a slight delay...

After telling everyone the shop was going to open last week, some things have changed and I have decided to open the shop Thursday, May 3rd instead! Sorry for the slight delay! I have two sets of company coming this weekend through Wednesday, so I have decided not to over stress this and just pospone the shop opening date. Hope you guys don't mind too terribly! xo

p.s. The fabric in the first photo is the yellow colorway for the rose linen dress. I'm planning to make that up for the shop as well.

SS 2012

Here is the look book for spring/summer 2012. All the photos and short film were taken by my brother, John Allen. Hope you all enjoy! Shop is opening very soon... I am working as fast as I can to get everything ready!

I also updated the old website, though we didn't have much time to give it a facelift, so I'm afraid all that will have to come a bit later. I'm going to enlist my husband's help (Jed writes code for a living!) because it has been years since I dabbled with html and all that. And while I realize I need to learn it all again, it will help immensely to have someone by my side helping me all of the way (thank you sweetheart)!! Please feel free to check out my website nonetheless. I did update with a few new links and pictures. www.annaallenclothing.com

P.S. John used his very old film camera to take these pics (these that I've posted, and a few others). I think they are my favorite of all the photos he took!

anna allen clothing: spring & summer 2012

Here is a short film my brother, John Allen made for my spring/summer collection! I'm so thrilled to finally be able to show you all. I really think he did a fantastic job on this film! I am working on updating the shop and website this week, so keep a lookout for the shop opening! This is a fairly small collection, but I thought it would be fun to add some new pieces throughout the season. Enjoy! xoxo

spring cleaning!

Hello everyone! It has been awhile since my last post during spring break. I've been home for awhile now and have been spending my time cleaning and de-junking this place. I feel like I haven't really devoted a good amount of time on this for a couple years. I've been through two moves in just over a year and every time I moved it felt kind of rushed. Also, since I am now only making my own line of clothing and have stopped sewing historical clothing, I want to get rid of extra fabric that has been sitting around for years. I can always buy fabric if I need it, but I hate having boxes and boxes of fabric that I'll never use. So now I have a pile of boxes in the living room that need to GO. I haven't figured out quite yet how I'm going to get rid of them. Might do a little yardsale online, but we'll see. Today I'm going to clean out the closet in my bedroom and probably make a pile of clothes to get rid of as well. Maybe I will have one big yardsale. ha! Maybe it's finally time I buy myself a little cart so it's not a pain every time I hike over to the post office. Anyway, it feels so good to finally get rid of things I never use or papers that I printed long ago and have forgotten about. Having a clean place means I am more productive and a lot more happy. So I'm being ruthless with my stuff and getting rid of as much as I can.

In other news, I bought myself a new brightly colored lipstick yesterday and I must say, I think I've found my favorite lipstick! It's called "Love That Pink" in the Moon Drops line, by Revlon. It's the classic line that has been around for years and I know why! It goes on perfect and stays in place, which is a must for me, since I really haven't had a lot of experience wearing lipstick in my 27 years. :) But I want more experience with it, since I just love how it looks! It's so classic and makes me feel so pretty. That saying really is true; if you're feeling a little down, just go pick up a new lipstick and "voila!" all is well again! I think my next lipstick purchase will be from this same line. They have some really fun colors like "Persion Melon" (I've heard this is the official Pan Am girls lipstick color) and "Orange Flip". Yum!

In other news, I have been really itching to sew some clothes for myself lately. It's been far too long since I've sewn clothing for my own wardrobe. So I'm thinking a lot about that. Maybe I'll do more outfit posts on here. I need to find a better place to take pictures, though. The radiator just is not very pretty. So hopefully I'll be posting more of my own sewing adventures and not just my shop sewing!

Speaking of the shop, I have the spring line all ready, but I wanted to take a little break to clean the house, which is why I'm keeping it to myself for a bit. Also my brother John is helping me clean up my website and make it look sleek and pretty. But I think you will like what I have for spring and summer. I even have a little special something to share that my brother John put together. Can't wait to show you! More on that soon!

Have a lovely Friday and weekend! xoxo

{What I'm wearing: Lands' End Boatneck Sailor Tee, J Crew Pixie Pants, Lands' End Canvas "The Heritage" Ballet Flats, Revlon Moon Drops Lipstick in "Love That Pink" #575.}

having a wonderful time

So far our spring break has been pretty fantastic. Seeing some of our friends, hanging out with family, and revisiting our favorite spots. And the weather! Perfection!

More photos here.

spring break

I know it has been quiet around here lately, but I've been busy working on my spring summer collection in time for spring break. We are heading back to Iowa this weekend and I hope to get in a photo shoot with my brother. I didn't have time to make all that I wanted with the fabric I got, but I will probably make some new pieces throughout the spring/summer months. But I am happy with the items I did make! I was half toying with the idea of just packing the outfits and wear them myself all week, but I think I'll save them. Maybe I'll steal one of the tops, though. :)

The weather is starting to feel like spring! I think it finally is here to stay. The forecast all week looks like it will be in the 70's. Hopefully I packed appropriate clothing to wear on our trip. It seems I always pack the wrong thing! Anyway, both Jed and I really need a break from all the work we've been doing (especially Jed)! We have a whole bunch of things planned for the week. I just hope we can fit everything in! Enjoy the weather everyone! xo

jed's 26th birthday!

It's been pretty hectic around here, as usual! But we are almost ready for spring break in a couple of weeks. I have a lot of pictures to share, but I'll start with Jed's birthday. I made him cherry 'cup pies' (inspired by Pushing Daisies) and we ordered pizza. The day was pretty fantastic! I just love birthdays! And boy am I glad for Jed's. : )

Valentine's

We've been pretty busy around here lately, but we made time for Valentine's Day! It was so much fun, though we both had to get back to work afterwards. We watched an episode of Pushing Daisies season 2 while snuggling on the couch and enjoying the dinner I made. The cake was supposed to be something else, but last minute it didn't work so I just made it into half of a cake filled with 7-minute frosting and topped with a cocoa powder concoction I made up. It was originally supposed to mimic those little ding dongs (is that the name?), you know the little cakes with the creamy filling. Anyway, this worked out just as good I think. Jed liked it anyway, and that's who I was making it for! Hope everyone had a special day, even those who don't/didn't celebrate the lovey dovey holiday. I used to not like it so much, but I've since been converted. It has turned into one of my favorite holidays! I wonder how that happened...? ;) xoxo

p.s. someone notified me awhile ago that their comment never showed up. please let me know [gracefullady at gmail dot com] if you are having issues with commenting. i'm not really sure why that would happen. :/