Christmas Skirt 2008.

This skirt is made out of the left over fabric that I used to line my sister's coat I made her for Christmas. It's a silver gray and black plaid taffeta. It has little inverted pleats all the way around it. I was really happy about how well the plaids matched up. It has a black lining and is hand hemmed. This skirt is perfect for any semi-formal occasion.

Red Gingham

Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved the movie Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and I always wanted a gingham dress. Finally this past summer I made it happen. I found some nice dress gingham on sale so I bought 5 yards - I knew immediately that I wanted a very full skirt. I ended up making a circle skirt. I used a poineer costume pattern for the basic shape of the bodice of my dress, but of course I changed it up - I always do. I added the horizontal gathers on the center front garment piece, shortened the sleeves, rounded the waistline, put the zipper in the side seam like the dresses from the 50s, and added a pocket! The ribbon and red flowers on the left front shoulder were the finishing touches I made for my dress. I thought it all came together quite nicely, too.

Commence.

I started really designing and sewing at 16 years old. Here are some of my first, and best, products.

More than just Fashion

As you viewers may come to realize, I design clothing to fit certain modesty standards. I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka, LDS or Mormon church), and we believe in being modestly dressed. The pamphlet put out by the LDS church titled, For the Strength of Youth - Fulfilling Our Duty to God, states "Immodest clothing includes short shorts and skirts, tight clothing, shirts that do not cover the stomach, and other revealing attire. Young women should wear clothing that covers the shoulder and avoid clothing that is low-cut in the front or the back or revealing in any other manner. Young men should also maintain modesty in their appearance. All should avoid extremes in clothing, appearance, and hairstyle. Always be neat and clean and avoid being sloppy... in dress grooming and manners." (For the Strength of Youth, pg. 14-16). Our modesty standard is far more than covering our bodies - it is about respecting our bodies. "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God?" (see 1 Corinthians 3:16-17)
I believe that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only true church on the earth today, therefore, I implement this counsel into my designs. You can still look attractive while being modest, especially by not being sloppy. One might think that these standards are restricting to one's freedom, but I argue that this is not the case. Following modesty standards, or standards of any kind for that matter, actually makes people more free because standards do not eliminate people's options, but simplify them.
For example, I look into my closet that is full of clothes. I have hundreds of options of what to wear, but am I really free? In this situation, I find myself fretting over what I should put together for quite a while. Should I wear item #1, #2, #3, #4, etc... ? Now, I get rid of clothes that I can do without, and only keep my absolute favorites. The new dressing situation would go like this: What should I wear today, this or that? By decreasing options, but not eliminating options, I become more free. If I had only one option, it would cease to be an option. I would have to wear it, therefore making me less free. Isn't it interesting that one option and infinite options makes people less free, while decreasing options makes people more free.
This idea is how I feel about standards. Instead of having to make the decision between modest and immodest, I pick modest and then decrease my options by 50%, probably more actually in today's world. I only have to worry about which modest clothes I want. This is the same with any other decision that I have. The question, should I figure out a way to cheat, changes into how can I best tell the truth? Should I drink alcohol changes to should I drink caffinated drinks or non-caffinated drinks? Questions concerning immorality do not exist anymore - I just have to decide how I can be moral.
Even if you don't believe in in my standards, I promise that any moral standards will make you more free because you will be decreasing your options, but not erasing agency. You can still be an individual by following standards or a moral code - my family is living proof of that. We are all individual children of our Heavenly Father and we will always be individuals. Standards or having a moral code gives us more freedom - exactly what our Father in Heaven wants to give us in this life.

Visual Philosophy

Here are some designs for the wintertime according to my philosophy. Now you have more options than ever before for the cold, wet winter!

My Philosophy on Dressing in the Winter for Ladies

First, I would like to apologize for not having any new suggestions for men. I'm not one so I'm not one to talk, but if any man has any suggestions on how he stays warm, please let me know so I can implement his thoughts into my winter clothing designs.
Ladies should never wear pants, or any piece of clothing that touches the floor, on wet winter days. If the bottoms of your pants get wet, then your socks will get, and then your feet will get wet. If your feet are wet, then you will get cold and stay cold. So to stay as warm as you can on wet winter days, wear boots with thick tights or leggings, and capris or knee-length skirts.
The back of the neck, chest, and hands are also places on the body that if kept warm, one will stay warm. Scarfs or hats, coats or jackets, and gloves are necessities for staying warm in the cold.
If you stay dry, you will stay warm - Happy Winter!

In the beginning

I figured since everyone had a blog, that I wanted one, too!