Category Archives: DIY

I’ve always loved the movie, It’s A Wonderful Life. Not only for the lovely imagery of that era, or the sweet love story between George & Mary, or the romance of Christmas embodied in the 130 minutes of the film… but because I always dreamed of restoring an old house the way Mary does.

My husband & I both grew up in old homes and have decided that perhaps the layout was quite similar to each other… according to our memories and cross referencing our childhood stories. The house we live in now, is not quite an antique, but definitely old enough to need some cash thrown into it tender love. We spend many conversations speculating the most strategic ways to make it our own. It’s kind of exciting to see it slowly become a place with our fingerprints on it.

This week we had all the windows replaced. There were some that would not budge or were missing screens, so I find myself accidentally smiling as I smugly open them on purpose. Just because I can.

While the men were working on them, they put plastic over my “studio office” {another work in progress} as protection. I was forced to take a little break from work that day & treated myself to a scrumptious breakfast that included lightly toasted bread & some black raspberry jam I found last week at the farmers’ market…

I think I will need to close off the studio just a little more often. Have a lovely weekend ♥

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I’ve always been very independent, and many times I preferred to work alone than to be forced to do group projects. However, if you pair a photographer with a very talented, imaginative, DIY goddess… then it turns out to be a very {fun} productive process that I can’t wait to do more of! Sarah flew into town to visit her family and she brought some inspiration from Minnesota. And teacups. She also demonstrated step by step how she makes those insanely awesome paper flowers from her wedding {coming soon}!

She told me about her concept several weeks ago. I heard words like, rustic, flowers, teapots , Alice in Wonderland, and was completely hooked. I was so excited to see it come together and document her delicate teacup creations. I think they would also be very fitting for a bridal shower or a very sweet baby shower. These lovely DIY centerpieces are inexpensive, colorful, and the possibilities are endless:

I can just envision how much color they could add to a fall wedding…

I loved her vintage books & the idea to incorporate the playing cards as place settings. All of these elements would translate very well at the cake table too.

She traveled across the country, packed & mailed everything for the shoot, set it all up by 9 AM, and still looked so effortlessly beautiful!

I photographed everything at Aullwood Farm in Englewood, Ohio. The blue bells were in full bloom and so dreamy. I have an obsession with {photographing} flowers.

The fresh flower teacup centerpieces could serve as favors for guests or you could even request that someone plant them for the bride & groom while they are honeymooning to warmly welcome them home. Thank you so much for your ideas & coordinating every single aspect of this project, Sarah.
We need to make this a tradition! ♥

I will devote an entire post to the DIY paper flower making process, I can’t wait to make a bouquet for my office at home!

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My beautiful sister-in-law Suzanne, is having a baby this month and we threw her a baby shower this weekend. It happened to be on the same day as the super anticipated Wicked performance that we have had tickets for since last fall. I was crushed when I realized I wouldn’t be able to make it to the shower, but I was able to go up early & spend some time with my family in Findlay. I came out of cake baking “retirement” and baked the baby shower cake at my parents’ house. It was great cooking in my mom’s kitchen! I had help with Kevin, access to my mom’s stocked pantry for last minute substitutions {who has Trader Joe’s Lemon Curd unopened just laying around?}, all the extra KitchenAid mixing bowls I could ever ask for {thanks to my dad who has worked with them for years}, and it also meant transporting the delicate cake a minute up the road instead of driving cautiously for two hours!

I don’t plan on updating my other blog, Military Spice anymore. I have to admit I miss food photography. I love it.

I usually try to brainstorm ideas for cakes early in advance, but it’s been very busy. I only had 24 hours to sketch, gather supplies, bake, assemble, and decorate the cake {and cupcakes}. I was inspired by cakes I found on Flickr, it never fails to give me unique ideas.

The monkey, green pillow & tag were last minute additions. They helped bring some color to the cake that fit my color palette. I had tried to incorporate some yellow as the crib sheet color, but I added too much gel & it was almost fluorescent! I covered that layer with white fondant & I’m not sorry.

This is kind of what it’s like when you become a mama… your baby puts the world into focus.
It becomes easy to make decisions because you can see what matters & what can wait…

Best wishes to Sam & Suzanne as they welcome this baby boy soon!

Next I’ll talk about seeing Wicked at the Schuster Center in Dayton. I made the mistake of reading & falling in love with the books first…

{The “Subscribe by E-mail” option for getting notifiications when there are new posts is finally working!}

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  • alli/hooray - March 1, 2010 - 12:38 pm

    Andrea, this is the most amazing thing! I am completely in awe right now of your talents.

  • Amy Hahn - March 1, 2010 - 1:02 pm

    What a great cake!!!

  • jan - March 1, 2010 - 3:46 pm

    The Art of Baking…. beautiful bakery & images… and may I add that I, too, keep Trader Joe’s Authentic Lemon Curd in my pantry. Your mom has good taste, too… literally. Glad to see you’re reaching back as well as forward in your art.

  • Ashley - March 10, 2010 - 7:32 am

    These pictures are amazing!!!

  • Nathaniel John Bell | Dayton, OH Newborn Portrait Photographer » Andrea Dozier | Boutique Photography - April 20, 2010 - 9:32 am

    […] brother Sam just became a dad! It seems like yesterday that we were throwing his wife, Suzanne, a baby shower. Nathaniel arrived on March 15 in the wee hours of the morning. I am so honored to introduce him to […]

Finally starting my Wives of Faith Christmas Blog Carnival…

It turns out that Saturday is not a very good day to start a blogging series. After spending all morning in the kitchen baking, the afternoon at a photo shoot, then the evening enjoying my in-laws’ Christmas party… the post was never actualized. Yesterday’s topic was My Favorite Christmas Song. In all honesty, that one is a little hard to narrow down for me! Today, however, is pretty simple.

My Favorite Christmas Recipe: Sugar Cookies.

This was platter of cookies from last February, when my family celebrated Christmas {after my husband’s homecoming from Afghanistan}.

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I bake a lot of cakes & cupcakes, but sugar cookies are always a holiday staple {in fact, they are what I was baking yesterday}. My mother-in-law gave me a cookbook as a wedding present. It was a good thing too, because I had just turned 22 the day before my wedding and had no cooking experience. I was a bit overwhelmed with the big book, so I started where I felt most comfortable- desserts. At some point I tried this sugar cookie recipe, and decided I would always make them at Christmas. I love baking them when I am not rushed and Kevin can help & play in with the extra dough. I love seeing his ideas for what to make and his little creative mind at work. It can be a mess, but these cookies are always worth it!

I have started a little collection of cookie cutters. Okay, I’ll admit, it’s more of an obsession. I have a deep drawer full of them! They represent everything adorable about childhood. If you are ever looking for a little gift for me, cookie cutters & ornaments will always be cherished :]

From that same day, my husband Rocky & Kevin making shark cookies for our late Christmas.

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Sugar Cookies {from Better Homes & Gardens}:

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Beat butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping side of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour. Divide dough in half. Cover and chill dough in the refrigerator for 1 to 3 hours or until easy to handle.

2. Preheat oven to 375F. Roll each half of the dough to 1/8-inch thickness, on a lightly floured surface. Cut dough with a floured 3-1/2-inch mitten-shaped cookie cutter. Place cutouts 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

3. Bake in preheated oven about 8 minutes or until edges are set. Transfer cookies to wire racks and let cool. If desired, spread with Powdered Sugar Icing. Let stand until slightly set; pipe icing in decorative designs over iced cookies. Let stand until icing is set. Makes 36 cookies.

4. Powdered Sugar Icing: Stir together 3 cups powdered sugar, 2 to 3 tablespoons milk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a medium bowl to make of piping or spreading consistency. Divide icing and tint portions with desired food coloring. Makes about 2 cups.

5. To store: Place uniced cookies in layers separated by pieces of waxed paper in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw cookies, if frozen. If desired, spread and/or pipe icing on cookies.

Our Christmas morning tradition of homemade waffles topped with strawberries comes in a really close second…

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If you were not able to read my previous post, I am participating in a A Blogger’s Christmas via Wives of Faith. I love to write & I love Christmas, plus it’s an excuse to post some personal photography. As an Air Force wife, I also support the Wives of Faith organization & what they do to support & encourage spouses. I will continue to update my blog with weddings & photo shoots, so there may be a two posts a day at times.

Christmas is coming so soon & I look forward to the chance to reflect on Christmas topics daily… I just thought it would be a nice way to share my own thoughts & traditions from my favorite holiday :]

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  • Casey Pitts - December 13, 2009 - 3:11 pm

    Love your photos!

  • Kathryn - December 13, 2009 - 4:21 pm

    Beautiful post, love the pictures! I picked sugar cookies too! 🙂

  • Jessica - December 13, 2009 - 6:17 pm

    thanks for sharing the yummy recipe! and your pictures are great!!!!

  • Jolene - December 13, 2009 - 8:16 pm

    Your photographs are stunning! Thanks for the visuals…and the recipes too!

  • alli michelle - December 14, 2009 - 11:41 am

    I love to see your photo shoots of families & couples, so food photography & recipes are such a bonus! Loving this post. The shot of father & son is so precious.

  • Andrea - December 14, 2009 - 1:00 pm

    Thank you so much, I am enjoying this blog carnival :]

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