Samantha just had her last Prom of High School this past weekend. We had decided that we would thrift her dress as we had others so we started a few weeks early to give ourselves plenty of time. We've had some good luck with thrifting regular items as well as special occasion dressing at this point so I thought I would share a few pointers.
1. Have an inspiration.
With special occasion dressing I think it's really helpful to have an inspiration to search for. In this case Sam was moved to search for something you would see in a movie from the 80's! We found photos of the dress from the prom scene of Footloose and the final scene of Sixteen Candles and started from there.
2. Take photos.
It's one thing looking at yourself in the mirror, but it's something else looking at a photo. There is a remove that makes it a bit easier to be objective about if a dress is working or not. We will often take a quick photo of something we are considering then delete it right away just for the moment of peeking at it.
3. Be Open to Surprises.
Though Sam was hoping for something along the lines of her inspiration pieces, we both knew that we might not find what she was hoping for. So we were both open to finding something different. This green dress was something special that we both thought might fit the bill. It was a vintage Jessica McClintock that with a little love we though could be a head turner. But we decided to look just a little bit more.
4. Bring along someone you trust.
Thrift shopping can sometimes be a tedious thing though we find it fun. It's helpful to bring along someone that has the same love for it that you do, and that can see possibility in the racks along with you. (and maybe keep you laughing as you search!)
5. Have a tailor you trust.
We found the dress that we knew would be the one with a little work (that cost $5!). We love and trust Tommy the Tailor downtown and ran it down to them immediately to make sure there would be plenty of time to get it tailored. It needed the sleeves and neckline worked on but otherwise it was ready.
6. Remember the extras
We have been really fortunate to work with Rebecca of Rebecca's Flower Shoppe and she really outdid herself for this one. Sam decide to really go for it with the Sixteen Candles look. We shared the inspiration photos with Rebecca and decided to go for a flower headband due to costs. Rebecca decided to go ahead and make Samantha the crown, and graciously gifted it to her! We were so surprised and stunned, and it just made her look that much more special!
So what do you think? Did she do it? We were pretty happy with her look! Her dress with the tailoring cost a total of $30. I love that she brought the Sixteen Candles look into the present!
Now that college is on the horizon for Sam it feels like we are checking off all the last things to do with High School. Last football game, last band trip, last spring break. This weekend will be her last Prom.
With that we started talking about what she is wanting flower wise and what she has done in the past. She pointed out that she has rarely done anything conventional and we laughed over how true that is! One of our favorites was her first homecoming dance. She was going with a group of friends and we thought it might be fun to be really different. Steve and I found a balloon man at the Bellingham Farmers Market and he was game to help! Who wouldn't love a balloon corsage?
Another very special corsage/boutonniere combination was the next year's Homecoming which Sam went to with a boyfriend. They both decided to make one another's flowers which turned out amazing! They both included little special keepsakes to each others flowers that they could keep after the flowers faded. Sam's was made with a leather bracelet and she made her date's with a special metal framing. And Sam's included plants that were actually alive, so she was able to plant them!
Sam went to a dance with the son of a friend of mine from college which was mind blowing for me! We knew he was easygoing and game for her to go really out of the box for his boutonniere. We had been noticing tropical flowers had been becoming very popular in our favorite advertising so we thought they could be an option.
We found Rebecca at Rebecca's Flower Shoppe to be incredibly game and helpful. She created the incredible boutonniere above. And she was more than helpful with Sam making her own, helping with the idea of the wire. We are working with her for this year's Senior prom and are so excited to see what she comes up with. The reveal will come soon, but until then I can show you her inspiration. A scene from 16 Candles...
It makes me feel extra sentimental, both for her and for me. This is such a throwback for my time in High School. I can't wait to see it all come together. And to see her wearing her dance flowers one last time. Anyone else feeling nostalgic?
Steve and I have had a standing date every Saturday to the Bellingham Farmer's Market. It just reopened for the season and it was time to re-institute our weekly date! Since it's Kate's 21st birthday weekend we decided to let her join us...just this once.
We are new converts to fresh eggs ever since we tried those of Steve's co-worker Matt's farm, McIntyre Family Farms so that was one of our first stops. The eggs are delicious, gorgeous and it makes us feel good knowing the farmer (and Steve is excited knowing they use Scratch & Feed Feeds...his new workplace product). It will be a weekly stop for us for sure.
Next we thought a grilled cheese sounded warming on a rainy day so we grabbed a classic from Something Cheesy. We treated Kate to a gorgeous plate from Cafe Vavilov that was almost too beautiful to eat. Kate is a vegan and it was a variety of delicious veggies and spreads.
After eating there we realized they had used Raven Breads on their plate which led us to the idea of making fancy avocado toasts so we decided to bring home our own loaf of Raven's bread and multi colored radishes.
We ended our tour of the Market with a couple of treats for Kate...a vegan cookie from Gathered Confections and a flower bouquet. It wasn't quite the date it usually is, where we have a chance to catch up with one another, talk freely about family matters, and hopefully just goof around together. But it was a wonderful time of being with Kate and hopefully making her feeling a bit loved. And the toasts we made for dinner were works of art!
I love our dates to the Market to get a chance to connect, both with each other and our community. Is there a market you like to frequent? Is there something that you like to pick up from there? Tell me what to look for!
SaveSaveSaveSave
Thanks to Steve's new job at Scratch and Peck Feeds we are all getting an education into a whole new world. We've always been interested in farms and where our food comes from. Now Steve has co-workers that own their own farms and lucky us, we get to visit!
We were invited out to "lampapalooza" at McIntyre Family Farm by Steve's co-worker Matt & his wife Jena to see all the newborn lambs! I can't think of a better way to welcome spring. Even better, it's helpful in battling the minor depression I am battling that seems to rear it's head this time of year. Family time & baby lambs here we come!
We were allowed straight into the pen with their flock of icelandic sheep with all the babies! All the animals were very calm about us being in with them and around the baby lambs.
With Matt's help and quick reflexes we were able to hold them too! They are the sweetest and just snuggle in! They were warm and sweet and hard to put down.
The lamb that Sam is holding is only two days old! The mothers are very calm about allowing us to hold the babies. They hang around nearby but show very little distress. The funniest part is when Sam got down low with them all and the lambs started trying to chew on her coat and boots!
Of course with Steve being a newbie to chicken feed we had to visit the chickens of which they have about 200! Sam was a bit terrified, especially when she paid a visit to the chicken coop and was followed by a whole crew of chickens curious about what she was doing! The McIntyre's sell their organic eggs along with various wool products at the Bellingham Farmers Market and the Queen Anne Farmers Market.
Snuggling with babies, learning about chickens and being out in the spring air (rain or not!) was the perfect antidote to any kind of lingering blues. We actually started the day with a breakfast of their eggs which may become a standard once we re-start our Saturday dates at the Market.
