And the Winner is....

It's been such a busy and productive week. I had given myself until the end of the month to finish my Fall 2010 collection, but then I found out that Ashley was going to go back to London and I only had a few more days to do the photo shoot. I wanted to do it Monday since it was a Holiday and that would give me the weekend to finish, but the rain was coming so it was a race against time to do it on Saturday.

I had all the sketches, fabrics and some of the clothes done. But, I changed my mind so many times, narrowing things down was not easy and a few problems with the dye house just made things a little harder. I was going a little crazy, but it was so much fun! This collection is bigger than any I've done so far; more fabrics, more prints, more styles and the colors...I can't wait to show you!

The girls were all adorable, the clothes looked amazing and we all had a great time at the shoot. I loved seeing the proud moms and the exited little girls as they wore the clothes, they were all so sweet, helpful and willing to work with me on such short notice.

With the collection and photo shoot done, I slept so much better Saturday night. My brain stopped thinking about ruffles, colors for the twirl skirts, leggings and buttons (for a few days at least). It was a restful night and I needed it, being 30 weeks pregnant I'm already up enough if you know what I mean.

Now what you've been waiting for, this give away was a lot of fun, reading the comments was so cool. I love learning what everyone favorites are and to be honest, who doesn't love a compliment?

Now drumroll please!!! The winner of my 1st Give Away is:

James, Kitty and Charlotte Murray

Congratulations!!

(Please email me your mailing info)

Thank you all for the sweet comments, I really appreciate your support and compliments. I will have more give aways soon. I'm also planning of making one of a kind items, I still love sewing and designing things outside the collections. I will be showing those items only in my blog and list them for you to purchase from here only.

I hope you all have a great week and keep in touch!

First Give Away!!

So today I woke up before the alarm went off, this happens a lot when I'm working on something new. At the moment I've been trying to get my Fall 2010 line finalized and I have a million ideas in my head that I can't turn off at night, so they wake me up! I know it sounds crazy, but is the truth. I'll give you a sneak peak soon of what's been keeping me up at night.

Anyways, I've been thinking of giving away some of the new Spring 2010 designs that are coming in and I decided to do it today; is early, I saw this beautiful sunrise from my backyard and it put me on a giving mode :), isn't that pretty?

Here is the deal: There are 5 outfits in the new Spring 2010 collection.

All you have to do is to go to my site www.alejandrakearl.com then to Collections -> Look Book Spring 2010 and pick 2 of your favorite outfits from my Spring 2010 collection (not summer 2010, that will be a later give away) and then leave a comment on this post with your favorite items and size before Sunday January 16th. If you win, you will get the outfits you picked!

To double the chance of winning, please help me spread the word by writing a post about this give away on your blog, and then leave a separate comment. We will put your name in twice.

The lucky winner will be randomly selected. We will announce the winner of this give-away on the morning of Monday January 17th. So don't forget to come back and check! Free Continental US shipping only.

P.S the gift box picture at the top is from Martha Stewart.com, I'm not really going to wrap the winner's box like that... wish I could ;)

The New designs are finally here! Part I

I've been waiting for these boxes to arrive and they are finally here!

The design and manufacturing process can be very long, I started working on these Spring 2010 designs back in June 2009, I only had samples to use for the photo shoot with Ashlee Stalker from White Balance back in August, and I've been anxiously waiting to see them all finished since then.
The funnest part of the process is designing, picking colors, fabrics, sketching, making samples. The manufacturing process, not so fun, I'm trying to be positive here because I love what I do, but sometimes I wish it were easier, it's hard for me to have to someone make them all (giving up control), but I realize I can't make them all.

It is so nice to finally see my designs, the hand embroidery is beautiful, the fabrics soft and colors perfect. They are all neatly packaged, with tags on and in so many sizes, I love it!
The work is not done, now we have to check each piece to make sure they are all perfect, then pack them up and ship them off to boutiques. I'm still waiting for a few more designs and sizes to arrive, but I'm thankful that I can do it in stages.

People often ask me how I started designing girls clothing. Many children's clothing designers have started their companies because they couldn't find clothes that they loved for their babies. Since I have 2 boys and I mainly design/make girls clothing I can't say that.
My business started with my need to create something pretty, to use my imagination and put all those ideas that are constantly in my head to use (I seriously dream of color combos, dress patterns and twirly skirts). I love starting something and at the end of the day have something done that I can say "look what I've made today" it makes me feel productive.
Most of my jobs as a mom are great and very fulfilling, I would not change staying home with them for anything, but then we have all the extras that even when you are done doing them it feels like you've done nothing, because it has to be done all over again the next day, you know what I mean?
So, that's how Alejandra Kearl Designs started about 5 years ago; making blankets, bibs, dresses. Is being growing little by little, in between naps, meals, lots of late nights and now after the boys are of to school is when I get to create this little line I love so much. My husband, family, friends and neighbors are all very supportive and it helps me stay positive and moving forward.

Here are some pictures of some beautiful little girls wearing the designs that have arrived:





And here are 2 more designs that I'm making and are almost done:


I have to tell you that the moms were a huge help in the photo shoot, their little girls are all so pretty, nice and natural around the camera that things went pretty fast that day.
Thanks again Ashlee, Lynsey and Robin for letting me "borrow" your cuties!

Boys and Scissors

Nico is my oldest, he has always liked crafts, and cutting paper is one of his favorites.
When he was 2 and I was nursing his younger brother Joey, he went into our guest room and gave my porcelain horse a haircut (the horse being an anniversary present from my husband, custom made with real horse hair), I was so upset I didn't know if I should laugh or cry, I think I did both. A few years later he tried to give his brother a haircut, I stopped that before he was able to do any real damage. He had never attempted anything like it since, it's been a few years and he is generally a very good boy.
But yesterday, after I had to change their clothes twice due to getting wet and then muddy outside, I gave them each a long bath. I was in the middle of cooking dinner, tired and with a long to do list waiting for me to finish, when Nico walked in and asked me how his hair looked, it was wet and he had managed to combed it nicely, I was busy so I said "Great!"
Later on I went to their bathroom and found a trashcan full of hair clippings and scissors on the sink. I immediately asked Joey what he'd done (he's generally the one that starts trouble), but he had no clue where the hair had come from. That's when I realized Nico had done this:

As you can see he is very proud of it.

Now I have to add Barber to my to do list.

Good Bye 2009! Hello New Blog!

Thank you for stopping by my blog!

I'm Alejandra. Wife to a nice & crazy guy, mother of 2 great boys (+ one more boy on the way) and a children's clothing designer.

I love reading blogs and I've been told countless times I should really have one to share my ideas, designs and busy life. I'm finally getting the courage to write and I hope you enjoy reading about my crazy journey here in Los Angeles; trying to raise a family, grow my business and stay sane.

I will look forward to all your comments, suggestions and advice in the upcoming posts.

Thanks again!