Well, the end of August and school starting back up for the little ones usually marks the beginning of our Fall season...can you believe it? I hope you all got to soak up the sun this summer -- I know we did!!! But, Fall is still one of my favorite times of the year, so I'm welcoming it with my arms wide open!

This Fall season, design wise for our Ballerina collection, I decided to do something out of my comfort zone...you might find it hard to believe, but I have never designed anything in what you might call "Christmas colors". And I know that's what many of you have been wanting...and waiting very patiently for me to make that mental switch haha. Last Fall season (if you can remember that far back!), I got closer with our Raspberry Jam and Peacock Blue here, both jewel tones...but this year, we have a gorgeous shade of burgundy we named "Winterberry", and a deep hunter green called "Spruce". Oh, and let's not forget "Powder"! It is similar to Marshmallow from two Fall seasons ago, except the tulle layers are all ivory, no gold lurex tulle in the midst -- so it'll look more pristine than with a gold undertone. 

We also opted for a constellation of gold (halo-like) sequin stars, rather than the star/moon/sun larger sequins that we had the last two years. I like how dainty these stars look and also are quite sparkly! I've been calling them galaxy sequins internally. 


 You can wear them matching with your littles, or, mix and match! 


Aren't these girls so lovely?!
Also, momma's this year get a matching ballerina tulle skirt in a midi length! I have no lifestyle photos to share of these yet, but believe me, they are stunning! We will be sharing more as we receive the photos...so stay tuned! 

I hope you will love our new Fall Ballerina collection as much as we do! I hope you will see and feel the quality of our pieces -- each piece is meticulously hand cut and sewn by our expert team in San Francisco.

Can't wait to see photos of you and your families this season! Be sure to tag #elestory on social so we can see!

xx,
Judy

Designer/co-founder
EleStory

P.S. Special thanks to...
Brittany from @raisingwildones (mama with two girls), @Jennifermartinphotography (mama with girl in spruce),               
Meshea @olivegrayphotography,
and last but not least, my beautiful friend @Jessesalterphotography (mama with girl in Winterberry)

I am so excited to show you our newest Mommy and Me collection: Summer Florals! From conception to finish, this collection took nearly a year to get the fabrics just right (the right shade of blue, the right embroidery, the right fabric weight, etc)!

We're taking pre-orders for these beauties HERE, and are working on cutting and sewing this month! These will ship week of June 4, 2018 (just in time for my Hawaii vacation hahaha. kidding but not ;)...).

I have always loved this maxi dress design on little girls - so for this year, I've altered the strap details on these but kept the basic silhouette the same. But for full disclosure, we essentially redid the entire pattern just to add a new 6/9m size!! Now you don't have to wait until she's bigger to match mama (you're welcome!). ;) And while I was at it, I added some length to the larger girl sizes from last year's similar style (8/9 and 10/12), since so many of your girls are so tall!

And mommas this year will have an Off-Shoulder dress or blouse to choose from - I actually always envisioned this women's piece the minute I was inspired to make this embroidery design. Also, the decision to cut a few blouses (other than they are super versatile!) was primarily motivated by wanting to reduce our environmental fingerprints - we would take any large remnants from cutting the dresses and make as many blouses as we can, and any small amount that's left usually go towards local non-profits or organizations that do creative reuse with children.  - just a little part that we do to try to help Mother Earth.The twirls are a real spectacle on these dresses! Each dress literally requires 2-3 yards of fabric to create - we know we can't skimp on the full twirl effect and let your littles down! 
So twirl away - the custom embroidery details on these are incredibly beautiful. I cannot wait for you to see them in person soon.

I used soft Petersham ribbon for the shoulder straps -- they are softer than grosgrain ribbons even though they have the appearance of grosgrain - they should be nice and comfy on your littles' sensitive skin. Design wise I'm really happy about how they turned out - I wanted to create something a little bit more playful and delicate for your littles - the ribbon ties add a nice touch for when they are frolicking around! 

So, I'm curious - which one is your favorite? Black Petunia or Blue Bonnets (inspired by Kortnee, my talented photographer friend @tumblingsparrow, the talent behind all of these --and even shot some of these in the Texas Blue Bonnets field)?

P.S. We're having a giveaway on both Instagram and Facebook for commenting on which one is your favorite -- so go check us out there and be entered to win one!
I personally can't choose if you ask me...but I do feel like I am ever so slightly partial to the Black Petunia - because I love how striking the black is on the ivory. And black is not a color that I've typically designed with for EleStory, so it's a bold move for me, haha! 

I love how these sisters look in their dresses! So dreamy...

Thank you for continuing to support our handcrafted in California clothes for women and littles - I can't wait to see you in our newest Summer Florals collection - please tag us when you do!

xx,
Judy

Special lifestyle photography credit goes to my friend Kortnee @tumblingsparrowphotography
Styled stills Jonothan @woodwardphotography