of made a skirt once before, but it ended up being completely unwearable. I was so intimidated by that pattern it took me six months to finish it, and then it ended up a disaster.

Needless to say, that didn’t help with my fear of sewing.

I can begin a knitting, crocheting, or embroidery project without a moment’s hesitation, but sewing? Sewing just terrifies me. I love clothes and am really particular about design, quality, and fit. Becoming a proficient sewing seems like the perfect way to build the wardrobe I want, but sewing projects can fail in such catastrophic ways.

I picked up this pattern (Simplicity 2286) right after I got my sewing machine when Hobby Lobby was having one of their sales where all patterns are $1. But I never got around to sewing it because I didn’t really like the way the skirt looked (and my fear didn’t help).

I’m still not totally in love, but I do have to admit I’m proud! The skirt took just a few hours to whip up, and I’ll likely be altering the pattern (it’s a bit too full for my taste as is) and making many variations.

Here are some photos from the process. It really was very easy, and I encourage everyone with similar sewing intimidation to go for it!

My materials! The pattern, a yard and a half of fabric, elastic, and rick rack. Not pictured: thread, sewing machine, measuring tape, pins, fabric pen, and scissors.

First, cut your pattern according to your size. Pin the paper onto the fabric and cut around it.

All cut! I kept the paper attached to the pieces until I was ready to use them to avoid confusion.

Sew, sew, sew, and trim the edges so they don’t fray.

Guiding the elastic through the waistband was the most time-consuming part.

Next time I maight make the waistband a bit wider.

I’ll also probably omit the rickrack on the pockets. I love rickrack, but I think it’s too girlish with this skirt.

The end result!

Like I said, I’m going to alter the pattern a bit and make another. I’m thinking a heavy cotton in navy.

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Yesterday I got the chance to play around with double exposures a bit. I used this simple tutorial written my friend Sara as a basis and then kind of played around from there.

This past week was hectic as my second-to-last graduate semester (!!!!) started really winding down. I also attended the Texas Library Association’s 100th annual conference here in Fort Worth for three days. It was amazing, but I was carrying too many books to also lug around a camera, and I won’t make you sit through my awful iPhone photos (The iPhone 3GS camera really isn’t great… It’s time for an upgrade next months, but I’m not sure whether to go with the 4 or 5. Any suggestions?).

I met Andrew McCarthy, Lois Lowry, Jon Klassen, and Rebecca Stead! I’d say it was a successful conference! This is the first time I’ve gotten to meet an author I loved and my first time meeting a celebrity–they were all so gracious and seemed so genuinely happy and surprised when I complimented their works. And I have to admit I actually went weak in the knees when Andrew McCarthy made eye contact with me. Oh my gosh. I have been a fan of Lois Lowry’s work since fifth grade and was beyond thrilled to get to hear her speak and have her sign a couple books for me. I also got to have great little conversations with Jon Klassen and Rebecca Stead, both of whom I really admire. Jon Klassen is a wonderful illustrator/author, and Rebecca Stead’s When You Reach Me (the 2010 Newbery winner) completely blew me away.

But every day after the conference I came home and researched and wrote essays until well past midnight. When the essays were turned in and the conference was over, I put six pillows on my bed and hibernated. Now I have the energy to finish the semester and actually managed to find the time to take a few photos yesterday.

Because sometimes you feel like a ghost.

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This is Ryan. How adorable is he? He knows he has a killer smile and uses it to charm the ladies. He definitely knew when to pull it out on our mini portrait session a few weeks ago. There were lots and lots of silly faces (to his mom’s chagrin!), but they were followed by insanely adorable giggles.

Ryan and Megan have both been on this blog a few times, particularly when I did Megan’s senior portraits a few years ago. I’ve known Megan since for over 10 years now, and I love getting to see her adorable boy whenever I visit Houston.

Look at him go! Ryan is a future Olympian! We actually raced at one point, but he beat me. For some reason I kept falling, and he ended up ahead ;) It was probably for the better–I heard he is a pretty sore loser, and we needed him to smile that day.

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Congratulations, Ian & Trish! You are such a lovely couple, and I’m so glad you asked me to be part of your day.

Left: the groom and his niece. Right: the bride and her family.

Again, congratulations to the entire family! Thanks so much for letting me photograph this special day.

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Here are a few photos from the first few days with my camera, where I was trying to acclimate myself to the settings and also test it out (boy is it faster than my XTi! That photo of my doll was taken in near-darkness, and there’s not a hint of grain!). Joseph and Leonardo are my unwilling test subjects :)

A short video. I’m just amazed by the image quality, even after being compressed for online streaming. I am going to have a lot of fun with this!

First Few Days from Alyssa Young on Vimeo.

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I embroidered this for my sister-in-law and now-brother-in-law’s wedding last month. I hadn’t worked on an embroidery in a while–it was so nice to pick up the needle again!

This beautiful pattern is a design by Polka & Bloom. I’ve admired her intricate work for a while and am so glad I finally had reason to buy one of her patterns. This was a lot of fun to embroider, and I’m really happy with the way it turned out.

I paid particular attention to the text because Lerin works in printing, so I wanted it to be perfect! But I had never done so many satin stitches and don’t really ever want to again!

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We met each other when we were chemistry partners in high school. We were awful in the lab, but it allowed us to bond over our mutual love for Harry Potter. We gave each other a variety of nicknames–I was normally Luna or Uhliska (a kind of joke ugly spelling of my name that I ended up finding endearing), and Victoria was Tilly (I think because it seemed British to us? I remember it was inspired by a girl featured in Teen Vogue).

I’m so glad we finally managed a time to have this long-overdo catch up. We had Vietnamese food for lunch and then went for frozen yogurt. Victoria is just as lovely as always!

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I’m struggling for words here. Lerin and I first met in 2000 and became instant friends. Neither of us expected I would marry her brother seven years later. In fact, we’re all still getting used to the way this worked out.

I’m so happy I got to join her family in celebrating the marriage of such a wonderful couple. I’m looking forward to a lifetime of holidays and family gatherings together (plus annual Creepy Couple Portraits). Chris, you and I really did marry into the greatest family in the world!

While the ceremony was tender and traditional, the reception was pretty wild. Hours and hours of dancing, with and without costumes.

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Yes, your stand mixer look beautiful on the kitchen counter, but maybe you’re like me and don’t use it nearly as much as you anticipated? We could make constant batches of cupcakes or pies, but that might not be the best idea. I found the solution: make whipped cream.

Seriously. Fresh whipped cream is more delicious than you could imagine, and having a stand mixer means preparation is ridiculously easy. I am constantly whipping up (haha) batches on the fly. Keep a jar of whipping cream in your fridge, and you’ll be surprised by how often you finding yourself using reaching for it.

There is no need to ever buy store-bought whipped cream if you have an electric mixer of any sort, but especially a stand mixer. You add three ingredients, turn the mixer on, walk away, and come back to a bowl of white heaven. Eat it with fruit, pancakes, hot cocoa, pudding, or by the spoon. You can even pipe it through a pastry bag for a nice shape!

Prep your mixer by cooling the metal bowl in the freezer for a few minutes.

Our three ingredients: whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla.

Attach wire whip.

Begin beating on medium until stiff peaks form.

You’re done! It’s that easy. Now eat it off the spoon or sample it with every item in your house. Store the rest in an airtight container in your refrigerator.

Fresh Whipped Cream

1 cup whipping cream
2 Tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Set metal mixing bowl in freezer to chill for a few minutes (though this doesn’t always happen in my house–I just don’t have room enough in my freezer!).

Add whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla. Beat on medium until stiff peaks form.

You can also spice it up if you want: add a couple tablespoons of a flavored liqueur, 1/2 teaspoon citrus peel, or 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder with 1 tablespoon of extra sugar.

Also, I just made a Facebook page. Be sure to “Like” it keep up to date with my blog via Facebook!

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