Giveaway!!!

The giveaway has finished

Hello readers! Great news! I am having yet another giveaway to celebrate new beginnings. I have an awful lot of past stock sitting in the office, things I have made that have not gone on sale. These accessories are all made with love but I have decided to move with my business and develop a new path.

I want to celebrate this with you all by giving you a chance to win lots of goodies! This is a chance to win something I made when I started out and began dreaming of starting my own business.

I want to thank you all for reading and supporting my blog this last year and I hope you enjoy whatever comes next.

Pink & white brooch! Pink skull fascinator! Skull earrings! Pink skull hair slides! Wowza!

How to enter

Simply leave a comment below

Extra entries

1) Follow me on Twitter

2) Follow my blog through Google Friend Connect, RSS or BlogLovin

3) Share this giveaway via Facebook, Twitter or your blog

4) Like me on Facebook

Please make sure you leave a comment for all extra entries.

The deadline date for this giveaway is the 14th May 2012! The giveaway is open worldwide! Hooray! I will choose the winner at random and announce the winner right here on my blog! I will contact you directly if I can or please check back here on the 14th to see if you have won!

Good luck!

Abbey

x

My Weekend In a Photographic Nutshell

I Love Dress Making

I thought I would share some photos of this week’s dressmaking adventures. I love making clothes but it is extremely tiring at times so I don't do it very often. I have gained skills over the years which have become extremely useful in making my own clothes. I remember when I made my first skirt, it was a complete disaster, however I learnt a lot from my mistakes and the skirt turned out well. Looking back I do laugh at some of the things I have made. My best advice for anyone wanting to start making clothes is to take a class! Books are great but having someone there to guide you is invaluable. If you can't afford to attend a class (they can be pricey on top of materials) then it’s best to use YouTube! I recently needed to refresh my concealed zip knowledge and found a great tutorial to help me. 

The blue dress was made one afternoon after a trip to my favourite shop for a zip. I ended up leaving with a big bag of fabric! Whoops! I love vintage fashion and as you can see the two dresses below are very 1950s in style. I find it really difficult to find clothes I like at an affordable price, so making my own is a great alternative. Dress making can be expensive but if you're clever about where you shop and what fabrics you you use, you can make savings. My top tip is to try and recycle fabric, zips and buttons from old clothes if you can. I have been pretty lazy with that recently, giving my clothes to charity when I moved house. 

The cream dress was made for a photo shoot I am going to do soon. I make bridal accessories and I needed a dress for a model to wear. I spied a dated wedding dress in need of TLC in a charity shop recently and even that was £100. I can't afford to buy a dress or even hire one, so I made one which was actually a really good idea! It fits the style of my future brand and I made it for around £20! It is made from satin and has spotty lace type fabric over the top which reminds me of my Mum’s wedding dress. Ohw I love how a basic cut can look so stylish and chic! 

I managed to make two dresses for around £40! Kaaapowww! I doubt I could buy on decent dress for £40! 

Abbey

x

Unique Bride Magazine

It's here! Since I stumbled across 'Unique Bride' I have been looking forward to getting my hands on a printed copy of the magazine. I am not getting married but I have a keen interest in bridal fashion. I have recently been working on my own bridal range and have needed a great magazine to give me some idea of my target market. I dislike the usual bridal magazine in the shops, full of weddings that look clean cut and frankly quite boring. 

I have never conformed to 'the norm' always dreaming of celebrating my future special day in my own unique way. I am over the moon that I am not the only one and it has all been laid out in this fantastic magazine!

From the first page I began to get excited, reading the editor's intro I could tell that this magazine was for girls who have felt pressured to conform to others expectations. It's a magazine to inspire people to do things their way, to get ideas and find their own wedding style. 

Flicking through the magazine my eyes were darting around the page. It is full of fantastically bright and interesting photos of weddings, gowns, accessories and fabulous ideas for your big day. I don't want to give too much away because you won't get the same surprised and excited feeling as I did. If I was getting married this would be the perfect reference for my big day. Ok, so some people may think it's a little far out and non-traditional but that's the best thing about it! Why can't you have a non-traditional or traditional wedding? Keep the church but wear something different or have your wedding in a random place? Do what makes you happy the magazine screams! Brides of Britain! I urge you to go out and get a copy of 'Unique Bride', You won't be disappointed! 

***

Find Unique Bride Magazine in WH Smiths Or Online 

Abbey x

New Fascinator!

This week I have been working on a new fascinator. I was sitting here one night watching Alien3 slowly getting bored (lets face it Alien is the only good one) and I started putting this together. I often sit in front of films and put together pieces like this, I find it calming and a great bad film distraction. This fascinator is extremely versatile, it could be for brides, a day at the races, prom or even just to add a little something to an outfit. I love glamour and I want the women wearing my designs to feel as beautiful as Elizabeth Taylor or Marilyn Monroe. 

The fascinator has a black base which is adorned with luxurious organza corsages and beads. The netting is a light beige colour and covers the face to add a vintage touch. 

My Birthday Week

New Dress

I had a fabulous birthday full of fun trips and presents! I usually get depressed around my birthday, a habit I have had since I was a child. I have had some great birthdays and some rotten ones, the bad ones always overshadowing the good. The last few years have been fab since I met my boyfriend Dan, but not having a big circle of friends can make these special times tough. I am fortunate to have a crazy fun family who make my birthday at home super special but we are missing some members of the family as they live on the other side of the world.

The Royal Academy

This year I planned (by accident) a big birthday fest! My birthday celebrations began by going to the David Hockney exhibition with my Dad. It was fantastic! I love Hockney and the new exhibition was extremely moving and a celebration of the seasons. We left the Royal Academy and had a lovely dinner before running for the train.

Us

Duck!

My actual birthday was a chilled out day with Dan watching movies. I filmed a cooking tutorial for my food blog Miss Dolly Cooks The Blues. We had a lovely dinner with a nice bottle non alcoholic wine to wash it down with. I needed to relax to prepare for the next part of my birthday.

My Cake

Vintage!

Sunday we made our way to my parents for a family dinner and cake! Cake! My mum is amazing at baking and has been taking cake decorating classes. Ever since I was a child my mum has made big elaborate cakes for our birthdays and this year she made me a yummy metal inspired one. The Victoria sandwich had fresh strawberrys between the sponges, and yes I ate a a lot of it all by my self (whoops). I was lucky to receive some amazing gifts and I feel incredibly spoilt! My birthday was a success! I am so so glad I managed to enjoy my birthday without ruining it for myself and everyone else trying their hardest make me happy. Thank you everyone!

Abbey 

x

Evangeline Veil Video!

Evangeline veil in more detail 

Abbey

x

Evangeline Veil

Finally, Evangeline is finished! After a week of stabbing my fingers and sweat dripping from my forehead, the veil is finally finished!

I sewed every little bead on by hand with a great deal of patience, which is unusual for me. I sat on my bum for days and days sewing, listening to my vintage playlist and watching cheesy movies.

I love sewing but it's hard on my body, this project took everything I had and more! I am extremely happy with the result and I cannot wait for it to go to a new home (it will be on sale very soon). I hope you like my new veil as much as me!

Super Weaver!

Work Update

Hello! I have been working extremely hard these last few weeks on my new bridal collection. I have been surrounded by Tulle, ribbon and beads! I have been posting up photo updates recently so I thought I would share some photos of my new project Evangeline.
Evangeline is a headband veil adorned with petals and pearls. I still have a lot more beading to do! Golly! I will be doing a photo shoot in a few weeks and my new work will be on sale shortly after that... Yesss!

Bridal Wear!

New work!

I have been working on this bridal headband/belt for a week or so. It is made from organza petals which are adorned with many different beads and pearls. The headpiece is tied to the head or waist with a long satin ribbon which looks extremely elegant and luxurious. 

Abbey x

My Vintage Playlist

A beautiful playlist for making your vintage crafts! 

Dinah Washington- What A Difference A Day Makes

Billie Holiday- Billie's Blues

Fred Astaire- The Way You Look Tonight

Doris Day- The Black Hills Of Dakota

Edith Piaf- La Vie En Rose

Marilyn Monroe- I Wanna Be Loved By You

Louis Armstrong- Summertime

Nina Simone- Feeling Good

Marilyn Monroe- One Silver Dollar 

Dinah Washington- Cry Me A River

Billie Holiday- As Time Goes By

Marilyn Monroe- Diamonds Are A Best Friend

Etta James- At Last 

Peggy Lee- Fever

Dinah Washington- Teach Me Tonight

Marilyn Monroe- Some Like It Hot

Doris Day- The Deadwood Stage

Judy Garland- Over The Rainbow

Marilyn Monroe- A Little Girl From Little Rock

Judy Garland- (Dear Mr. Gable) You Made Me Love You

Billie Holiday- Strange Fruit

Dina Washington- Embraceable You

Marilyn Monroe- River Of No Return

Edith Piaf- Hymne A L'Amour

Dina Washington- Mad About The Boy

Enjoy!

Abbey x

Competition time! Banner Wanted!

Designers Wanted! 

I have been taking a lot of time out to re-brand Doll Doll Dolly and I have come to a bit of a stand still. I want to make my blog into my DDD vision, but unfortunately I don't have the skills or tools to do so. I am looking for a someone to design me a banner! Students! Looking for a project for your portfolio? Are you keen graphics nerd? Want something creative to do in your spare time? Well, this is perfect! I can't pay you unfortunately as I am a struggling designer, but I will throw in some goodies and write a big piece on you and your work! Ooo maybe you have a blog I can promote! 

The brief

To design a banner for my fashion label inspired by vintage fashion! Specialises in bridal wear and retro pin up day wear. My label was inspired by a very special lady who was glamorous and full of life! I want the banner to have spirit, style, elegance and to really show my customers what my brand represents. Below I have added a collage of photos which may help inspire you. 

My business cards!

Key words

Pin up

polka dot

Bridal

Pearls

Vintage

Beads

Diamonds

Elegant

Veils

Head pieces

Luxury 

Red lip

Old school tattoos

Fashion!
Fancy writing like my banner!

I will review all the entries and post my three favourites on my blog with a small paragraph about each one. I want to get my readers opinions on which one they think suits my blog. If you win I will write a post on you and your design, advertise your blog/website (if you have one) on my side bar and send you a few goodies. 

I hope this post has given you designers inspiration! If you want to ask me anymore questions please feel free to contact me via email mail@dolldolldoll.com

Good Luck!

Abbey x

My Creative Week In Photos

Monday Morning Blues.

The start of a new project

I love my job sometimes 

Creative Coffee <3

Almost finished!!!

Detail