Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Happy Conclusion

Remember my awesome friends Kate and Ryan? If you don't, check 'em out here. Mr. N and I had the pleasure of standing next to them at their wedding this weekend, and it was an incredibly wonderful time! We couldn't be happier for them and hope they're enjoying their honeymoon in the Bahamas. I was given the task of making Kates' rehearsal dinner dress, so I made some quick sketches for her. She chose the dress on the right:


So I got her measurements and got started. I adapted a pattern I already had and made a muslin from it:



I experimented with different ways to arrange the back straps.




Kate liked the above arrangement best, so I packed off the muslin and mailed it to her to try on. 
In the meantime, I rooted through my stash to see what I had in the way of peacock feathers, and low and behold, I had this.


Several years ago I interned with amazing prom dress designer Loralie, and she gave me a whole bunch of fabrics and trims and appliques she no longer needed. That's how I came to have an entire roll of this amazing trim, which couldn't be more perfect for this occasion. Here's how the trim will be placed:


Then I bought some beautiful silk dupioni, sewed until 3 in the morning, hopped on a plane, and put the dress on the bride. 


Perfect! We made some adjustments to the straps and ended up doing a simple halter strap which suited Kate to a T. Here I am with the bride:


As it turned out, Ryan and Kates' officiant is a Canadian citizen, so in order for their marriage to be legal they had to go to the courthouse to be officially married a day before their actual wedding. Which means I got to make Kates' wedding dress, in a sense. Pretty cool. Here's the bride and groom at the courthouse:


Making it legal, as Mr. N looks on. 


Congratulations, you two! We couldn't be happier. Thanks for letting us play a big part in your day! 

Friday, June 10, 2011

And Now, Proud to Introduce...

my new website, www.ChiCrochet.com!! I am so excited to have an online catalogue for my crochet patterns. I'll be posting new patterns all the time as well as crochet tutorials, tips, and advice! So what are you waiting for? Check it out!


I hope you love it! If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, feel free to email me at bniel at chicrochet dot com. I'll still be posting projects I'm working on here, but for crochet patterns and crochet news, be sure to bookmark the site. 

Happy Hooking!

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Big News

Coming in two short days...



Cryptic? Yes. But it's worth the wait! Can't wait to show you! 

Friday, June 3, 2011

Special Assignment

Once upon a time I had two great friends from two completely different circles. This is Kate, one of my nearest and dearest from early college days in Pennsylvania:


And this is Ryan, dear friend of Mr. N. and I from Chicago:


Don't mind me in the background. I'm just really into Rock Band. Ryan is too, that's why his face is so serious. 

When Mr. N. and I got married two summers ago, Kate was one of my bridesmaids and Ryan was one of Mr. N's groomsmen. I had a gut feeling that they would get along, so I mentioned to Ryan that he might want to try to get to know Kate during the wedding weekend. Also, anytime assigned seating was involved, guess who was seated next to each other? That's right. Well, it turns out Ryan and Kate hit it off. Really hit it off. 


They're getting married in 3 weeks and I couldn't be happier! Kate gave me the great honor of making her rehearsal dinner dress and I'm so excited to dress the lovely bride. The wedding has a peacock theme, so I made some sketches for Kate to choose from (click to enlarge):




Which one did she choose? Check back soon for the finished product!