Urchin Re.Design, My Custom Dress

I have been in the process of planning my wedding (getting married to the lovely photographer of Vorpal Images, Kenneth Benjamin Reed) over the last few months. It is coming together quite nicely. Between the three tier custom cake made of organic and local materials, and the vintage photographer/reporter styled suit we got for Ben, it will be just fantastic. But one of my favorite parts is the fact that I am actually getting a custom dress.

I found a beautiful dress by Urchin at Flutter on Mississippi Ave in Portland Oregon last summer. I fell in love immediately. Since then, it was purchased (of course). So, when my vintage wedding dress was ruined in a mold fiasco at our last apartment, I decided to get in touch with Sonia Kasparian of Urchin Re.Design.

We talked about what I liked in the dress I saw last summer, and I brought in inspiration in the form of photos. And even though I was all over the place, she managed to come up with something I really liked. Off shoulder straps, a scooping neck and very low back with a waist tie, and a cute fluffy bottom with built in crinoline. I brought in a vintage gunne sax prairie dress I bought a few months ago at Vintage Pink! in Portland, OR. She is working her magic for sure!

Here is a sketch I made, to show you the overall gestalt.


Photos of the dress in progress....

As you can see, the back will be very low with a bit of lacing to hold it together for the built in bra. The straps will be slightly see through, and off shoulder. There will be hints of silky ribbon and just a little bit of lace. She is also adding some fun lacy materials around the shoulders and weaving in pearls and swarvoski crystals (from my great grandma, and from iceland). More photos as it is updated!

I am so excited, and dreaming of a fantastic floral wedding. We will be getting married at Leach Botanical Gardens so we will be surrounded by beautiful blooms and lots of nature including a river with a walking bridge. :)

My Wedding Wishes Coming True

Remember that post a while back about Urchin's dress found at Flutter on Mississippi? Well, when my vintage wedding dress was ruined by water damage in our apartment, I set off to find myself a new one. I ended up going with Urchin Re.Design! She is making me a beautiful, custom dress out of an old Gunne Sax I found at a local Vintage store, called "Pink!". It will have a deep scooping back, scoop neck and off shoulder straps. It will stop at the knee with a poof, having a sloping cut at the bottom toward the back. :)

Photos to come as soon as possible!

In the mean time, here are a few photo updates from Vorpal Images!








For credits and large views, please follow the links attached to the images.

My Love for Cremes & Whites

For credits, please follow the links. All photos copyright Vorpal Images 2009. All makeup and styling by Alicia Mariah Elfving.

Fur, Feathers, and a Wedding!

This weekend we have a wedding, photographing the lovely Solanah & her Husband-to-be Sam. Vintage and at a lovely location, it is sure to be completely beautiful.

Also, a cuff made by Liaison out of vintage flair, lace, and wonderful feathers. Paired with a vintage fur coat, you can't go wrong.

Eastern Escape

We had a wonderful Eastern Escape / Road Trip / Scouting Mission. So many beautiful places, interesting faces and words.

Finding Streak

As my dear friend Mishalla stated, "You're on a sweet finding streak!" and it seems that it is true!

Last week, (or was it the week before that? no matter..) on my way to school I spotted a Frocky Jack Morgan masterpiece hanging off a telephone pole. Yes, that's right, I found a work of wearable art hanging off a pole! It was hung off a lineman's stirrup, about 10 feet up. As I was late for school, I had to leave it behind.

After Pilates, I drove back before my math class. I was armed with fifteen minutes, a honda civic hatchback, and some sweet climbing abilities. When I arrived, there was parking just beneath it! I began to fish it down when I nice pastor came and assisted me. Then he blessed me and, as far as he was concerned, weird ideas... and put it in the back of my car. It filled up the whole hatchback area, including the folded down seats.

On Friday, I spotted this nice silver road bike leaning against a telephone pole on the "free corner". We call it this because it's heavily trafficked and if you leave something there, someone will grab it and take it away. Well, thinking that it was not left to be taken, I let it alone. Well, days passed and it just sat there getting rained and shined on, alternately. So I walked on over, spent a few minutes loitering and looking to give anyone an opportunity to claim it, and then rolled it home. It's a vintage (60s/70s) ladies commuter bike made it France. It needs a little work, but considering my bike was stolen a few years back, this is just amazing for me!

Also, a new photo of my new favorite model from Vorpal...

Stephanie D, Shimmer-tastic

Floofie wearing Stephanie D Couture. This whimsical golden dress glows in the sunlight like Ariel's dress as she emerged from the sea as a human.

Makeup & hair by yours truly.

Le Gasp, Wedding Wants

Yesterday I made a visit to my favorite antique clutter shop on Mississippi, Flutter. This dress, by Urchin, made me gasp. It is so beautiful. Perfectly white with out being WHITE. Lace without being too delicate. Fluffy but not too girly. Oh my goodness.

I think I found my wedding dress.

Miss Joncus

This weekend we had the pleasure to work with Larissa Joncus of Heffner Model Management in Seattle. I did a set of pin curls before the shoot so we could head to the studio (which tends to be a bit humid) so that they wouldn't fall before shooting. When we got there, they looked so good I decided to leave them for some beauty shots. The eyelashes are from Elise, and are long blonde false hair. I paired them with natural makeup that would glisten slightly on her eyes and glow on the rest of her skin.


This beautiful smile was brought on by the mention of her boyfriend. Candids are so lovely.

Today, We Weave. Or, We Have Woven?

Hair to pair with the whimsical, delicate romance of my last post...


The original braid crown that caught my eye. An updo for any occasion.


I can only imagine the total time this look took. I might be surprised, considering my personal threshold for hair details. This hair style could be paired with any outfit and look wonderful. However, let's make sure it has no potential snags, as it could cause a world of hurt.


Slick, thick hair pulled back and then wrapped with itself. Genius. Completely sleek and classy while being modern and even a bit alternative.


This reminds me, for some reason, of daisy crowns. Intricately hooked within the next piece...