Yesterday

Lady bug fat quarters

2011-10-20T18:49:00.001-06:00

I purchased a darling fabric fat quarters bundle when I was pregnant.

Playing around with them I had a t first thought to make a little quilt top.

But then I just couldn't resist the ladybugs being a little dress.

I did a little smocking in the center.

i was so proud of myself for finding floss that matched so well
then when I was done wished it hadn't matched so well
because you barely see it.

Instead of running it through a pleater I did the dot pleat method on the back of the fabric.

It was such a small area so I thought it wouldn't be too bad.

Made me glad I have my mum's pleater for big jobs though, smile!

In the back I left the skirt open and turned the edges under.

I wanted to ruffle the bum area and be able to see it.

I ran 1 1/2 inch strips through my serger to do a bound rolled edge.

Then I gathered, pinned and sewed them across the bottom.

It turned out pretty cute and my baby looks darling in it!

Shopping at Pine Needles in Utah

2011-10-05T15:59:00.000-06:00

My sisters, my mom and I went to Gardners Village in Utah.

My favorite was the shop called Pine Needles
I could have bought the entire store!
I loved every inch of that place! My goodness it was a candy store.

I know my sister and I were wishing we could some how be wealthier that minute.

Another sister and I recently went to a shop in Denver such fun.
(have to blog about that place later)
I believe this will be a new tradition to go to quilt shops on our travels.

Creating "Reminiscing" in Yellow

2011-10-05T15:38:00.000-06:00

Do you have memories of babies when you were little?

I am 6 years older than my sister C and I remember her coming home from the hospital clearly.
I also clearly remember a dress she had that was yellow with scallops across it and a little duck.
The world just doesn't make baby things like that any more

my angel baby E modeling her new dress

I found a pattern Simplicity 2392 a vintage reprint with the scallop design
and I knew what I wanted to do in an instant.

I found some lovely yellow fabrics and some lace with a vintage feeling and set to it.
I was tickles with how it turned out.

I also made a diaper cover to match and covered the bum with lace ruffles.
(The diaper cover isn't included with that pattern)

Having fun making some sweet little baby gowns.

A little Angel at our House!

2011-07-16T15:53:00.000-06:00

Here is the latest creation of mine! I think I am proudest of these creations!
First they take 9+ months to make and they turn out so-ooo cute!
So here she is in all her newborn cuteness!
Baby E!

That's right I have a 4th girl. We adore her so much already!

I think thats just what I make! So we are a family of 7 now. With our 4 girls a boy

and of course the mama and daddy!

My sister told me I did a good job taking this picture. I just took a snap shot
of my new baby on a blanket the evening we came home from the hospital.
The truth is it is a very average photo that I doctored up on my photo
editing iPhoto on my Mac. I faded the color nearly all the way and increased
the pink tones, upped the contrast, and blurred the edges.
Here is the original picture. She still looks like my cute baby, minus the glowy
whimsy the effects add.

There are lots of places that have free photo editing to try out.

I always make a duplicate to play around with first.
I play around with Picasa lots. I like to make my blog collages with Picasa.
Give it a try!

Mmmmm homemade donuts!

2011-06-17T08:42:00.000-06:00

Lately making donuts is a driving force! Perhaps because I am pregnant, LOL but it is.

I love them warm and slightly crisp form the pan and dreged in cinnamon and sugar.

I like them raised and glazed with a cup of milk. Either way I make them they are Yummy!

Here is a raised recipe glazed doughnuts

cheer up!

2011-06-09T11:04:00.001-06:00

What do you do when you have 4 lbs of fresh strawberries and you are feeling blah?
You make Chocolate Crepes and whip up some cream.
I have to say crepes are always heavenly and these chocolate ones are divine.
I used a recipe from somewhere online (just google it) it was yummy.
First I made a simple strawberry syrup (water sugar pureed strawberries, boiled)
spooned a generous amount onto the plate.
I filled the crepes with whip cream and strawberries, rolled them up putting them
onto the plate in the middle of the warm strawberry syrup and added more
cream and strawberries then drizzled dark chocolate syrup and sprinkled chocolate chips
on top! very yummy! Though my girls just ate the whip cream and left the rest.
That's okay pregnant mommy went a head and finished theirs for them.

Prairie Girls Party

2011-05-21T22:49:00.001-06:00

My Daughter L loves Little House on the Prairie. In fact all three of my girls

like to pretend they are Laura, Mary or Carrie. I had a lot of fun sewing for this party.

I made each daughter a calico dress, apron and bonnet.

Then I made bonnets for each girl to have and wear at the party. We had fun deciding

on what was a good old-fashioned treat. We choose muffins with hand shaken butter,

lemonade and and pop corn.

With candy sticks as our sugary treat, like you'd get at an old general store.

Grandma made her a divine Lemon Meringue Pie in place of a cake.

I wrapped up the gifts with brown paper and tied them with cream colored ribbons.

You might notice my muffins are in plastic bags. I was so afraid they would dry out

I didn't dare set them out in the baskets unprotected.

The girls were absolutely adorable in their bonnets! Our first game was

"Clothes Pins in a Bottle". We set up three stations and with 9 girls it was

perfectly even. The most exciting thing at first was our baby chicks in the

heated brooder. They spent at least half and hour petting and watching them.

Then we played "Button Button who got the Button".

Then we did some crafts. We made cloths pin dolls and embroidered

a monogram or initial on a hankie. I made the hankies and then with a

washable ink pen drew some cross stitch letters for the girls to sew.

It turned out to be a really fun day.

Every one took home a bonnet, clothes pin doll, wooden embroidery hoop,

personal embroidered hankie and candy sticks.

I also enjoyed the party myself. Thank you mom and fam for all the help!

Hope you enjoyed seeing our Prairie Party!

Mommy shower

2011-05-06T14:13:00.000-06:00

My sisters threw me a "Mommy Shower" to celebrate my 5th baby.

It was so nice and a true surprise. I had no idea they were up to anything.

My sisters Lorajean's Magizine and Annie Carie put it all together! So cute!

My pictures aren't nearly as lovely as my sister Lorajean's so click her link to see

her pretty pictures and read all that she created to spoil me!

Easter creations

2011-05-01T21:40:00.001-06:00

I wanted a special suit for my son this Easter.

I looked around and didn't find what I was envisioning.

Then I found a pattern that was really close!

I decided to make it in a soft blue hounds-tooth.

I love it it looks adorable! I included a picture of his big sister in

a dress I made another Easter. all three of my girls have a blue dress

like this one. I want to simplify so they wore their dresses again and

only my son got new suit. Hey gotta save my energy since I'm pregnant.

Made a few cute things for gifting.

Cut and folded some cute Carrot treat boxes!

Made some carrots for decorating out of some fun orange fabric

cute Pattern give away!

2011-04-13T21:23:00.000-06:00

So much fun to sew for my children and here is pattern give away to inspire me!

Such cute stuff gotta check it out!

Found a fun blog that I must share with you!!!

2011-04-08T17:38:00.000-06:00

Auntie Lolo Crafts!
I went to visit and was going back and back to see all the great stuff she has there!

Here is the a favorite tutorial she shared

now I am going to get out some brown felt and burlap and buttons and go to it!

Hope you enjoy visiting as much as I did!

Fishy Party

2011-03-27T16:21:00.002-06:00

Inspired by Mermag and her fish for a catalog layout

I started planning this fishy party for my two March birthdays.
I have a son and a daughter with only a week between birthdays and I
want to simplify and throw one party (as long as they let me)
Mer's Fish are so-ooo super cute I called her up and started planning!
I sent her the fabric and she used her mad skills and sewed up these darling fishies for me!
Thank you Mer you are a fabulous Sister!!!!!

With Peach fish for my girl and Blue fish for my boy I started

collecting cupcake recipes and decorating ideas.
The blue and green cupcakes are a Key Lime cupcake recipe I got from a friend.
They have amazing lime flavor and the cream cheese frosting with it is supper yummy!
(if you pipe frosting don't add the lime peel, it clogs the icing tips, something I learned)
I also tried another cupcake recipe Pink Velvet Cupcakes
that had a white chocolate ganache frosting for my Peach cupcakes.
It was a few steps beyond what I would normally try for frosting but very delicious.
Next to the knock out taste of the Key Lime cupcakes the Pink or Peach Velvet cupcakes
were a bit tame but still tasted good.
*The fish shaped cake I made with 2 cupcakes that are unwrapped and turned upside down.

One cupcake is cut in half and used one side for the head and the other cut with a notch for

the tail. It may help to freeze you cupcake for less crumbs.

I love tablescapes for their over all appeal but also for the fun treats folks include.

Being a mama of 4 and another coming this summer I wanted easy treats

and easy on my wallet prices. I got all my gummy treats at a Dollar Tree near here as

well as the fish bowls and taller glass holders. The bowls were all with the candles

but were perfect for what I was aiming for; Candy store meets fishy party!

The favor bags I put together little treats and fish items in cello bags and pinned on a

little stuffed fish to take home, to say thank you for coming and celebrating with us.

All the smiles of happy kids were the result.

My two little fishers loved it. My boy adores the fishies Mer sewed up and I loved

hearing him say fishies in his little 2 year old lispy voice (they loose that too quick).

Thanks again Mer! You are true inspiration for all of this!

Love to share

2011-02-16T20:49:00.000-07:00

My sister Mer of Mermag is sharing the Love this Valentines week!

Buy a Lovely Love print and get another print free.

the best gift of all is that all the Lovely, Love print proceeds will go to the Schultz family.

A family with a sweet baby girl with heart defects, cleft lip and palate conditions.

Give some love and and receive some love.

Now which color do I want to get?

Fishy Color Board

2011-02-02T17:39:00.001-07:00

Recently came up for air and here is the post to prove it!
If you weren't aware I am pregnant and that has got me off the blog lately.

Today I started dreaming about the coming party for some of my children.
I want to have a fishy theme with gold fish and water color scheme.
I was inspired by this wonderful fishy collection here.

What do you think?
I collected these fabric swatches from QuiltHome.com for an inspiration color board.

Oh course I will have some fabulous help! I am asking my sis Mer of Mermag
for her expertise and creative talents to help out with this one.

I won!!!

2010-12-17T10:55:00.000-07:00

I won something!
Something Wonderful from The Hand Made Dress.

I am so excited to be a winner too!
I won one of her darling little girl dress patterns. I chose Miss Lily.
But it was very hard because they are all very adorable and I like them all!
Check out this cute dress pattern!

I admire this wonderful mama and all her fabulous work.

Not just her patterns but with her children and her faith.
Go check her out!

Dinner Magnifique!

2010-11-30T20:52:00.000-07:00

Dinner Magnifique!

Some nights we just eat.
But tonight I had all this cooking energetic bliss!

I butterflied and stuffed 2 pork tenderloins, one with cream cheese and spinach,
and the other with spinach and bacon. The later I also wrapped in bacon.

Then after tying them up I browned them in a skillet and then baked them
in the oven in a pre-warmed dish of melted butter.

They were just Lovely to look at an heavenly to eat.
I made whipped Celery, Spinach, Potatoes to serve on the side,
garnished with bacon pieces.

YUMMY!

Spinach and Cream cheese stuffed Pork Tenderloin

filling mix these together
1 bar of cream cheese
1 1/2 cups of spinach fresh
1/2 tsp salt

cut tenderloin in half but not all the way through
and from the middle cut again outward to edge but not all the way through
on each side. Now your pork is about 1/2 inch thick.

Sprinkle on salt and pepper
garlic powder and dry basil to season meat
Then spread on cheese mixture

Roll up the meat and try with string/thread

melt some butter in a pan and brown the edges of the tenderloin

preheat a dish/Pyrex with 4 tables butter
in oven at 425 and remove when melted and sizzling
place browned tenderloin in dish
replace in oven for 35 minutes
lower oven temp last 10 minutes at 375
or cook until your preferred done-ness.

Tasty Green Potatoes

Boil 2 cups of chopped celery
and 1 cup of spinach

Boil with potatoes
for 15 minutes

when easy to mash
remove and whip up with 5 Tbsp Butter
1 tsp salt
and 1/4 cup milk or cream

Super yummy believe me!

dress designs for Shabby Apple dresses .... here they all are

2010-10-15T08:42:00.000-06:00

Well I put together three designs for the Shabby Apple dress design contest

Little Gem

Chocolate Dotted Strawberry

the Jonquil

I had a lot of fun putting them together in my mind

and onto paper. I may just have to give ago to them in real life too!

You can check out the fun dress line
at Shabby Apple here!

You can get a better look at each dress
on the blog posting I did for each individual design.
Just click on the link above each design picture.

Wish me luck and tell me what you think of these designs.

Little Gem dress design for Shabby Apple dresses

2010-10-14T23:29:00.004-06:00

my third design for

the Dress Design for Shabby Apple Dresses contest
Inspired by crisp lettuce leaves
so named after mini romaine "Little Gem"
Spring and lettuce go hand in hand as well as linen fabrics.
The pleated and cuffed sleeves are my favorite part.

Always a fan of fashion and wearable fashions
Shabby Apple Dresses such pretty things!

I am excited to participate in this years contest!

Tell me what you think!

Chocolate Dotted Strawberry dress design for Shabby Apple dresses

2010-10-14T23:29:00.003-06:00

my second design for

the Dress Design for Shabby Apple Dresses contest

Inspired by my love for vintage clothes
and of course strawberries and chocolate!
I love the bow detail and the pleats, so much fun and so very sweet!

Always a fan of fashion and wearable fashions
Shabby Apple Dresses really understands wear-ability!

I am excited to participate in this years contest!
I may have to make a dress like this for me!
Tell me what you think!

the Jonquil dress design for Shabby Apple dresses

2010-10-14T22:15:00.002-06:00

the Dress Design for Shabby Apple Dresses contest

Inspired by spring early blooms

and soft comfortable fluid jersey knits

Always a fan of fashion and wearable fashions

Shabby Apple Dresses really understands wear-ability!

I am excited to participate in this years contest!

Little Boo Card

2010-10-09T14:09:00.000-06:00

I joined in the Fun over at Lorajean's Magazine!

Here is a little card you can print on card stock that I put together from

a water color illustration I painted. Hope you have a fun Halloween with your little boos!

I also wanted to share a banner I made.

Really simple to make with felt triangles and belting/ribbon.
To make the words I printed a font I liked in a size that fit the triangles.
Then I used those letters as my pattern to cut out the felt words.
I used nylon woven belting for the strength to sew the banner on.
It is really long and will hang across a double garage door.
Which is where it's hung in years past.

Have fun with your free card

and go over and check out all the other cute things in this Link Party!
Click the image below to check it out!

Let me know what you think!

Eenie Meenie Minnie Moe

2010-09-27T17:56:00.000-06:00

Wow did I never know that picking paint was soooo hard!

I had my favorite and to show my hubby that I was going through all the necessary

picking procedures, I went and got 2 sample pints of greens.

I painted by my door and around the side of the house by a window to have it by trim.

Happily I painted them up and I smiled as I did.

I thought "What a pretty green color(1) that goes so well with the trim!"

Then I stepped back and looked at the work and imagined the whole house in it.

Then my house disappeared! The vast plains full of matching yellowing &

brownish muted greens were the same color as my favorite color for the house.

Currently the house is a warm beige/ pre-primed siding.

It has been unpainted since installation before we moved in 2008 2 1/2 years ago and

needs this paint now! (Who knows how long it went unpainted before we came?)

So after some tears... (yes I'm one of those girls) I had to start all over.

How do I pick a color when the favorite color is a bad choice for our home?

I am no expert but I decided to figure out what I wanted to see when I came home.

I want a refreshing and contrasting home. I want to see my house as I come over

the rise yes even from over a mile away. So no earthy tones that will make it disappear.

No browns, beige, muted or grayed greens, no yellows, or golds/oranges. No reds

because our barns are red and we want to distinguish the house from the barns.

That left pink, purple, and blue. My hubby said no way on pink!

It wasn't very promising. I was still wishing to see green. That is when I started

looking at blues with green in them. I grew up in a blue house and didn't want to

be too similar to that color. My hubby didn't want anything too light. There is sooo

much sunshine here it would just wash it out.

So that is where we are. Blue greens aren't typically seen over here. My hubby and

I looked at so many swatches at the paint place I just wanted to fall over and cry again.

(I barely made it with out tears my hubby was proud.) We came home with 6 new

sample swatches and no idea which one was going to be the one. My hubby really

liked going blue, he never liked the green. Yes, he did remind me of that as he told me

"Aren't you glad we didn't paint the whole house, before you knew it would disappear?"

and I got his shoulder all wet with my blubbering.

Now my house looks like a patch work quilt. Seriously. I'd show you more than by the

door but it's too awful!

But I finally made up my mind on the paint color. Not too bright, not grayed out or too dark.

I decided on a blue/green teal color below is preview/ mock up of how it looks with color (4).

Wish us luck! Hope to see my home with happy smiles and not groans!

Children's Fashion GENIUS!!!

2010-08-28T21:42:00.000-06:00

Children's Fashion GENIUS!!!

That's right I have sound this woman who does what I do children's patterns!
Go and check out her awesomeness at her site
Children's Fashion Workshop!
You will just love it!
She does the cutest things too!

Like this cute outfit she made for her girl with her own pattern

designing that she teaches to all step by step!

Awesome lady! I applaud you!

Horse Crazy Party!

2010-08-15T20:55:00.000-06:00

original idea sketch and invitation

and the actual cake

I set up the table with the cake as the center piece.
Welcome to the Tall Nine Ranch.

My daughter is Horse Crazy! This is her 9th birthday
and the fun we created for her. She picked a pink and yellow theme,
with horses of course. She had the idea of cake pastures and horses
with a big barn. Lucky for her her idea~dream came true.

I iced the cupcakes with green frosting grass and put a
horse figure toy on top. I think they look really cute.

I made Jello popcorn balls in pink strawberry and yellowish peach.
I individually wrapped them in clear plastic. These are an easy made ahead treat.

For treat sacs or Booty bags, I used my stamps to embellish brown paper bags.
Then mounted/glued on a rectangle of yellow card stock stamped with a pink
bucking bronco. (Like the Invites)
That is a quickie the kids can do.
See those smiles! That's why I do all this work. My daughters loved everything.

These cute bottles of bubbles were party favors.
The horse figures in the cupcakes were also a take home favor.
Good for stuffing in their booty bag with their popcorn balls,
cookies, lip glosses, neckerchiefs, and chewing gum.
I made each girl a neckerchief/bandanna from a triangle of fabric.

These cookies were so delicious. I made sugar cookies
in the shapes of horse heads, boots, cowgirl hats, and horse shoes.

I made this wooden horse shoe game.

For the Wooden horse shoes game I bought wooden dowels
and wooden horse shoe shaped letters C & U.
These I painted pink and yellow and painted little paisleys on.
I would have used just the letter C's but my store only had 2 left.
The C's are easier to handle and toss.

The girls did sac races and a hobby horse races.

I tied neckerchiefs together to make a banner across the shade tents.
We sat on straw bales of course.
We also had a real horse to ride, which was the main event, of the party.
All the girls got a ride either alone or with a friend.
Thank you to our neighbor who brought her horse Cherokee over
and helped our party have a ride!
You Rock!

That was our horse crazy birthday!

My life with a New Serger

2010-08-06T22:35:00.000-06:00

Serger Giveaway at Sew Mama Sew

Would my life be better with a new serger?
Absolutely!
I currently have a machine that likes to do
"Jam" sessions on my projects.
While dancing "Skip to my Lou"
as it skips stitches and leaves a ravelly mess
no matter how often I change the needle or re-thread it.
Which then leads to time spent pulling out the stitches and doing it over

I have visions of Heirloom serger techniques

(learned from This DVD)
and neatly finished rolled hems!
All three girls with new chiffon ruffly skirts!

and to help convince you
Drum roll
Da da da daaaa
the family award winning
moving performance
Pretty Please from my Daughter

this performance was recorded previously April 13, 2010
as she begged for an extra doughnut

Now we say Pretty Please for a new Serger!

Fabric Friday!

2010-08-06T10:26:00.000-06:00

Look what I received! Five pieces of lovely fabric, from QuiltHome.com.

It always comes so quickly too!

I selected some lovely prints by Sandi Henderson.

Now the creative juices are gonna get to work.
I think I need some new tops!

I am the Link of the Week!!!

2010-08-03T08:51:00.000-06:00

I am so excited!!!

I love all the fabrics they have! How thrilling to be a winner!

What will I get?

Quilt Home

Great Words

2010-08-03T08:18:00.000-06:00

"Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political
prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.
In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism, who
should labor to subvert these great pillars of human
happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and
citizens... Let it simply be asked, where is the security for
property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious
obligation desert the oaths which are the instruments of
investigation in courts of justice? And let us with caution
indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained
without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the
influence of refined education... reason and experience both
forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in
exclusion of religious principle." George Washington

From Farewell Address

What an inspired man. Even a man set apart by the God of
Heaven.

In the world today I fear we are far from where we should be.

How important it is to teach our children to recognize the counterfeit "truths" of the world,

and recognize the Eternal Truths God has set up for our happiness and real liberty!

Alma 61:14

Therefore, my beloved brother, Moroni, let us resist evil, and whatsoever evil we cannot resist with our words, yea, such as rebellions and dissensions, let us resist them with our [good examples], that we may retain our freedom, that we may rejoice in the great privilege of our church, and in the cause of our Redeemer and our God.

"I am wearing Flip flops" tra la la la!

2010-07-21T21:06:00.000-06:00

My girls kept begging me for a summer craft.

So this is what we decided to do!
It is pretty easy to do and dot too messy.
(Especially if you only have mom touch the glue.)

I let the girls pick out flowers and flip flops
and I happily only spent $7.50 on the supplies.

Our Liberty

2010-07-20T19:33:00.000-06:00

Thought I'd watercolor paint one of our horses

This is a picture of Liberty our Paint horse.

Little Darla dresses

2010-07-15T12:09:00.001-06:00

I used my pattern making skills and designed summer dresses for my daughters.

What do you think?
I love the fabric and had to use a collection of them.
I love the roses and dots!

Now should I make the pattern available to you?
I am debating on if I should make a PDF pattern and put it up on my etsy shop.
What do you think?

What's for dinner?

2010-07-15T08:46:00.000-06:00

If youare like me I hate that question and I hate trying
to figure out what to put together with the things I have
on hand. Especially when it is time to go to market to
fill the pantry and fridge. I do find things sometimes.

I had on hand black beans, rice, flour tortillas and some beef.
Lucky me!
I decided to make my version of a Big City Burritio.
Which means a huge burrito filled with lots of yummy stuff.

Prepare rice
heat beans and season
cook meat (I had stew meat) and cut into tiny pieces
I added a seasoning package to the meat
some type of fajita or taco seasoning
heat your flour tortillas
On your tortilla
put 1/2 cup rice
1/4 cup beans
big spoon of meat
handful of cheese
here you could add sour cream, tomatoes, green onions, ect.
Roll up your burrito tucking the ends up and take a bite.

We all loved them even my kids.
I just had to convince a few to try the first bite then it was a winner!

Now you give it a try.

horse back riding

2010-07-11T21:17:00.001-06:00

Picked up a paint brush today and did a little watercolor painting.
It is so nice and relaxing to paint.
I always feel really at peace with life when I am done.
Probably because you just can't paint and be grouchy
or irritable. It won't turn out.

I think I got close to capturing the feel of my daughters here.

Horse Birthday Design Board

2010-07-10T00:29:00.000-06:00

I am getting excited for my daughters 9th birthday coming up in August.
We picked a horse theme with some Robert Kaufmann fabric called
Pony Club by Dan Norris, very cute with lots of colors to play with!
Inspired by the fun cupcakes out there I want to make grassy cupcakes
to put little toy horses on. Then have a cake barn behind the grass.
We also want to have pink bandannas and yellow bandannas for the
boys and girls.

What do you think?

Here are some inspiration sites
horse bubbles and tiny horses
cupcakes, and more cupcakes
cupcake tower, pony cupcake
bandannas

Nursing Poncho Pattern

2010-06-10T13:04:00.001-06:00

Now up on my Etsy Shop Little Dar'lyn

Want to make a Nursing Cover Up?
Want more coverage than other little nursing covers?
This Nursing poncho is easy to use with pockets to hold nursing pads & baby's pacifier. No slipping rings or straps to hassle with. Just slip over your head and your ready.

This Nursing Poncho is a simple pattern to make in an afternoon and have ready for your next outing.

This Pattern is one size fits most with a plus size option.
Full detailed instructions with pictures and illustrations.
Good project for beginners or the experienced.

Would you like to try making this Poncho for free? Here is the catch I want pictures of your finished Poncho.
And I want to know how well you got through my pattern! The first 3 to comment get this chance! Thanks so much!

At this time I am no longer offering free copies of the pattern. Thanks for your help Ladies!

You can get this pattern here.
Come on over to my etsy shop and check it out!

Happy Summer Vacation

2010-06-07T19:19:00.001-06:00

Yellow Teddy Bear Picnic Baby Shower

2010-05-24T23:25:00.000-06:00

Helped throw a baby shower for my sister in law.
Her nursery is yellow with lots of teddy bears.

Had a lot of fun decorating with baskets and gingham
Made lots of muffins,
Blueberry, orange cranberry, lemon poppy seed and
Banana Nut with a yummy crunchy almond topping.
I made some picks to stick into the muffins.
Some with a teddy bear and some with a baby face.
Good times stamping those and paper punching.

We played a game using baby items from A to Z.
I cut out circles of fabric and glued them to bags
and my mom cut out letters of the alphabet with her Cricut.
I felt like everything looked lovely enough for a magazine.
(Wish I could take better pictures.)

Everything was adorable! Now our new
mama to be has a lot of things ready
for her little one to come!

Fabulous Fabric Friday

2010-05-19T21:10:00.000-06:00

I love this lavender Fairy Fabric
Purple leaf Fairies by Micheal Miller

you can get some of this
Here

My girls might be getting some new curtains from this

Absolutely gorgeous!

2010-05-15T11:16:00.000-06:00

As you know I love vintage and I love old shoes.
When I stumbled upon this beautiful oil painting I fell
in love with it.
Absolutely gorgeous!

Check out Showstopper at her Etsy Shop here

Vintage fabrics

2010-05-13T18:03:00.000-06:00

Isn't this vintage fabric so much fun!
I love the children and their play time fun.

On Scooters, on swings, playing with hoops, fishing, jumping rope....
and so many other fun things in such cute illustrations!
This printed piece and the yellow and teal dotted swiss,
were collected from my grandma's stash when she moved.

I already have some big things planned for this too!
Everyone loves Vintage!

View from a Road Trip

2010-05-10T23:14:00.000-06:00

While driving across country to get to a wedding, my four kids were very noisy.So I called out Hey every one look it's the desert.
The car was immediately silent as they looked out.
Then from the back we hear
my 4 year old daughter say in a bright and loud voice....

Favorite Fabric Friday!

2010-05-06T20:49:00.000-06:00

Okay so I was so excited I couldn't wait until tomorrow to post it!

Alexander Henry The Ghastlies

can be purchased here

It has so much to look at and I love it!

Chasing Chickens

2010-04-27T14:04:00.000-06:00

Love watching our chickens running around our yard.

play time

2010-04-20T18:32:00.000-06:00

Bought 3 of these flying mermaid dolls today!
My girls are in play land heaven.
So am I they have no clothes to get lost and they have
modest style tops!

Got them at Walgreens
they are called FairyTails

Impromptu Tea Party

2010-04-19T14:17:00.000-06:00

Don't you love the herb tea box saying

The magic of Child hood!

Just layer your sandwich with 3 or more slices of bread.
Cut off the crusts and slice into triangles.
Our sandwiches are PB&J and tuna. With the layers
my kids think these are super special!

Easter Ensembles

2010-04-15T15:15:00.000-06:00

Easter Ensembles
Started to make these dresses for the Christmas season.
I finished them in time for Easter instead.

It's crazy how that works out. This time it was great!
The green smocked Dupioni works just as well for the spring.

My little man looked dashing in his new sweater vest that I knitted too!

We did it!

2010-03-28T23:29:00.003-06:00

The Orange and Red, Zoe and Elmo birthday party was a hit!

I drove a couple states away and set up the party at my sisters house.
I brought the decorations and they made the cupcakes!
Everything was Super cute and we all had a good time too!

Best of all these two were celebrated! We are so glad they were born!

Bobbles

2010-03-17T12:49:00.006-06:00

Bobbles and more bobbles, in lots of spring time colors
I started a top down sweater which is a knitting first for me.
The appeal is knitting in the round and having no side seams
to sew up when you are done knitting.

My daughter has been begging me to knit her a sweater
so she lucked out to be the recipient of this one.

Wishin' you.....

2010-03-15T15:44:00.004-06:00

a green and happy day!

I do I Do

2010-03-14T16:08:00.007-06:00

DO YOU?
How about when you were little?
I remember small green foot prints all around the kitchen
leading to a pile of gold coins. My mom arranged it of course,
that a green footed fairy person would come to my house.

A few years ago I wanted to put up a few green thing in my home
to aid in the Celebrating of St. Patricks day. When I realized I wasn't a
big fan of Leprechauns... but I did have a love for Faeries! Little creatures
we don't see but are surrounded by. Like in fairy tales, I likes brownies,
elves, and of course winged fairies! So taking an old wooden carton apart
I began making little sign to let the fairies know I was one of the believers.
(It also sprang from my love of the story Peter Pan.)

I also feel a kin to the Cottingley girls who would play
with the faeries and take pictures. Actually I made paper
dolls and spent hours drawing and coloring and cutting
them out and designing little lives for them.
This year I want to make more fairy things with my girls.

Making Party Hats

2010-03-13T12:37:00.006-07:00

Got my paper and scissors out. Practiced making a hat
then used that as a pattern. Punched out lots of eyes and
noses with my circle punches. Started drawing eye balls
and mouths. Glued, added hairbows, Zoe's never match.

Now I have Orange and Red Zoe and Elmo hats for our party!

Getting Excited...

2010-03-12T22:40:00.003-07:00

Well following my college teachers advice
when you don't know what to do RESEARCH!
and then make a design board!
With my fabric beside me I began the internet
search and found s few fun things.

Here are some great places to go...
Hostess {with the mostest}
Polka Dot Birthday
Daisy and Dell
Martha Stewart
Baby Boyd Blog
Accent the Party

I had lots of fun looking at parties and photos of favors!
The blogs I have listed here were my big inspiration
for my design boards. Now I'm off to craft!

Looking for inspiration!

2010-03-12T16:29:00.002-07:00

Alright I am trying to put together a joint party for
my boy turning 1 and my girl turning 4 to throw at
my sister's house when I go in couple weeks.
Her cousin's Abby ca dabby party was such a favorite
of my girl she picked an Elmo and Zoe fabric to base
her party around.
So now I am trying to pull together a party plan,
something I will enjoy taking photos of and
scrapbooking later.

do something nice...

2010-03-11T21:04:00.003-07:00

for somebody else!

Inspired by An Sew On, I went to the Downy
Quilts for kids and volunteered to sew a quilt.
You click volunteer and and request a kit.
They sent me a kit with bright colors and a motorcycle print,
As well as a simple pattern to follow to put it all together.
So that is what I worked on today.

They also include a tag to fill out and tell about the quilt and
who sewed it with love. I think I am going to go through my
fabric stash and dig out something more and send a second quilt
along too. When that one is done I'll post it too.

Green Cables

2010-03-06T10:52:00.005-07:00

It's Finished!

After weeks of work it's ready to wear!
(Well I still have to sew in loose yarn tails.)
I am glad I tried to create it! Remember I was making up the pattern.

Pretty close to the drawing...hurray!

I got inspired by a vest I saw that had patches of colors.
I didn't like the colors they chose so I decided to create my own version!
I collected all my books and few from the library.
I have three key helper books I used

Knitters Handy Book of Patterns by Ann Budd I used the child
Vest pattern and followed it for Cast on, arm hole, neck and
shoulder shaping to make my vest I just added my color changes
and stitch pattern choices and ribbing. Page 56

From Needles to Hook (it's full of stitch patterns, you could use
any stitch dictionary)

Continuous Cables by Mellisa Leapman (this book is awesome
for Cable stitch designs, I used three of her ideas in my sweater)

Pattern for Green Cables Sweater Vest
Selected my yarns. naturally Caron.com Country Merino Wool Blend,
colors Naturally (cream) and Green Sheen (green) and Caron Simply
Soft Eco in Charcoal (gray) One ball of each (used all the green
but the other colors had lots left over for other projects)
Knit a couple of swatches to get gauge and an idea of the look.
I determined I was going to make a size 2 toddler vest which gave me
64 cast on stitches according to the gauge I was knitting. (5 sts inch)
All my patterns needed to go across 20 stitches except my middle
design which was across 24 stitches.

First I picked out the stitches and cables I wanted to use and
then drew my design on paper for a rough idea.
I choose these stitches
Bottom row Right to left
Diamond stitch (in green),
Parallel (raised) Line stitch (in cream),
and a Berry Stitch (in gray)
Middle Row
I got these cable stitches from Continuous Cables
baby cable (1 over 1 cables) on either side of a cable bobble design
page 116 Panel C (in gray)
a knotted diamond cable design from page 116 Panel B ( in green)
an X cable design page 104 (in cream)
Upper row
6 stitch Cable (in cream) I put this one together myself
2 Stitch Basket weave stitch (gray)
Dash Stitch (in green)
Shoulders
Purls (in green)
Horizontal Purl stripes (in gray)
knit 3 rows Stockinet then a row with Purls on the front face
to make a raised horizontal stripe, repeat

To make it easier to follow I copied each page and cut and pasted the
stitch guides side by side in the order I would knit them.
Tip* when changing to a new color make sure the yarns intertwine
otherwise you end up with to separate pieces and you have to
sew them together

I hope this is helpful.
I didn't want to copy anything I took out of a book
because of copy rights. If you know more about what I can or can not
do let me know. I'd love to give a better pattern but am
not sure if that is proper given the copy rights.

If you make this vest too Post it, I want to see!

Homemade Granola

2010-03-03T09:46:00.002-07:00

I don't know where I originally found my basic recipe.
It has the bones for your granola making, then you add your
special ingredients.
but here it is...

Basics for Granola
In a large bowl mix
4 Cup of Oats (I like old fashioned not quick)
1/4 Cup brown sugar dark or light
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp of cinnamon
then here is where you have fun
1 Cup or so of an ingredient ~ sliced almonds, sun flower seeds,
wheat germ, toasted coconut, dried fruit (these can toss in
at the end if you want), walnuts, pretty much
what ever sound good and yummy to you.

In a small sauce pan
1/4 Cup Cano la Oil (this oil doesn't had any weird flavors)
1 Table spoon Water
1 tsp vanilla *optional
Then add a sweetener of your choice.
1/4 Cup , 1/2 Cup up to 3/4 Cup ~ Honey, Molasses (this one
is really strong use smaller amount), Maple Syrup, sugar, corn syrup...
Heat until warm and bubbly
Pour over oats mix
stir to coat evenly

Spread onto a baking sheet (I use my jelly roll pan)
bake at 300 degrees
stir every 10 minutes to brown evenly fora total of 40 min

Cool and toss in Crasins, dried cherries or raisins I add these
last to save them from drying out and getting tough to chew.

Enjoy!
For Honey Vanilla Almond
I used 1 cup slivered almonds in my oats
3/4 Cup of honey
and upped my vanilla to 1 Tablespoon

Granola

2010-03-02T10:18:00.001-07:00

for gifts I made granola
and to make it more exciting I made many flavors
a sort of gourmet granola collection
I think my favorite was the Honey Vanilla Almond
but I heard that Walnut Molasses was a winner too.

Announcing....

2010-02-27T11:10:00.002-07:00

the give away winner

drum roll please

da di da daahhhhh

Thanks everyone for commenting or posting about my give away.

I Love Pretty Things you are the Winner!
go to my Etsy shop and contact me
with all the info so I can send this cute
Peek a Boo block and lovey along to you.

Spring Green

2010-02-26T07:55:00.006-07:00

Doesn't green just make you so Happy?
My Green faux Pears make me happy!
So does this Nicey Jane fabric by Heather Bailey

In fact I even liked her selvage labeling so I included it on my table cloth hem.
I felt her talented art work should be recognized by those who see my table cloth.
So I carefully tucked the edge under while leaving the label visible .

I love the vintage feeling of the fabrics and how happy it makes me!

I used 2 yards of the floral for the main body of the table cloth.
Then 1 yard of the contrasting green fabric divided into 6 strips and sewn
around the floral. Then I did a rolled hem on the edge.

Do you you have something that makes you happy?

Give away

2010-02-19T15:02:00.003-07:00

To celebrate.... 175 blog posts..... or just for fun.
I decided to have my very first giveaway.
Please leave a comment and you will have a chance to win
this cute baby block and and lovey blanket.
Post this in your blog and you get a second chance to win.
Let me know that you had a post about my give away.
The dead line for leaving a comment is Friday Feb. 26th
good luck!

Sewn with love by me and once featured in my Etsy shop.
Peek A Boo Block in Heather Bailey Fabrics

Your darling little one will Love this Block.
Soft and playful heirloom quality toy!
Perfect for baby's small hands. Block has ribbon loops for tactile fun.
She can play Peek a Boo with this special toy,.

Soft fabric toy Peek a Boo Block with appliquéd baby face has moving Peek a Boo hands.
Baby face has hand embroidery and machine satin stitching.
Ribbon loops on one side.
100% Cotton fabrics with a solid pink and Heather Bailey Fabrics, Fresh Cut group,colors:
seaglass, orchid pink, ivory, green, robin egg blue
Reinforced with heavy duty interfacing to retain shape and hold up to lots of playtime fun.
Filled with poly. batting
Measures approx. 5 inches x 5 inches x 5 inches

Knitting, knitting 1.2.3

2010-02-17T17:31:00.002-07:00

knitting a vest for my boy
saw a vest I liked the style of but not the colors
sooo...
here I am now with my yarn and knitting books making up a
design for a toddler vest
If it turns out I will post the pattern idea for you to see.

amazing

2010-02-11T13:49:00.003-07:00

I just finished watching this film "Steal a Pencil for Me"
I watched it on Hulu
It was so worth watching. It is a love story and
a story of family history too. It is a true story of a couple that
survived the Holocaust and their experiences in the
concentration camps. It is also a story about their
60 year love that started there.
Take the afternoon off and sip cocoa with hankies near by
and watch! Than go and kiss all you love and pray
a prayer for all when you you're done.

Sister Tea Party

2010-02-08T16:59:00.006-07:00

Thank you for coming to my little Tea Party!
It was a success thanks to my little sister C who helped me
make Cucumber sandwiches, deviled eggs as I made chocolate
muffins, raspberry mouse, dipped strawberries in chocolate
and dashed to the market for roses and strawberries.

I found some pink heart cookies at the market that I had to
get for my little event. So pretty and yummy. I made some
Devonshire Tartlets the day before as well. We had more
than enough little cucumber sandwiches. The shrimp was a favorite.

Everything was lovely especially the sisters I shared the
afternoon with. Thank you ladies. I miss you now that
you have gone home. I also discovered that my two
sisters aren't on my new Visiting route. I will miss them.

Oh well, we can always get together for another Tea Partty.
..... I can hardly wait

Pink Strawberries, Red Raspberries and Chocolate!

2010-01-29T14:23:00.004-07:00

I love to have Tea Parties!
Mostly I love having them with my sisters!
I am so inspired to have my party after
looking at these ladies have done!

This delicious box of chocolate cupcakes is from Annie's Eats
So adorable and yummy looking! I have a mini cupcake pan
and I plan to put this together for my party!

These Raspberry Macaroons look divine!
WhiskKid makes them look so beautiful.
I am more intimidated by this recipe but I
hope to give them a try, too!

I am so excited for my Tea Party!
Now to use this energy to go forth and create it!

stepping into a New Year

2010-01-29T09:56:00.004-07:00

1st step

deciding what I want different in my life...
choosing what I want to accomplish...
Then mapping my course.

What are your big plans?

yesterday my daughter drew a picture of what she wants to be when she grows up
very ambitious girl check out her list here

What do I want to be when I grow up?
a mama, a seamstress and fashion designer, a hair stylist I am
what else do I want to be?

*special note My oldest daughters feet are above photographed by me

hurray for Saturday

2010-01-23T09:57:00.002-07:00

Who loves Breakfast raise you hand!

Who can help loving crepes with applesauce
filling and dark hot cocoa and bacon?
All breakfast food is divine to me!
I love muffins, eggs, cereal, toast, bagels,
pancakes, fresh fruit, waffles....
Oooh now I gotta go eat some.

counting trees

2010-01-10T21:03:00.005-07:00

one

I adore my little tree in aqua. I put it on the changing table in the baby's room.

two a little purple tree in the girls room three a red and green in the family room

& four a Victorian tree with pink, gold and sparkling fruit
I also had a little table tree on the piano and
one in burgundy and gold on the dining room table
five & six

LOVE!

2010-01-09T15:19:00.002-07:00

I love this painting!
I love how the light reflect from her skin
and the contrast really makes this shine!
This painting is by Trent Gudmundsen
Wish I could buy it! But maybe it will stay at his house,
since those angels are his very own.

Puppet show

2009-12-31T11:01:00.003-07:00

This year my girls and I made lots of puppets!

We made them for our cousins as a gift!
It was lots of fun to try them out before we sent them along to them.

Precious Baby

2009-12-07T19:11:00.003-07:00

For our family home evening we told the nativity and the kids took part.
This is the first year baby Jesus was played.
My baby boy did a beautiful job.

Isn't he heavenly!

cocoa 'n Sweet rolls

2009-12-06T20:13:00.002-07:00

Instinctively I began to make Sweet rolls and cocoa when we got home from church today.

As I was rolling out the dough my mom called to tell us they were staying home to watch the Christmas Broadcast because of the snowy weather and didn't want us to feel left out when they had their hot cocoa and sweet rolls. But I was ready and I had my sweet rolls in process.

It was a small thing to remember the tradition. Today it was a natural act to do.
So, all six of us curled up on our bed and watched the Christmas Broadcast, listening to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing, and enjoying the Christmas messages given.
Then after we ate Sweet rolls, and drank hot cocoa.

Icy Raspberry Mousse
super yummy, requested and made by my 5 year old

What are you UP to?

2009-11-13T17:11:00.005-07:00

Knitting some mittens

first time with double pointed needles
and 1st time with wool yarn

sometimes I like double pointed needles sometimes I don't

One thumb up waiting for the next thumb.... soon!

I actually have lots of knitting projects going right now
and I need to get pictures of each before
they go off to their intended Christmas recipients!

Oh the pattern is one I got from Lion brand Yarn's web site
Nordic Mittens

Pumpkin!

2009-11-06T17:31:00.004-07:00

I love Pumpkin
Pumpkin pancakes
pumpkin pie
pumpkin chocolate chip cookies
pumpkin waffles
pumpkin muffins
so of course I had to store me some pumpkin!

cutting up cubes of pumpkin

boiling the cubes to soft enough to smash or puree

puree in the blender

here is my huge bowl full of pumpkin puree

here are bags ready to freeze
I had 12 bags/cans worth of pumpkin puree
when all was said and done
thats 24 cups oh and one lonely cup
I used that night in a monster pumpkin pancake

.................... Saying I <3 U

2009-10-02T20:32:00.001-06:00

Good morning to me and my cereal loves me today!

Good hair day?

2009-10-02T20:13:00.003-06:00

okay this isn't crafty or a vintage item...
I was reviewing photos and found these,

my daughter age 5 styled my hair and requested she take a picture.

Today she asked me to blog them so here you go.

something yummy!

2009-09-20T13:36:00.004-06:00

We have a lot of eggs now that our chickens are laying. which make it fun to try recipes that call for lot and lots of eggs. Like this airy lemon food cake that I made the other day.

It was pretty fun to make in my new tube pan as well.

The lemon was just a hint and so my hubby tried some too.
Of course I loved every bite!

Yummy with strawberries and whipped cream.

Hoppin' on over...alls

2009-09-19T22:50:00.003-06:00

my little boy just needed
something that Hops!
I think this will do just perfectly

wanted to share what I am working on

I have an embroidery machine (two actually)
I just really like the hand sewn look right now

These little froggies I stamped first
then stitched them with a back stitch
The stamps are from Stampin' Up!
any outline stamp will work.

.................. beautiful

2009-09-12T18:38:00.003-06:00

Isn't she an Angel!

I was smocking and doing needle work up to the very last!
In the center I embroidered with silk ribbons.
She felt like a royal daughter of God,
which is what I was going for.

................. LOVE this!

2009-09-12T18:27:00.003-06:00

love this tons!!!!
found it at this fun shop
Rosen Berry Rooms
Have to drool all over this.

Pink Pirates

2009-09-04T11:26:00.005-06:00

What fun we all had!
Doesn't my girl look like a tough pirate there!
I still can't believe this cake turned out so well.
I am not a big cake decorator.
I did some fun pirate bandannas for all the guest
and some felt heart shaped eye patches.
I made the banner with fabrics I serged them all together.
Found the sparkly skulls at our dollar store that was a fun bonus.

Darling Pin cushion

2009-08-14T00:09:00.003-06:00

Found this adorable cushion on a web search!
I love this blog I found it on too!
Check it out! Tea Rose Home

she is having a give away too hope I win!

Drooling over

2009-08-12T17:04:00.005-06:00

I am in love!!!

I am so wishing I could spend lots of money
on some pretty vintage table cloths

love this one with the chicken
this one I pretty much sinfully covet

this one has super cute colors too!

love the classic strawberries

love the red and green colors here

love Love LOVE these

Vintage Table clothes!

I found all of these lovelies at
The Vintage Table

Planning in Pink

2009-07-30T15:46:00.004-06:00

My oldest daughter is turning 8
and so we are going to make her a very pretty dress
to wear after her baptism.
She selected some very pretty fabrics.

The fabrics are all ordered (Fashion Fabrics Club)
and I can't wait to have them arrive so we can start it!

Now i need to start looking for a pretty smocking plate for the bodice.

Vintage 4th of July

2009-07-11T17:33:00.004-06:00

We like to have a theme for our 4th of July festivities.
This year we decided a 30's look
with golf and homemade pie would be fun!

Homemade mini golf.... brilliant.
second hand quilts and linens for table cloths... gorgeous
folksie golf tee games and school slates with chalk... fun

Mmmm... yummy food!

Everyone saved room for pie!
We only wished we'd made more!!!!
I admit I love making pies.
I made two, a Strawberry pie
and a Raspberry 'n blueberry pie.
No leftovers.

Every year we put up canopies to shade us from the sun.
This year they also protected us from the rain.
The rain actually made it cozy and set a very romantic mood.
(until the drips went down your back LOL)

birdie bubble

2009-06-20T16:02:00.003-06:00

I am in Love with Pique and have bought quite a bit of it lately for my baby. Here is a cute little outfit for summer in Yellow.

I embroidered a little birdie in blue and trimmed it with green rickrack.
It is timeless, I can see a little baby from the 50's wearing this outfit as well as my baby today.

What a cutie.

I was looking at this outfit and I think it would be perfect for a boy or a girl.

Loving Vintage dress up photos!

2009-06-17T00:00:00.007-06:00

Aren't these just adorable? This is the feeling we want our vintage 4th of July to have!

the brother in this picture looks really happy to be dressed up don't you think?

This picture in the water is awesome!
Very fabulous photography found here!
Eldridge Fine Photography
wish I lived in Texas for an opportunity to
have pictures of my kids looking this lovely!

I'm on a Treasury!

2009-06-09T10:13:00.004-06:00

super fun stuff!
my gingham dress was selected for this cute treasury! It is only up for a limited time so go check it out on Etsy!
This dress is a size 4 for a dress but can be a girls blouse for older girls!
cute as a bug smocking

Embelish tees

2009-06-03T22:21:00.006-06:00

Started out with some onsies and some fabrics.

Got together with some friends and Ta Da!

Played off the fabric design to make it match.
Then added fabrics and embroidery stitches to it!

every boy needs a genius shirt

now my boy will be cute and comfy

this one is classic my sister started it
she'll probably notice it's different
somehow I got red plastic on my iron
and when I pressed her design it got ruined
with red sticky streaks on it and the white area around it
sorry Mer I tried really hard to make a cute version
over the mess that was similar to yours
Oh the drama!
So which one is your favorite?

Muffin, Muffins, MUFFINS!

2009-06-03T17:19:00.004-06:00

Made about a ton of muffins for this baby shower brunch!
Check them out.
There are Raspberry Crumb, Spicy Apple Oatmeal, Vanilla Peach, tiny sweet muffins with a hint of Orange, and a loaf of Blueberry Crumble with a Lemon glaze. Yummy!

cute little box favors with birdies on them!
I stamped and watercolor painted the birdies. Fun!

Peek at my Sails

2009-05-09T15:44:00.003-06:00

Working on a panel for my little boy. This one has sail boats done using a picture smocking technique. I am liking it!

boy blessing ensemble

2009-05-05T13:48:00.003-06:00

All finished! Made up in white striped pique and piped in aqua birds eye pique 100% cotton. These fabrics are so nice and the luster and sheen is gorgeous!
I decided to line the jacket with the aqua birds eye so I could make it reversible. That way he can wear it again as a Sunday jacket. I plan to make smocked pants out of the remaining aqua cotton.
The bonnet pattern I created myself. It has a faux folded brim that is piped in aqua and I put piping around the back where I gathered the body of the bonnet to the back.
Here it is modeled by my angel son.

Wall art

2009-04-24T18:19:00.003-06:00

should I do this to my walls?

These are super cute, but I hesitate to do this at my house.
What do you think?
all of these vinyl wall art decals are available on Etsy at SingleToneStudios

In progress

2009-04-24T10:19:00.004-06:00

Working on a blessing ensemble for W.
Here is a sneak peek showing the smocking panel.

I made the tiny piping with a cord and bias strips of lt. aqua birds eye cotton.
The white striped pique cotton fabric is gorgeous.
I purchased the fabrics from Farm House Fabrics.
I definitely recommend them. Lovely quality, worth the money!

Peter Rabbit book

2009-04-20T12:07:00.006-06:00

My~creative~Sister C made my baby this darling book!

summer inspirations

2009-04-19T19:19:00.003-06:00

Every year we get together for a 4th of July Family reunion PARTY!
The past years it was so fun we have continued to make it happen the following years.
We even had themes one year a Luau, another a Carnival, and last year we had a Western Rodeo theme. Every time we do these fun activities but the best is the time with our family.
This year the talk is a golfing Tee-Party with a bit of 'Summer Magic' (Disney movie with Haley Mills) period look.
Here are some pictures I found in a couple Sew Beautiful magazines. Love these knickers and colors of gray and the red.
I love these cute summer clothes. Not as period but with some tweaking I bet I could bring in this idea with a old-fashioned twist!
What do you think?

a little heartbreak

2009-04-16T23:37:00.006-06:00

Sometimes us moms get a little heartbroken.
My eldest daughter loves to write. So for Easter I included 3 composition notebooks in her basket.
One she promptly turned in to her diary. she was so excited to write in it her most private feelings and thoughts that she came and showed me her first entry.

she wrote (it is even hard to write it because it made me cry, deep breath)

"Easter is su post to be a fun halladay for everyone on the earth every were but it is not at my house at this year. My mom will not let me chose wich dres to weir.
I do not like the dres she put on me today."

oh it broke my heart.
Now she didn't think of that when she showed me this. She was just so excited to show me she was writing in her new diary.
I asked her why she didn't like her dress and she said that no one told her it was pretty in her Sunday school class.

I remember telling my mom, when I was 10 or 11, that I didn't want to wear a dress like my sisters (who were babies ages 6, 4, & 2) one Easter. So she didn't buy me a dress. That made me mad and so I went down stairs and sewed myself a dress. A yellow and white plaid dress. I even made bias tape to trim the neck edge and armholes with matching bias strips of yellow. I sewed it with black thread because I didn't know how to re-thread her serger sewing machine.
Eventually mom figured out I did want a dress, and she even bought me one. I just didn't want to be like the baby, because I was older.

I hope I can get over my heartbrake...
perhaps I just need to figure out my daughter's mind.
I think Hannah Montana needs to have a Heirloom style dress!

New Easter dresses!

2009-04-13T11:13:00.003-06:00

Had a lot of fun with this Swiss Cotton voile. Each of my daughters has a slightly different lace treatment. They sure look adorable!
I was lucky this year to find these hats each $1 and the girls enjoyed wearing and playing with them at church, LOL!
I made up a version of a dress I liked in a magazine. I never could get the pattern for that dress but they turned out very similar and l love the pleated skirts.

Check HIM out

2009-04-10T12:48:00.001-06:00

my bro is so SO hot in his photo shoot by my little sis! Check out her fabulous work here!

How fun to get a photo shoot. Maybe I should drive out to Utah and have one done of us.

Look what I made!

2009-03-22T22:45:00.003-06:00

Finished this project March 16th all 7lb 9oz of him.
didn't he turnout great...

Yummy from my mommy!

2009-03-09T17:10:00.005-06:00

doesn't this look delicious!

My mommy called and said she had made me a present!
Thank you mommy! It sure tasted as good as it looked!

Oh yea, she is letting me keep the pretty trifle bowl too!