This is exciting! Michael Miller Fabrics is sponsoring a Baby Bootie contest where the grand prize is a Singer Curvy Sewing Machine! You can also win a $100 gift certificate to Reprodepot, some Michael Miller fabric bundles and a feature on Craftzine. The rules are simple (you can read them here) and entries must be posted to the Flickr group by June 18th. So get your creating caps on and start designing some booties!
Above image is from Google patents.
I am really excited to be sharing this with you! I have a new blog called The Crafty Crow! I have seen so many great kids crafts in blogland that I wanted a blog to keep them all in one place with a bit of organization thrown in. I would love it if you would check it out and tell me what you think. I've got lots more posts queued up so I hope you'll stop by frequently :) My daughter has made a button that you can find in the sidebar (and below) if you would like to add that to your blog too.
Thanks so much for letting me share this with you!
It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade. ~Charles Dickens
Happy Spring everyone! Our spring looks a lot like winter here just more brown and muckish. We got a fresh layer of snow last night but it has almost completely melted. Now only four more feet to go!
I made these carrots for the kids Equinox baskets. They are posed with Sour Cream, my youngest sons lovey that he's had forever. I used this pattern but modified it some. The pattern calls for increases until you reach 32 stitches around but I stopped at 20 stitches and then kept going until I reached the length that I wanted. I believe the smallest carrot is 12 stitches around. I only printed out the first page of the pattern by mistake therefore I'm not sure how they did the green tops so I just improvised mine. They are stuffed with poly-fil only since my kids are too old for rattles as called for in the pattern; they're really too old for these in general but they don't mind indulging their mama every now and then.
I've been working on a new project that I am planning to unveil next week. I'm really excited about it and can't wait to share it with you so be sure to check back on Monday for the grand opening :)
I hope you all have a lovely weekend and Easter!
I am thrilled to death to have gotten one of these prints by Amy Ruppel from Tiny Showcase! Isn't it wonderful?! I love Amy's work and I'm so excited to add it to my little print collection.
I'm doing some housekeeping on my blog this week so if things seem a little jumbled around you'll know why. I'm making use of Typepad's "page" feature and also adding a book shop a la Jenny at Allsorts.
I've been doing a lot of thinking about where I want to take my blog and my handwork. Sometimes it's hard to separate out what you want to do versus what you think you are supposed to do. Know what I mean? You start down a road and then you think, "Hey, how'd I get here?" "Is this where I wanted to go?" It's all good - I just want to make sure I stay on my own path and not someone else's.
Thank you for all the crocheted hearts love! I really enjoy making the tutorials and it is so satisfying to know that you are using them. As some of you have mentioned in your comments there are a lot of uses for them. You can clip them onto twine (like I did) or you can crochet them together to make a garland. You can embroider on them, sew two together for a sachet or softie, stitch them onto cardstock for a handmade card, or use them to embellish your jeans or scarf. They'd be cute ornaments or gift tags; they can be sewn or crocheted together to make a scarf or table runner and they make great coasters. I thought they would make cute little pockets to hold love notes too :)
Have you seen the new MacBook Air commercials? My daughter and I love the theme song - it's called New Soul by Yael Naim. So for my first time ever I'm posting a music video! *Am I hip or what?! ;)
P.S. Congratulations to Craig Ferguson for passing his U.S. citizenship test! I think he's so funny and love his monologues and overall goofiness :)
*Just so's you know - I am actually the furthest thing from hip when it comes to music and am completely dependent on my daughter to keep me in the current decade so posting a music video makes me feel pretty groovy, oops, I mean, cool, no, that's not it, um, awesome?
Lately my days have been starting out exactly the same: wake up, have breakfast, get dressed, shovel snow. The shoveling keeps you pretty warm but when you come inside you realize the tip of your nose doesn't have any feeling and your lips feel like they've been given a dose of novacaine thus the title of my post: a slip up I've made on more than one occasion.
The bird is a Steller's Jay. They're related to the Blue Jay but we don't see many of those here. I think the Steller's Jay is gorgeous; the head and upper body are black and the rest is midnight blue.
My solar lanterns have been covered up
with snow. I like how they are like little windows in a snow wall.
A view of one of the mountains
behind our house.
Aren't these pretty ice crystals
on our back deck?
Another mountain view.
And now back to show snoveling...
Words can't express my thanks and appreciation for each and everyone of you who take the time from your busy days and stop by my blog and make a comment. It means so much to me and has given me the motivational boost to keep on keeping on when the keeping on is hard to do.
I'm going to take a short break to finish some projects, clean house, organize some neglected spaces, and sleep. I hope you all have a wonderful new year and it is full of good health, good luck, and dreams come true - you deserve it!
I've scoured the internet for you to find free gift tags that you can print right off the computer. I love these and think it's so great of the artists to make them available. If you use their gift tags be sure to give them a little thank you in their comments - I know they'll appreciate it!
Here you go:
A Little Hut has made some sweet and easy to use tags for kids
Natascha S. Rosenberg has some beautiful angel tags here
one cute ornament tag
irresistable vintage gift tags
pretty pretty tags from Fable Handmade Goods
Jan Brett has some gift tags here and full-size cards here
everybody's favorite genius, kitty genius, has some great tags here and here
modern teal and lime tags from Papercrave
Wren Eleven has some tags in one of my favorite color combinations, pink and brown
modern vintage tags at Lucky Crow
a funny elf tag from Rosemary Travale
Amy has some really fun and funny tags here
maybe you'd like some Swedish gift tags
simple and traditional tags here
lovely tags for your handmade gifts from Sew Mama Sew (thanks Ronise!)
look what Laurie made - gift tags featuring one of her adorable elfettes!
Camilla has two cutie patootie sets here and here (thank you Burd!)
four lovable holiday designs from Luc Latulippe here
darling polka dot gift tags from Liselotte (thank you Posidriv!)
I'm so happy Kim had time to design some gift tags too - click here for two hip
designs
pretty sophisticated silhouette tags from Paperseed
beautiful tags from the very talented Charlotte Lyons
delicate little drawings from Lilly Piri make adorable gift tags here and good-enough-to-eat gingerbread tags also by Lilly here
some more cuties here at Piece of Work
iHanna has some wonderfully simple red outline labels that can be used for just about anything any time of year (thanks Siri!)
and of course, the always in style,
Dr. Seuss tags
**edited to add that I have another list of free gift tags from two years ago here**
Whose room this is I think I know,
Can’t blame the kids - it’s mine, to sew.
I can’t believe these piles of stuff
Are filling up my studio.
My little cat must think it queer
To see me get up off my rear
Between the fabric, thread and pins
The darkest evening now is here.
I ask the kids to make some tea,
I’ll be gone awhile you see.
I must focus, no distractions,
By crafty books in Japanese.
This mess is ugly, dense and deep.
But I have paper bits to sweep,
And piles to go before I sleep,
And piles to go before I sleep.
*my version of Robert Frost's
Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening
Edited to add:
Please consider signing these two petitions:
to keep wolves protected in the Northern Rockies, especially here in Idaho
