A Very Simple Strapless Dress {Mini Tutorial}

One of my latest tutorial finds was this super cute ‘Simple Skirt’ from Katy at Sweet Verbena. I stumbled across her blog via Pinterest and though she is fairly new to the blog world she has some adorable and amazing tutorials. Her style is awesome and her projects are simple and fun. In addition to making a ‘Simple Skirt’ I also used the same idea from her tutorial to create my most recent dress--meet the Simple Strapless Dress! 

This was a learn-as-I-go sewing project for myself. I’ll try to explain as best I can the steps I took and adjustments I made to the skirt tutorial. Once you review and understand Katy's skirt, this should be a breeze for you to make!

Here is what I used:

1 and 2/3 yard of 45” wide fabric

1” wide elastic

Sewing Essentials

((Please bare with me as it may get a little wordy since I don't have photos of the steps I took; for reference please visit Katy's tutorial as she took very helpful photos of each step!))

For the first step, rather than folding your fabric completely in half lengthwise to create a 2-layer skirt as Katy did, fold down your top edge roughly between ¼ -½ way down your fabric. To get a more accurate measurement of how far you should fold your fabric, measure the height of your bust. Do this by measuring from the top of your chest (or the bottom of your armpit--where the dress will sit) to directly under your bust. Add about 2 inches to that measurement and fold your fabric.

Since your bust measurement is longer than what the equivalent measurement of your back would be, cut your folded fabric with a slight curved edge working from the center to the ends. This will help eliminate any excess fabric or poofiness on your back.

Here is my pitiful attempt at creating a diagram to describe this:

The faint gray line is where your fabric is folded over to and the black curved line is what you will cut out from your flap

Create your casing at the top of the fold just as Katy did. Do this by laying down your elastic across the top of the fold and pin directly underneath it. Sew a straight line where you just pinned. Here is your first casing!

This is when Katy slides in her elastic, gathers the skirt and sews up the two sides to finish her skirt--super simple!! To create my dress, we will add one more step so that we can create the casing for the second elastic around your waist.

Leaving about an inch seam allowance, sew a line along the bottom of your curved fabric flap. Lay your elastic as best you can around the curve and pin on top of the elastic (same idea as the first casing) and sew along that pinned line. Your two slightly curved sewn lines create the casing for your second elastic.

Here is another lame attempt at a diagram:

The two grey dashed lines are where you sew to form your casing

Measure your elastic to where one piece fits comfortably around your upper chest and another piece around your waist. Be sure to have enough slack to stretch over your head but enough tightness to hold up your dress. Insert your pieces of elastic through the casings using a safety pin (or whatever works best for you!) and pin the elastic to each open end. Stretch both of your elastics and play with the fabric to get a nice even gather. Hem the bottom of your dress (if needed). Pin the two edges together, right sides facing each other, and try on your dress if you’d like. Make any adjustments to your elastic at this time. Once fitted, sew straight down the edges to form your dress and you’re all done! **You'll notice that one key difference from the skirt was that my one seam is worn at the back of my dress, rather than at the sides.

Add a belt for a little more shape if you'd like!

If you have ANY questions at all in regards to making a dress of your own, please do not hesitate to contact me!



Thank you Katie from Sew Woodsy, Danielle from Blissful & Domestic and Kelly from Running with Glitter for featuring my dress!!



Cookie Dough Brownies {Recipe}

We celebrated my good friend Sarah's birthday at the restaurant Cafe Tu Tu Tango.We had a blast! Lots of good laughs and fun times with great friends. I decided to make a dessert that everyone could enjoy. Hello fabulous Cookie Dough Brownies, recipe courtesy of Chef In Training.

I asked Sarah's boyfriend out of 5 different amazing recipes I found on Pinterest which one he thought she'd like best. He picked this one, and knowing that she LOVES cookie dough, I thought it was a good choice too! Without further ado, here is the delicious recipe!

COOKIE DOUGH BROWNIES

Brownie:

• 1 cup butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1-1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 1-1/3 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp salt

Filling:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Glaze:

• 2 cups milk chocolate chips
• 2 tablespoons shortening
• 3/4 cups walnuts, optional

Step 1. Cream butter and sugar together.  Add eggs and blend well.  Add vanilla, salt, cocoa, and flour. Don't over-beat.  Pour into a greased 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes or until done.  Cool completely.

 

Brownies all done and cooling

Step 2. For filling, in a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light & fluffy. Beat in milk and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour. Stir in mini chocolate chips. Spread over brownies (works best to just press out with clean hands.); chill until firm.

The filling tasted AMAZING

Waiting patiently for the brownies to cool down

Step 3. For glaze, in a microwave safe bowl, melt chocolate chips and shortening in 30 second intervals, stirring after each time, until smooth. Spread over filling. Immediately sprinkle with nuts, pressing down slightly.

Ready to chill the brownies and cookie dough!

The chocolate glaze--this was a different icing than I have ever done, but it turned out perfectly!

Step 4. Let glaze harden before cutting in.

 

 

Now, being that I am no pro baker (and usually have the assistance of Betty Crocker!) this was such a simple recipe and turned out DELISH. Everyone at dinner loved it and Sarah MAY have had more than one piece. :) The directions were straight forward and simple enough to follow. The only "flaw" I encountered was that the brownie and cookie dough filling weren't evenly proportioned. There was a lot more brownie than cookie dough, but no biggie--it still tasted amazing! :)

 

The birthday girl enjoying her dessert :)

The birthday girl and I!

Some of the gang at the end of dinner!

If you ever need a twist on a simple brownie, here you go! ENJOY!

Pinterest (n): a place to catalog the things you love

 

If you haven't already, meet Pinterest.

It's the latest and greatest in cyberworld at the moment.

There's even a Pinterst Blog with the latest and greatest boards and pins, events and trends.

What is Pinterest, boards and pinning you ask?

Pinterest (n): a place to catalog the things you love. <3

I like to think of it as your Dream Catalogue, categorizing the things you love by using the photos you come across while browsing the internet, blogs and websites.

It is a virutal pin board with ALL of your dreams/wants/to-do's/diy photos and inspirations saved and arranged exatly how you'd like and is accessible on any computer.

So you can now throw away those magazine clippings, internet prints, inspiration binders and scribbled wish lists, because Pinterest is your new best friend--woo hoo!

Best of yet, it is free to join.

But, you must receive an invite to join. You have two options for doing this:

1. You may request an invite through the Pinterest site itself, as I did. I requested one a few months ago when I first heard about the site. I forgot that I had even done so, finally checked my e-mail account this past week (and some 300 e-mails later) found my Pinterest  invite! Because I didn't check my e-mail for quite some, I'm not really sure how long it took for me to actually receive it. Some sites I have read say it takes quite some time to receive one, as Pinterest is having a hard time keeping up with all the new requests.

2. You may be invited by a person or friend who is already a user. AKA me. :) If there is anyone out there who is later than me to jump on this bandwagon, no worries. Let me know and I will gladly send you a Pinterest invite and you will be pinning in no time! Please e-mail me or comment to let me know if you'd like an invite sent your way! :)

To join the Pinterest community (once you receive your invite) you start off by creating an account with your Facebook or Twitter log-in and subsequently can log-in using your e-mail address from there after. Pinterest will automatically show which of your Facebook friends or Twitter followers already have a Pinterest account, so you can be linked with your friends and their pins right away! How cool?!
There are a few (but very easy) ways that you then start pinning your photos to your various boards. You are also able to re-pin friends and others pins to your own board(s).
This is when your imagination really starts running wild!

Here are just SOME of the awesome goodies that I have currently pinned on my boards! :)

Cake Batter Pancakes are pinned on my 'Good Eats' board--who doesn't love this idea?!

This photo is pinned to my 'For The Home' board...I love the white pops of color in this otherwise neutral room.

This beautiful bedroom is pinned on my 'Bedrooms' board--living with a boy and pup could turn a room like this into a mess very quickly, but a girl can deam. :)

This DIY inspiration is pinned to my 'Home DIY' board--a must have somewhere in my home.

Hanakapi'ai Falls (Kauai, Hawaii) is pinned to my 'Travel Dreams' board. Again, a girl can dream!

 

This fabulous lace skirt is pinned to my 'DIY' board with the tutorial and all.

Get the idea yet? You can create as many boards and pin as many photos to them as you'd like. My original 'For the Home' board has already expanded into 4 seperate boards; Bathrooms, Bedrooms, Home DIY and For the Home; I'm also pretty sure this will soon expand even more to Dining Rooms, Living Rooms, Kitchens, etc...probably sooner than later. :) Currently, my other boards include: DIY, Style, Wedding, Good Eats, Travel Dreams and Gifts. Though, I'm sure that list will grow and expand over time also once I start digging through my saved e-mail's and websites of ideas and inspirations.  

The other beautiful thing about Pinterst is that when you pin a photo, the link is stored with it. So, for every recipe or how-to photo you come across and pin, the link and directions/tutorial are also saved. With that being said, as long as you pin the image from the original source, your saved goodies are also credited...how percfect!

I chose to keep my Pinterest account seperate of 'Anngela's Pretty Little Things' so that I may have personal things on there as well, but you can still come find and follow me at --> Anngela Davis. I will soon be adding an 'Anngela's Pretty Little Things' board for all of my creations.

And once again, if you have not yet joined and you would like an invite, please let me know and I'll be glad to get you pinning!!

Pirate Treasure Chest Cake {Baking}

This past weekend we celebrated our close friend's sons 3rd birthday. A Pirate Pool Party had been planned! What an AWESOME theme for a 3 year olds summer birthday?! Along with the MANY decorations and goodies that his mother Autumn purchased for the party, she wanted to make a fun cake to go along with the theme. She recruited my help and after googling a few ideas and talking to some friends, we decided to make a pirate ship cake, a treasure chest cake and cupcakes. Mind you, neither her nor I are pro-bakers, let a lone cake decorators; she thought between my creativity and her willingness to make a fun cake for her son that we could get it accomplished. Her husband Tommy and Larry's mother also played a big role in making the cakes the night before the big day. 

Here is just SOME of the candy that we used for the cake and party!

 

We used this Treasure Chest Cake how-to tutorial for creating the treasure chest cake. The chest is what Autumn was most excited about for her son, TJ. We used a Wilton Pirate Ship cake pan for the ship.

Tommy was the one that did all of the baking while Autumn and I prepped the board that the cake would go on and got all the candy/decorations in order...we also had little man to watch after and entertain. :)

After baking and forcing the cake out of the pan--apparently the non-stick pan is a LIE--and cutting up the pieces according to the tutorial, this is what we came up with.

It looked a little wonky and not-so-much like a treasure chest, but we knew it was just the beginning stages and had faith!

After a little icing and decor, the chest was starting to come together! And TJ guessed exactly what it was--so that's all that mattered. :)

We finished the basic icing and decorating of the two cakes and cupcakes the night before and finished the final touches on Saturday morning before the party. Here are some photos of the final product! 

The treasure chest is on the top left, the pirate ship is on the bottom right and the cupcakes scattered all around. TJ really wanted green sails for the ship, which kind of made the ship look somewhat Christmassy--but he loved it! We added LOTS and LOTS of pirate toys, little ships, cannonballs, swords, fake jewels, coins, ring pops. and candy. ALL of the kids had a blast seeing all the goodies on the cake and picking out their favorites. TJ loved the candy necklaces.

Autumn and I posing for a photo with the cake. All of the adults had bandanas and pirate tattoos. :)

The idea for the cupcakes was that the gummie sharks and fish were swimming around the ship and treasure chest. We also alternated white cupcakes with pirate swords on them.

Apparently TJ turns shy when people to start to sing to him, because this is what he did during his 'Happy Birthday' song! How cute!!

He soon decided to blow out his candles and enjoy his cake!!

TJ LOVED his cake--if you can't tell from the evidence on his mouth. :)

TJ playing with all of the goodies on his cake--he tried to shove anything and everything he could into the little pirate ship. :)

It's safe to say it was a VERY successful birthday for the little man--and first successful cake decorating for all of us! I'm not sure we would go pro with it, but at least we know we can make a cake good enough for a 3 year old's taste! I'm so glad that the party was such a success--can't wait to see what the theme will be for his birthday next year!! <3

Handheld Friends, Part 2 {Clutch & Purse Tutorials}

More clutches and purses?! Yes, please!!
Here are a few more (with their tutorials) that I have made as gifts for family. 

My grandmother and Larry's mom both complimented one of my first clutches that I had made for myself a while ago...Though she was one of my first clutches, I still use her frequently--the button and contrasting inner lining are my favorite features. Here she is!

My grandmother requested one in a black and white and red color palette for when she goes square dancing. I had just the perfect fabric for this! 

I also made a red/black/white bracelet and stuck it inside of the purse for her. :)

I unfortunately wasn't able to get a photo of her actual clutch--but this one was made from the same fabric that I had used for her's--hers was a little larger, had a red stripe on the front, a longer wrist strap and pocket on the inside.

 Larry's mother also complimented the clutch, but since she's the use-one-purse-until-it-falls-apart kind of lady, I was nervous she would love the fact that I made it for her but maybe not put it to use. Nonetheless I had to make her one! She loves the color purple. I found an amazing floral print that complimented a gorgeous purple sparkle fabric that I knew I wanted to use for her.



Inside has a pocket for her ID, cards and cash



Larry's mom and her clutch! She uses it frequently when visiting the Hard Rock Casino, movies and mall! YAY!

I used the good old gathered cluch tutorial from Anna (with a few variations) to create all of the clutches above.

I also made a purse for my sister. She had an old Care Bear sheet set that she had been wanting a purse made out of by my mom for many many years now! My mom passed on the task to me, so I used this past Christmas as an opportunity to make her one. I used the infamous Made-by-Rae Buttercup Bag pattern and tutorial for the first time and LOVED it! I've been wanting to make this purse for quite some time--I as pleased, it is fairly simple and turned out super adorable! I didn't use a heaver fabric for the lining, so I added a fusible interfacing to help give it some shape though next time I think I will try and use a heavier fabric when I'm not subjected to matching a Care Bear pattern. :) Also, instead of a magnetic closure, I used a fabric-button that I made out of the matching Care Bear fabric.

 

 

Tia with her new purse--she was very excited to see her Care Bear purse finally come to life!

Glad to share a few more of my purses and clutches--more to come sooner or later! :)