Last September the lovely woman, Jenner, who cuts my hair asked me where she could find a one-of-a-kind baby dress for an Orthodox Greek baby baptism. She explained how she and her husband had been asked to be the God Parents for this sweet little girl. After just having completed my two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I had some time on my hands. I asked her to explain a little more about it, and thought it sounded like a fun project for me.

I’ve made numerous baby blessing dresses through the years, and I wanted to help her. I asked her to text me some pictures of ideas she was thinking of, and the project took off from there. I have always loved the Greek culture here in Utah. They honor and respect family and celebrate BIG – which I also LOVE!

What started out as a sweet little dress turned into a lace, and Dupioni silk, beaded creation with two removable skirts – one 39” long for the baptism itself, and a short 12” one to change this precious one year old into for the luncheon afterward. I had never done removable skirts before but soon figured out the best way to make them work using large snaps on the waistbands of the skirts and the little romper I made to attach them to.

The LIGHT I felt as I worked on the pieces for this baptism was tangible!

In addition to the dress with two skirts, I also had the honor of creating a bonnet, tiny shoes, a soft blanket with beading on one side, and a “Saranoni” blanket on the other that I unpicked to use.

https://saranoni.com/products/lush-receiving-blanket?Color=Buttermilk Comfort and softness were paramount in all the items that would be against Maria’s skin.

Salt Lake City used to have some incredible fabric stores that carried high end clothing fabrics. Sadly, through the years, almost all these stores have closed. The lace I used came from “Lace & Company” https://laceco.com that I bought before they closed their brick-and-mortar store well over 20 years ago. Sue Mohlman still has an online store she runs out of her home with fine laces and linings. I ordered the blush silk Dupioni fabric from “NY Designer Fabrics.” They had so many pink options to choose from I ordered samples and took them to Jenner to choose the one she liked the best. https://nydesignerfabrics.com/collections/silk-dupion/products/cream-pink-dupioni-silk-fabric With JoAnn’s Fabric and Craft stores closing I had a difficult time finding thread and zippers. “Wawak,” an online sewing notions store in Nevada had what I needed and shipped it all quickly! They have been in business since 1907 and have just about anything you need to sew with, at competitive pricing as well. https://www.wawak.com/zippers/pant-skirt-dress/nylon-coil/ykk-3-nylon-coil-non-separating-zipper/#sku=nz2514851 I used to use muslin from the fabric store to make a mock-up to fit my high-end customers with that I used to sew for years ago. This too is hard to come by here in Utah, but I have discovered I can buy a flat sheet from Walmart for $14 and accomplish the same thing. With no margin for error on this project, I made a romper, hat, short skirt, and booties to fit sweet little Maria who is a year old now, but oh so tiny at 18 pounds.

I couldn’t start the fitting of her clothing until the end of January because babies grow so quickly. But I had a couple of other projects to complete as well.

Everyone who attended the baptism received a “witness pin” signifying they had been a witness to the baptism.

I made about 160 of these. I did some research after talking to Jenner, and came up with these pins made from blush colored silk velvet ribbon rosettes to match Maria’s dress, my favorite blush and gold edged “Studio Carta” ribbon made in Italy, https://studiocartashop.com/products/drittofilo-ribbon-grande-spool-of-218-yards?variant=39429086412883 handmade beaded strawberries also from the silk velvet ribbon but in burgundy, an evil-eye bead – known in many religions to ward off evil spirits, a tiny bead with crosses around it that I threaded hand-made silk embroidery tassels up through.

To finish it off, we added a sweet little “M” charm to honor sweet Maria’s name.

All the dangle accessories on these pins were attached by using heart shaped chain links, and jump rings secured underneath the tiny strawberry.

I finished the back with a soft faux blush leather using scalloping shears to make the edge nice, and high-quality bar pins to be kind to the clothing of those who wore the pins after the baptism.

Because these pins were entirely hand-sewn, it took me from September into February to finish them. It’s been a long time since I’ve sewn this way, and I enjoyed pulling out all my hand-sewing techniques to make these items.

Silk embroidery floss from “The Needlepoint Joint” in Ogden, Utah, https://needlepointjoint.com/products/splendor-a?variant=20359274947 mother-of-pearl oat shaped beads, Austrian crystal beads in blush, and petite glass seed beads made in Japan.

Jenner gave me some free license to design this with her input, and we met along the way to make sure everything was turning out just right.

In addition to the clothing and blanket, I also had the opportunity to embellish the sacred candles used in the ceremony.

One of the things important to Jenner was incorporating some of the scraps from the alterations of her own wedding dress into Maria’s little dress. I chose to make two pins for the waistbands on the long and short skirts. This way, as Maria gets older, she can take those off and wear them as a life-long treasure from Jenner, her Godmother.

Ron and I delivered the items to the Church the night before the baptism. It was such a blessing to be invited back the following day to witness the baptism and be part of the luncheon which Maria’s mother, Georgiann, and grandmother put together.

Georgiann loves strawberries, and the theme carried through the entire baptism. She is also an incredible baker and cook! The Greek people know how to host a party!

One of the things I learned is that Maria will wear her baptism dress to communion the next few weeks following the baptism. So instead of it being a one-and-done celebration, it continues on afterward. One of my favorite quotes from Abraham Lincoln is regarding religion. “Whatever you are, be a good one.” The Greek Orthodox community loves God, and Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. They live it every day of their lives.

It was such an honor for me to be a small part of helping Jenner’s dreams as Maria’s Godmother come to fruition! Jenner and her husband will be a key part of Maria’s life as she grows up. This isn’t something taken lightly. I really admire how they embrace the idea of “It takes a village” to raise a child up in the ways of God.

I will treasure the memories and connections with these lovely people that I got to meet for the rest of my life! The challenge for this week is to reach out beyond our own beliefs and learn more about the people who live in our neighborhoods. There are a lot of people out there sharing LIGHT, Love, Hope and Joy!!! I’m so grateful for the Light-Givers! This sweet little child holds a piece of my heart! Thank you so much to the Pauls and Petrogeorge families.

Have a great week! Love Ya, Les 😊

Faith

Orthodox Greek Baby Baptism Dress and Accessories