Christening Day...

Sunday was baby Liam's Christening day. Some of you asked to read at least some of what I wrote to him. I included a letter in the back pocket of the storage garment bag I made as a keepsake along with the ensemble. I decided to share an excerpt with you today.

Dear Liam:

… My prayers for you are that you live in a world where people are still considerate of one another - especially, a place where elders are respected and children are cherished. My prayers for you are that you grow up to be a happy and healthy person who finds someone to love, marry, and with whom you can share a family and a long, happy life.

I pray that, when you make decisions in your life, you choose to follow a righteous path. Although it’s easy to do the wrong thing, it takes a strong will and determination to decide to do the right things. I know that your parents will do their best to raise you in the church to give you a strong moral foundation, and that they will surround you with people who will support your heart and mind in ways that are honest and good. When you are grown and make your own decisions, the voices of these people will be able to speak to you when you’re unsure of your path, and they will help guide you.

I hope that you are blessed, as I have been, to be able to watch four generations age together, and I’m hoping that I live long enough to see a fifth generation born before I must leave this world. I want you to know that I consider it a blessing and an honor to have been able to create this gown for you to wear as your life is blessed - as your parents ask God to watch and protect your spirit as much as they will endeavor to watch and protect your body.

I claimed a Bible verse to embroider into your slip as you are the first baby to wear it. Psalms 91: 11 reads: “For He hath given His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.”

This is my prayer for you, Liam. I wish it for all the babies that wear this gown. May God watch over you, bless you and keep you, now and always.

Love, Aunt Donna Liljegren

It's probably just as well that I wasn't in Minnesota yesterday. Watching my niece and her husband, standing beneath the same arbor that sheltered them as they exchanged their wedding vows - now sheltering them as my great-nephew was baptized in the gown I made for him. It would probably have had me bawling my eyes out.

I hope your Sunday was blessed, too.

In case you weren't here for the making of Liam's christening gown, here's the link to the photo album with captions to explain.

Liam's Christening Bonnet...

Can't you almost see a baby wearing this?
I love making baby bonnets for just that reason.
Made to match Liam's christening gown and coat,
I also added the beaded duppioni and handmade
silk roses to the baby bonnet. All the handsewing
was done with vintage silk thread for an extra special touch.

Making baby clothes makes me smile, and
making heirloom baby clothes reminds me that what I'm
creating will be loved and worn again long after I'm gone.

Some great-great-great-great niece will look at this christening set
years from now, and wonder about the hands and heart of the woman
who created this for their baby to wear. Perhaps I should include a
current photograph of me, along with a short biography so
that she will know what I did in 2010 for the love of my family.
I think I will.

You can continue to leave comments on yesterday's post
if you'd like to be entered in my surprise drawing for the
Pin Converter.
I'll be drawing the name of one lucky winner at 10 pm tonight
and will post the winner's name in tomorrow's post.
Good luck everyone!

Please, Let Me Explain...

All photos used with the gracious permission of

Jan Moore, owner of Bessie Mary blog and shop

I feel the need to explain why you haven't seen the

baby bonnet for Liam's christening gown ensemble yet.
Really, I have a good reason.

I laid out all the fabric I had saved for this project before
I started cutting any of the garment pieces from it.
I was sure I'd be able to squeak a matching baby bonnet
from what I had. I was wwr...wwr...wrong.
There, I've said it.
I. Was. Wrong.

I contacted the Tampa shop (Couture Fabric and Designs)
where I purchased the original fabric in the champagne color,
and sweet Sandy asked me to send a sample to her to be sure
we matched it. I sent the sample off that day and she
called me back first thing Tuesday morning to tell me she'd
have the fabric in her shop by Wednesday
and would send it back out to me right away.

I'm still waiting for it.
Tick...Tock...
I have enough fabric from the original project to make
most of the bonnet from what I had, but I need
just a tad more to be able to finish it. I hope it arrives tomorrow.
I'd really like to make the bonnet by the end of the weekend
and share my finished ensemble with you.
I know that you're loving the sweet bonnets I've
shared with you today. They're quite sweet, aren't they?
Click on Jan's header image above to visit her
beautiful and inspirational blog.

This is one talented lady, and if you have a new baby
in your family or your future, please visit her shop,
Bessie Mary
to see more of her lovely offerings.

Thank you, Jan, for allowing me to use your images,
and to crow about your breathtaking talent, too!

Liam's Ensemble, Part II...

Yesterday yielded a nearly completed coat for

the christening gown ensemble.
I put it on the hanger over the gown to show you.

I began the morning by cutting the beaded silk duppioni
for the overlay on the sleeves. I wanted to mimic the mutton
sleeves from Mama's wedding gown on Liam's coat, but
didn't think they needed to be "poufy" like Mama's.
(You can see what I'm talking about in the previous post.
Just look at the wedding gown photo to see the sleeves.
Oh, and a million thanks again to Shell May for my beautiful
pincushion/scissors keep and rabbit scissors. I love them both!)

I then proceeded to hand stitch the overlays onto the sleeve.
You can't do this with a sewing machine without removing
beads that might get in the way, and then sewing the beads back on.
Either way there's going to be hand stitching, so I prefer this way.

After I sewed the rest of the coat, I attached the finished sleeves.
I even put sweet pleats on the top of the sleeves for extra room.

I pleated the front and back of the coat to match the gown.
I tea-dyed the buttons that will go on the back of the gown
and on the front of the coat. My satin buttons are white-white,
but I need them to be champagne-colored,
so into my cuppa tea they went!
This is what they look like "before" and "after" the process.
They're sitting on a piece of the fabric they need to match.
I did this when I made the wedding gown, too!
I'll be hemming sleeves and hemlines while the buttons dry.
Today, I'll be making the monogrammed slip which
little Liam will be wearing under the ensemble.
I've chosen a soft, breathable, Egyptian cotton for the slip.
Baby needs to be comfortable when he's all dressed up!

Finally, thank you so much for your kind comments.
I really appreciate reading what you think!

Don't forget to click on the images if you want to see them better!

A Prayer In Every Stitch...

Today, I will begin making the christening gown

for my great nephew, Liam...
the newest baby of our family.

As I said in a previous post, I planned ahead for this
special project, by purchasing extra fabric when I created
his mother's wedding gown in 2008.
This way, mama's gown can stay intact to be worn by a future bride.

In addition to using this meaningful surplus fabric, my
plan is to recreate the design features from the wedding gown
as I stitch love and faith into their heirloom christening gown.

A prayer in every stitch.
And so it begins...

P.S. The Charlotte Stone Crabs won their game last night. (11-8) We had a ball! (no pun intended) The perfect end to a wonderful Date Day!