Thanks, New Year wishes and a Special Dress

The little girl pictured is my beautiful friend Karen's 2nd daughter. Karen and I met through our Mothers Group and I can say with all honesty, that I would be lost without her. We have very little in common and I'm afraid to say, she does'nt love Bon Jovi, however, I love her dearly and consider her one of my best friends.

I made this dress for Karen's first born daughter around March/April 2007. It has sentimental value for two reasons. The first one is because Karen kept the dress and has passed it on to her 2nd child and the second reason is because this dress is the very first thing I made after having my own son in November 2006.

As you can see, it's a simple dress made using a 1960's toddler pattern and 100% cotton pindot fabric. It has a button on each shoulder and I added a little bow in the front to 'finish off' the dress.

Even though it's a very easy pattern to make, I remember how difficult it was to cut and sew the dress in my sleep deprived state (my son woke every hour on the hour at night for the first 9-10 months of his life). I remember feeling frightened and nervous about what my mothers group would think, even more so because Karen is one of the most stylish people I know! Thankfully she liked it enough to keep for her 2nd child to wear.

People assumed that after I had my baby, I would start churning out babies clothes and I felt immense pressure to keep my business running, especially as it became my only form of income. I am glad I kept my business running, but at the same time, I do feel that I missed out on alot of resting and 'bonding time' in those first few months.

I would like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone that has supported my business this year, it's been a strange year on a business level, but a really exciting one too.

Have a safe and Happy New Year, and I am looking forward to a new year filled with exciting new projects.