An Interesting Learning Curve

don't forget to enter the stationery set giveaway! (click here to enter)

Do you remember this post?  Well, I think I'm slowly beginning to figure things out, I think I'm finding the way to make things work.  I think perhaps for a while, I was a little too comfortable hiding behind excuses.

I just came off of a three week solo parenting block.  Although we missed our guy, we did well.  The kids were happy, I was happy, we found a groove and we went with it.

One thing I noticed is that when my husband is away, I sure can get a lot of sewing and shop work done.  Perhaps it's because I am now practically getting a full nights sleep (baby J is only getting up once a night most nights), perhaps it's because I've made the commitment to take my shop to where I want it to go, I don't know.  All I know is that whatever it is,

it's working

I phoned my mum the other day to tell her that if I, or anyone else says that I can't do it, to remind them of the past three weeks, because these three weeks are proof that yes, I can do this!

Now, will it always go this smoothly, will I always have this much energy, will I always be this full of zest....probably not, it's not being negative, it's just reality.

Sometimes I'll have to go searching for that little burst of energy, sometimes I will have to give it a little more effort, sometimes I'll need inspiration to get going again, what I do know is that the desire is there.  I will probably sew/work less when my husband is home than when he's away, but that's ok.  I just have to make sure I keep it somewhat consistent, right?

I have goals I want to meet, I have dreams I want to come true, and because of that, I will do my best to make them a reality!

the learning curve is an interesting one, but a fun one.

I hope you're enjoying a fabulous week. We are so thrilled to see the sun shining again after a few grey/gloomy days!

figuring it out, it's fun isn't it? almost a relief at times....

Cheers,

It's How We Get There *CLOSED*

**this giveaway is now closed**

I've reached a small goal (yay).

When you have a plan, when you have a vision, it's so important to have goals.  Goals are what make you work hard.  For me, reaching this goal means that

I'm doing something right

I'm going to keep this goal to myself (for now), but I want to celebrate by sharing one of my creations with a lucky one of you!  Yay for giveaways!

Up for grabs: 

Ruffled Fabric Stationery Set (four)

What I will say is.....

thank you!  

Many thanks for all of your support, for reading along and for keeping in touch! Love it!

Giveaway open until 11:59pm EST Wednesday, October 6th.  Open to everyone!  Just leave a comment with this post, that's it, that's all!

And I have to mention, for those of you who love dance, you must check this fabulously choreographed piece by the lovely richelle jean over at richellelephant loves....

Cheers,

Back To Where It All Began

I'm not sure how many of you were aware of this, but when I first opened up my Etsy shop, I had intended on selling totes.  It's true! Take a look:

(I sold these at my very first craft show!)

I never listed any.  To be very honest, I was scared off by the shipping, silly, I know but true story.

I dabbled in a few things, here and there, and soon discovered that creating fabric accessories was my passion.  

I continued on….

I now offer the stationery line, which again is a passion.  That being said, there has always been a little bit of me that has wanted to make some type of bag again but I couldn't decide on what style it was that I wanted to make.  Until the other night, when I had a dream of the perfect item.  I've been working on prototypes ever since.

Take a peek:

the elliven clutch

I'm hoping that they will make their debut at the Craft Show.  They still need some tweaking and something is just "not right" yet, but all in all, I'm happy with the direction they're heading (hopefully there isn't a cardinal rule about showing something off before it's completed).  


I plan to offer different embellishments, ie ruffle, decals and straps, but the main design won't change other than size (small, medium, large).

what do you think? could you see yourself carrying this style of clutch?

Cheers,

This Fine Weekend

~source~

I will be planting some tulip bulbs.....

I will be cutting interfacing and ironing it on to some receipt/coupon holders as well as some mini wallets....

I will be enjoying spending time with my handsome trio.

what will you be doing this weekend?

Cheers,

Giveaway Winners!

Thanks to everyone who entered the giveaway!  I'm thrilled to see some new faces!

Okay, the good part....the two winners are:

Tonya and  Lynz 
(Lynz, I don't have a contact for you, email me when you can pls)

Congrats ladies!

Didn't win? Don't worry.....with the holidays fast approaching I'm sure that there will be more goodies given away! (hehehe)

Cheers,

What I've Been Up To

did you see the giveaway for two jersey knit sashes? (click here to enter)

My poor little shop hasn't been updated in quite some time, I know.  I promise though, I have been working on items.  I've decided to hold off on listing them because my main focus for now is the upcoming craft show.

Once I have all of the stock sewn together, I will pick and choose some to list in the shop, and then after the show is over, any remaining items will also be added.

Here's a peek at a portion of my inventory:

(iPod sleeves, mini wallets, receipt holders and notepad holders)

ruffle stationery including holiday sets

What have you been up to?

Cheers,

Six Amazing Years!

Six years ago I was introduced to the amazing world of motherhood!

Happy Birthday Big Guy!

Oh, and don't forget about the giveaway (click here to enter)

Cheers,

This Room of Mine

Don't forget to enter the giveaway!!! (click here to enter)

So I have this room in the basement, my sewing room, but currently, it's not as inspiring as I'd like it to be (please know that I'm absolutely thrilled and thankful to have a room to call my own, don't think I'm not). You see the problem is that it's maybe 1/2 finished, maybe 1/4 . Some walls have drywall, some do not. Some of the floor is carpeted, some is not. And so on.

Progress of finishing the basement has been slow going, reason being, my husband wants to finish it by himself (totally understandable), and well, that's nearly impossible when he's never home. I'd do it on my own (really, I would), but seeing as how I can hardly lift a 1/4 piece of drywall by myself, I don't think it's going to happen.

I've voiced that I was going to hire a friend of a friends father who is an electrician to get the electrical done. There was no hearing it…..then there was hearing it, then there was listening

and then there was accepting.

Perhaps we do need to reach out a bit, to have help to reach the finish line.

I've mentioned that I'd like for this room to be finished, I've mentioned that I'd love for this room to be finished, I've mentioned that I need this room to be finished. I just feel that need.

While I sit and wait for this room to be finished, I've been busy dreaming up, drawing, cutting out photos and searching for the perfect finishing touches. I can see it in my head, and I can't wait to put these ideas to work.

I envision a white room, well, not stark white, perhaps bone, or even white with a touch of grey/green to it. Then I'll add pink, light green, aqua and fuchsia accents. Sarah Richardson style (oh how I lover her).

I am by no means an interior designer, but I will give it my best and I'm excited to express my style without having to hold back.

Just a few must haves for this room:

white cascading flower wall art - dashingetc

how do you measure love - alifethroughthelens

lace heart letterpress print - hijirik

keep calm and carry on - sfgirlbybay

basket of tulips - simplyhue

And then for the ceiling light fixture, I'd love to get a simple, small white chandelier. Love these ones at a local antique shop,

source

Oh, see that lovely lamp with the pink shade, it has my name written all over it, and those antique ladders that are hanging from the ceiling....how great would they look propped up against a wall with your favourite fabrics draped over the steps? Oh yes, I have a vision!

Cheers,

From Me to You ~ A Giveaway!

A few months ago I bought some lovely light-weight, blue jersey knit fabric.

I made myself a simple little scarf with it.

I have loads left over.

What I've done….I've cut out two more scarves. What does this mean for you? Well, one only needs one lovely blue scarf,

so I have two to giveaway. Yay!

It's nothing too fancy, I've literally just folded the fabric and cut the scarves out. Some of the edges aren't perfectly straight, but it really doesn't matter, you can't even tell, plus they have a natural curl to them. I love mine to bits and it's fun to wear. The edges are all raw.

The scarves are about 13" wide and approx 2 meters (84") in length.

Want to win one? Okay, all you have to do is leave a comment with this post….that's it, that's all.

Want a better chance of winning? Feel free to follow along with my blog. Be sure to leave a separate comment telling me that you are following (if you are already following me, thanks a bunch, let me know). So you have a chance to leave up to two comments, and therefore two chances of winning (only one scarf per person).

This is open to everyone and anyone! Winner will be randomly chosen on Friday Sept 24th. Contest closes Thursday night at 11:59pm EST.

Cheers and good luck,

Your Turn

There was this fabric at a local store that I had been eyeing for quite sometime. By the time I finally went to purchase it, there was only a little bit left on the bolt (that's what I get for waiting for it to go on sale!).

I just loved it though, so I bought what was left without knowing if there would be enough for the project I had planned to use it for. I got home, measured it out and sure enough, I would be short by quite bit. I didn't want to toss/sell this fabric, because I truly did love it, but I just didn't know what to make with it.

That was up until yesterday. I have an idea......I'll keep you posted!

do you use madras fabrics?

Do you love it as much as I do? I'm not quite sure what it is that pulls me in, but I do love it. I think it might be an acquired taste....

Cheers,

Pleased To Meet You

we have a dog....

his name is Hyatt...

he's a boxer, he's our buddy...

he loves to sunbathe....

I feel safe with him in our house, which is a great thing when your husband is often away...

I enjoy jogging with him, just the two of us, it's our thing....

he checks on each and every one of us before going to bed at night...

he's a lover, not a fighter

(that's Hyatt at the bottom of the pile)

he's a mushy dog, a cuddly dog, my fourth child

love you Hyatt!

Cheers,

Some TLC

I love to garden. When we moved into this house, there was only one small garden under the front dining room bay window. We extended that one by about oh, 15-20 feet in length and added three more gardens in the backyard. We also planted three trees (one of which is an apple tree, yummy!).

~source~

We have several pots sitting on steps and up on our deck, begonias are my go to plants for my pots. I absolutely love, love, love begonias, they are just so very beautiful. Nice, thick leaves, vibrant in colour, just so very lovely. The only problem I have is that I'm lousy and I mean lousy at storing the bulbs over the winter months. I'm definitely doing something wrong! I have good intentions, however each spring, when I go to repot those bulbs, they are dead….no good. Mushy, mouldy,

not-going-to-sprout-a-thing kind of bulb

~source~

So here I am, reading up on just how to take care of these tender garden bulbs…..now I'm sharing a few of these tips with you!

~source~

First, you want to dig those bulbs out once the leaves begin to turn yellow or around the time of the first frost. Dig around the perimeter of the foliage. Keep in mind that the bulb is most likely bigger than when you planted it in the spring, so you may want to give yourself a little bit of extra room to play with…..slicing the bulb with your spade is not something you want to do. Cut back the stem a little bit (not entirely) and remove any rotted areas with a sharp knife (be careful now!).

~source~

Remove as much of the excess dirt as possible. Go ahead and place the bulbs in a cool dry spot, somewhere that they will not freeze for about a week. After a week, the dirt should clump off (if small amounts of dirt remain in the creases of the bulb, don't worry), and the remaining stem should fall off easily.

now this is where I've been going wrong…..

They then suggest to place the bulbs in a sturdy cardboard box on top of dry peat moss or newspaper. The key is that the peat moss/newspaper will keep the bulbs from drying up (and shrivelling). You could also use vermiculite.

I always left them in a paper bag in our main floor laundry room….apparently this, is a big, big, big no no. They recommend putting the box in the basement, a crawl space or the garage, as long as it doesn't go below freezing, but they do need to be in a pretty cool space.

~source~

Now this also goes for other bulbs too, like cannas, gladioluses, callas and dahlias, just to name a few. And this only applies to those zones where you have freezing temps during the winter months. And there you have it! Now, hopefully we'll all have beautiful begonias sprouting from these stored bulbs next year. Fingers crossed!

do you garden? what is your favourite, or one of your favourite plants?

Cheers,

Cast On, Cast Off

Do you knit? I'm jealous.

I've tried knitting and although I haven't given up for good I think it's safe to say I've taken a break from it. There are loads of things that I would like to make, to call my own. I want to be able to read patterns and so I'll give it a try again in the near future.

I'm not quite sure what it is I can't seem to get. Cast on, purl, knit, cast off…..I know a little (and I know it's not as simple as that), but it's not rhythmic yet nor are my projects pretty. My goal, is to be like my mum and to knit while sitting in front of the tv sipping a cup of my favourite tea. Oh how enjoyable that must be. It seems like the perfect way to spend a cool winter evening, ohhhhh, let's add a fireplace to that mix, ahhhh, divine!

Since knitting is not my forte, I often scour our beloved Etsy for items (I am giving my mum a little bit of a break from making me fashionable wears).

Here are a few of my favs!

Monterey Chunky Scarf ~ JerseyGirlKnits

Cowl/Shoulder Warmer ~ phydeaux

Alexandria Legwarmers ~ explosivekiwi

Cable Sleeveless Wrap/Cardian ~ ananwang

Fingerless Gloves (with flap) ~ DragonKnits

navy and pink stripe long mittens ~ mrswoowoo

iPod nano case ~ onaroll

Speaking of cool winter evenings, I can't wait to get my hands on a delicious gingerbread latte! I know, it's not even halloween yet and the pumpkin spiced latte just came out, I know.

tell me, do you knit? If so, what is your favourite knitting project?

Cheers,