My Little Sewing Blog

Super Violet

2012-01-23T14:51:00.000-08:00

We don't get TV. I do let my kids watch educational cartoons on the internet though. My personal favorite is Word Girl. Word Girl and her trusty sidekick, Captain Huggy Face, go around saving the city with her amazing grammar and vocabulary. Some of the villains are The Butcher, who likes meat and butchers the English language, The Birthday Girl, Chuck the Evil Sandwich Making Guy, and my favorite, Lady Redundant Woman.

We also have Netflix which we download with the wii so we can watch on our regular TV. One of the girls' favorite is Myth Busters, who have done at least a couple of super hero episodes.

Between these 2 shows Violet has become obsessed with super heroes. She keeps drawing pictures of her super outfit for me to make for her that always include ruffly skirts, masks, crowns and capes covered in stars.

Personally, I'm not going to spend hours sewing things that I won't let my kids wear in public, but Violet needed a shirt and I wanted to make her feel special, so I came up with this toned down version.

She of course was thrilled and wears it to school every time it's clean. Now I just need to convince her that I AM NOT going to make everything on her list!

Feelin' Bloggy

2012-01-22T09:00:00.000-08:00

So, about a year or a year and a half ago, I made some short for a guy.
But not just any shorts. I took apart vintage Ocean Pacific corduroy surfer shorts from the 70's, complete with 3" inseam, to re-create.
And not just any guy. This was a 70's surfer dude complete with ultra blonde, shoulder length hair and a perma-tan. Only, in his mid-50's.

It was quite an interesting project.

The shorts turned out great though! Even my good friend and the best tailor I've ever met, Della, was impressed!

Christmas

2012-01-20T11:00:00.000-08:00

The same Christmas pictures I have on facebook and flickr, in case you missed them. Merry Christmas!!!

More Autumn

2011-10-20T13:24:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was absolutely glorious!

More on my flickr page.

Hmmm....maybe I should go into photography?

Teaparty II

2011-10-15T20:40:00.000-07:00

occupywallst.org

Autumn

2011-10-15T12:19:00.000-07:00

I always used to hate fall when I lived way up north. I felt like everything was dying before the snow came. It was muddy and ugly and I hated it.

Now here in southern Oregon I love it! It's like all the trees are blooming and showing off their finery just like the flowers do in the spring. The air is crisp and cool. The flowers and weeds are continuing their life cycle instead of just dying.

Willow and I found this nifty weed on our walk the other day. I put it in an old milk bottle with some lavender buds from right outside our door and a little bird that I made last fall, from this tutorial.

Who knew fall could be so lovely?

New favorite blogger

2011-10-11T11:07:00.000-07:00

So I discovered my new favorite blogger. I have lots of favorite bloggers, but this is the newest one to the list.

Meet Max California. Who is in Australia by the way.

Our lifestyles could not be more totally different. If I saw her on the street I might be afraid. But she is really sweet and she adores her son (you really should see some of the stuff that she has made for him) and her projects are brilliant! I found her bra tutorial (careful, she says the D word), and I swear, just like because of tanis-isis I will never buy jeans again, because of Max California I will never buy a bra again.

Plus her hair rocks. I wish I were that brave...

Poor Sweet Willow

2011-10-10T13:09:00.000-07:00

Last week, Willow stepped on a pencil. One of only two items on the floor and it was laying flat. However, the pencil went an inch into her foot and left behind half an inch of graphite!


Not for the weak of stomach

It had to be surgically removed and she's still on crutches. Poor kid! I didn't have my first surgery until I was seventeen and had to have my wisdom teeth out!

She's holding up well though. She's bored out of her silly mind and she's missing tae kwon do and she's going to miss her orange belt test, but she's having a good attitude. I'm proud of her.

Finally! What a relief.

2011-10-07T23:47:00.000-07:00

I suffer from depression. I have for most of my life. I'm always afraid to tell anyone. I'm afraid they will judge me. I'm afraid they'll think I'm just on anti-depressants so that I have the energy to be super-woman. I'm afraid they won't trust me with their kids. I'm afraid people will think I'm incapable. I'm afraid they'll think is just an excuse to be lazy. Instead I hide it, and make excuses and people think I'm a flake. Like when I say I can't do something that normal people would do with no problem. Or when I say I can do something but I just can't.

There are some days where I really like who I am. I am an artist. I am intelligent. I am trustworthy and capable.

And some days I just can't. I can't make phone calls. I can't go to sleep at night without the light on. I can stay awake in the afternoon.

I've walked around in a stupor all stinking day, and then suddenly at 7:30, my brain cleared and I feel normal. And I made a decision. I'm not going to take it anymore! I'm not going to hide anymore! I'm going to find a medication that really works, and I'm going to allow myself to do only what I'm capable of. If I can't do something, I'm not going to torture myself because a normal human being should be able to do it. The fact is, I'm not always a normal human being. The fact is, I'm limited sometimes.

So my friends, ask me to do things. Ask me to watch your kids or teach your Sunday school class or host a tupperware party. I'll say yes if I can. And if I can't I will tell you. I'm not going to flake out on you or make excuses anymore. I respect you too much for that.

2011-06-17T09:02:00.000-07:00

So when I finally have time to post on my poor neglected blog is when I've had my eye sliced open and I can hardly see what I'm typing. Go figure.

Yes I, at the tender age of 30 had cataract surgery yesterday. It's a very interesting procedure. I don't remember any of it. But hopefully within a few days my will see 10000% better than it ever did! Yay!

So Pretty!!!

2011-04-19T18:38:00.000-07:00

I finally got something finished! Hooray!

I actually made a dress form. Is that cool or what? I found the pattern from this seller on ebay.

The fabric is a lovely home dec from the thrift store. It has "1984" printed on the selvages! I can so picture it in my Grammy's house way back then, she would have loved it.

Anyway, having an actual, real, dress form helps so much in the designing process! Yay!!

So so busy, and nothing to show for it

2011-04-13T12:26:00.000-07:00

I have been working my fanny off, but I truely couldn't tell you what I've been doing.
Easter dresses are half done. My coat is almost cut out. I did some stuff for DeWayne. I did some mending and lots and lots of housework and Homeschool, but nothing really exciting or... finished.

So I'll just post some pictures of our day at table rock this last Saturday. It was lovely!

I wish my battery hadn't died half way through.

And now the last picture. AAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!! I am feeling very motivated to lose weight! No wonder my friend (whom I don't see very often) asked me if I was expecting! I had lost 5 pounds and was toning up and stuff, but then I gained 7 and it all went to my belly. Arhg. You'd think a nice, long, uphill hike would do something for me, but noooo.

I'm going to talk like a Mormon for a minute

2011-04-02T19:58:00.000-07:00

So my coat, right? Oh my freaking heck! (that's mormon swearing)

I've used a lot of printable patterns. Most of them are perfectly fine to lay out and tape. Some are tricky. This one was nearly impossible!! First of all, there were 57 (!) pages. With that many you know there's going to be a mistake somewhere. Then, the edges and overlap were not clearly marked. At all.

Plus, there are no notches or markings at all except for 1 notch on the top of the sleeve.

When I finally got all 57 pages just right and taped together, I had to go over each pattern piece to make sure it was actually correct, and then alter each pattern piece. Sherry gives some great tips for altering and checking patterns. I already knew most of it, but the stuff I did pick up was priceless.

Anyway, I shortened the tail, lengthened the waist

and the sleeves, added pockets, added vents to the sleeves, and changed the collar just a little.

It's going to be so stinkin' cute, I can hardly wait

Because I don't have enough to do...

2011-03-28T18:07:00.000-07:00

I am participating in a tailoring sew-along over at pattern-scissors-cloth. I'm so excited! She's going to go into all the details of altering patterns, fitting, industry tips and tricks, and since I am a completely self-taught seamstress, I am excited to either: learn something new, or: confirm that I was doing it right after all!

I found this pattern that I just LOVE. Of course I plan to alter it almost beyond recognition, but here's what I'm starting with.

Now I need to decide which fabric to use. Both are nice washable wool blends. The grey was a thrift store find and has a light weight black interfacing on the back, so it's quite stiffer than the black. What do you think?

The Amazing Spring Collection!

2011-03-23T23:13:00.000-07:00

It's finally up! With pictures and its own page! HOORAY!!!!
You can see it's own special little page over there to the right where is says "pages; home; spring collection"
Cool huh?

I still have to make one more skirt, 2 more tops, and take pictures of my very cool RED purse.

Our afternoon in the Redwoods

2011-03-23T20:10:00.000-07:00

Signs of spring

The beautiful Smith river

Me and the girls

One huge-o tree

Redwood Sorrel

Trunk show at Emilia's

2011-03-20T00:56:00.000-07:00

It was a lot of fun!

Red purses coming soon to my etsy shop.

Photo shoot

2011-03-16T09:57:00.000-07:00

I was finally finally finally(!) able to get some pictures of my Spring Collection. Over the next few days I'll be editing pictures, opening the line up for pre-orders and getting it listed in my etsy shop.

I'm so excited!!!

One more week!

2011-03-11T14:34:00.000-08:00

This is how busy I am

2011-03-09T10:12:00.000-08:00

I've been working on all kinds of wonderful stuff for my spring collection and pillows like an insane woman. I'm in some sort of sewing mania. I have turned out an tremendous volume of stuff and most of it I absolutely love!

Yes, I am showing off my mess.

But it does come with a price.

See my shirt from where I couldn't wait to leave the room to
try something on? My kids are constantly appalled.

This is what my area looks like after just 1 day of sewing mania. *facepalm*

Violet's skirt

2011-03-07T11:11:00.000-08:00

Made by Me March is helping me to realize several things
1. I'm way too busy to post every day
2. I wear the same clothes every single week with very little variation. I just don't have a lot of clothes.
3. Boy do I need to lose some weight!

I was sick for 2 months, then okay for 2 month and then sick again for 2 months. All I could do was sit around, eat and take pain pills that made me fall asleep. My new years resolution it to lose 30 pounds which will get me back to where I was when I got pregnant with Willow 9 years ago. I plan to make healthy choices and lifestyle changes and lose the weight in a healthy and not-obsessive way. I've packed up all my too-small clothing by size so that every time I get to the 10 pound mark I can open a box and have clothes that will fit me, instead of having a closet loaded with things that won't fit. The problem is, in the meantime, I have hardly any clothes!

So yes, losing weight is a health thing and a vanity thing, but it's also a logical thing. If I lose weight, I don't have to do laundry so often!

Anyway, here's Violet in her MMM outfit for yesterday. I took this adult skirt pattern, sized it down for skinny-mini, and added an underskirt.

It was a big hit in primary yesterday! Click to see the details better.

sneak peek

2011-03-06T18:20:00.000-08:00

SheSpoke again....

2011-03-03T20:08:00.000-08:00

So instead of working on my new spring line, I get to do a whole bunch more pillows for DeWayne! Yay!

Do you sense the sarcasm?

Not that I don't love DeWayne or his pillows, but I want to work on my stuff! I've hired a model, I'm dying yards of fabric, I'm so close I can taste it!

Oh, and here's my MMM outfit for the day.

This is actually a top that I got on super clearance, but the neck was way too low, so I took it apart, took about 5 inches out of the neckband, add 2 more tucks, and put it back together. It's one of my favorite tops, but it's really starting to wear out. Maybe I'll have to use it as a pattern.

mmm

2011-03-01T23:08:00.000-08:00

I Cheyenne Nichols of My Little Sewing Blog do solemnly swear to.....well, kind of do the Made by Me March challenge presented by Zoe.

The problem is, most of my really cool made-by-me clothes are about 10 lbs too small, so I don't have a lot to show. But my kids wear made-by-Mom (me) clothes every. single. day. So if my clothes get boring, I'll just take pictures of them!

So here is day 1of Made by Me March. My version of the Anita jeans which you will not see in further detail because I used inferior fabric and now there's a patch in a not-so-flattering place, but it's okay as long as I wear long shirts.

And a prototype of a top that may or may not be in my spring collection, but certain won't be in that color or fabric. I like the style, but not the color or fabric.

Violet assured me that I would be cute if I posed like this.

Sick day

2011-02-25T08:57:00.000-08:00

I have a pretty nasty cold. My thoughts are all blurry. I'm a little bored. Let's see what pictures I have.

Oh here we go! I got Willow the Mary Frances Sewing book and a full sewing kit for her birthday in December. She's read the whole book about 6 times and now she's ready to learn to sew. But of course she can't start with the first lesson. Oh no, she has to start on the seventh project, which is a sweet little lacy nightgown.

She's so cute though. She's re-fallen in love with her American girl doll. She wants to sew everything just right with the perfect fabric and trim. She has her little sewing box perfectly organized. She just makes me want to scoop her up and give her a kiss on the head, but at eight years old that's probably the last thing she wants me to do, even if she weren't way too heavy.

That's my girl, the little budding seamstress. I am one proud mama. And now, I need a nap.

The first item in the spring collection!

2011-02-24T08:26:00.000-08:00

I love cute hats. And I hate raindrops on my glasses.

Sal the hat model. I think it's a bit big.

This is a pretty cream chenille with machine embroidery. Can't you just imagine wearing this with a light jacket in April when who-knows-what the weather is going to do? I love it. As soon as I get some real pictures its going up in my shop, but I am definitely keeping one for myself!

PS Oh My Goodness! I can't believe I did that! It's not chenille, it's wide wale corduroy! And I call myself a dressmaker *sheesh*

I think I'll call her "Sal"

2011-02-22T08:26:00.000-08:00

I made this pretty little doll as a mannequin to display my kids clothes. I think she turned out so pretty!

cute little fingers

My Sweetheart is creeped out by her. She's too realistic. He's says that she's going to brutally murder him in his sleep. He has obviously seen way more scary movies than I have.

It doesn't help that she has a piece of pvc pipe sticking out so she can stand and she's usually standing on the back of the couch and she's the size and shape of a real toddler.

But I like her! I think she's sweet. And both my girls want me to cut the stick off and let them have her. Maybe they'll get their own for Christmas.

But then there will be 3 scary dolls to kill Sweetheart in his sleep...

whew

2011-02-18T08:55:00.000-08:00

So, I've had kidney stones for a long time. I know what they feel like. This time felt just like any other time, but it dragged out for 5 weeks. So I finally went to the doctor, hoping he could do something, anything, that would help. Uber pain pills were not helping get on with my life. Turns out I had a kidney infection after the last stone. One week of antibiotics and I'm fine. Hooray!

I am feeling so incredibly much better! I'm almost all caught up with the day to day stuff and I'm designing again. Bring on the Spring Collection!!

A happy, upbeat post

2011-02-10T08:57:00.000-08:00

Well that last post was a big ball of depressing. Sorry about that. I've been trying to push through all the emotional stuff and think about my work rationally. The reality is that I'm sick for months at a time. It sucks, but it's not a death sentence. I can use my creativity in other ways. I can find things to do that don't require standing or sitting up straight. I can take things one day at a time.

So I'm going to work on my poor little neglected supply shop and I'm exploring other fun crafty options which may or may not actually work, but that I can do partially reclined on the couch. I'll post about that later.

And since every blog post should have a picture, here's my girls in their matching first day of school outfits that I made. You can't see the details at all, but their faces are just so sweet!

Okay fine, one more pic. The top is a very soft cotton knit. It's black with little itty bitty white polka dots (which don't show in the pic at all but the add a nice softness to the overall look) and I embroidered a redwork paisley in bright pink on Willow's and purple on Violet's. Then I put another layer of fabric at the yoke so the embroidery wouldn't be scratchy on the girls' skin. I do want them to actually wear it! The skirt is a charcoal grey rib knit.

Look at that! A happy, upbeat post! Hooray!

sigh

2011-02-07T12:11:00.000-08:00

I am so stinkin' frustrated. I have been working SO hard on my spring collection. I've been making patterns, dyeing (dying?) fabric, bought a tripod, been looking for a model, etc., but I don't get very far before my kidney starts hurting.

My kidney looks like this except with little rocks in it

When it hurts a little bit, I can't stand at my work table to do anything. When it hurts moderately, I can't sit up straight at my sewing machine. When it hurts a lot I have to take major pain killers and then I can't think or stay awake.

That really makes it hard to get any work done! It's also not helping with my weight loss goals. I may just have to be content 10 lbs over "healthy and normal", which sucks too.

Anyway, I'm feeling very discouraged. If I can't even get my dishes done in time for dinner, how am I supposed to get my spring collection done in time for spring? Some days aren't so bad. Some days I'm totally couch ridden. And it usually goes on for months. Maybe I should abandon the idea of being an independent fashion designer. I've already given up tailoring and dressmaking because I can't meet deadlines. I don't know.

*sigh*

PS, I normally try to make all my posts fun and uplifting, so I hope you'll get a chuckle from my pictures. I really do want some feed back though. I don't know if I should just give up or what!

Because I'm too lazy to take my own pictures

2011-02-06T13:10:00.000-08:00

I just thought I'd share on of my favorite blogs with you. Tanit-Isis, I read, or at least check on this blog every single day.

Not only because she posts almost every day and I don't want to miss out, but mostly because she's just so chatty and fun to read. I admire how daring she is with her sewing adventures. She's the one that got me to try making real jeans and I discovered that I LOVE it and will never buy a pair of jeans again!

I admit that I am a little jealous that she is so pretty and slim and photogenic, but hey, my fabric and supply stash is WAY better, so I guess it all evens out right?
Anyway, check her out, she rocks.

I'm dying

2011-02-03T10:36:00.000-08:00

Or maybe not.
Dying is when you cease to live. "I'm going to die. I'm dying." What is the verb when you're using dye? Is it still dying? It doesn't look right to me, but neither does dyeing. Although spellcheck says that both are correct (although the word "spellcheck" is apparently not a word). Grammar Nazis? Anyone?

Anyway, I got to dye some fabric last night for my upcoming spring line. However, I was hoping for a nice fresh apple green but what I got was more of a celery. Very pretty but it doesn't match my inspiration fabric, and it doesn't go well with the red, pink and blue I want.

Oh well, more dye shopping.

A Receptacle For Random Thought: My Mama is proud of me

2011-01-31T17:04:00.000-08:00

My Mama wrote a little post about me. I didn't get any of her amazing talent with the written word at all. It must have skipped me and went right on to my little sister somehow.
Anyway, here's her post
A Receptacle For Random Thought: The Oregon Trip And The Clothing Designer
The sickness that's she referring to is kidney stones. I hate kidney stones so much. Really I do.

SheSpoke

2011-01-29T14:55:00.000-08:00

Janell and I have spent 6 weeks sewing like crazy for DeWayne Lumpkin of Home Economics. He's designed an entire line of womens clothing made of, and embellished with antique bus route signs from Britain, Scotland and Australia.

I got to make all the patterns and do a lot of the design work. It's really cool stuff, I'm excited to be a part of it.

The clothing is displayed at Collage Gallery in San Francisco. And look! We even got articles in Today's Vintage and the San Francisco Chronicle! How cool is that! Very cool I tell you.

Introducing Janell!

2011-01-15T10:38:00.000-08:00

Hello fellow sewing addicts! Janell here, Cheyenne’s new assistant . While a fish-out- of-water last month when I joined her team at MyLittle, I’m fully into the swing of loading endless bobbins and Zenning out to the hummmm of her grandmother’s sewing machine.

Let me first say, Cheyenne is a wizard of sorts in her shop. She bounces from one task to the next, leaving a slew of beautifully crafted pieces in her wake. I’ve grown accustomed to her various trills and squeaks she makes after poking herself on needles or reconfiguring a hemline. And she manages to juggle her two beautiful girls that she home-schools all the while. I am humbled and grateful for all she is teaching me – so patiently.

I never, ever, ever thought I’d be sewing for a living. City girl turned General Contractor turned farmer and now I’m hooked on the thread. I’ve always admired those that could turn a raw material into something lovely, a work of art. I never thought I would have the patience to learn the skill of sewing. I could spend an evening daydreaming up things to make, look longingly at sensuous fabrics, but when it came down to business – to making this idea tangible – I would fizzle out. I had no skills. But!!! Little, by little, I am learning. Learning that there is soooo much to learn!!! Cheyenne is self-taught and has spent years becoming the seamstress she is today, but I am thoroughly enjoying being her apprentice.

Learning is easier when your teacher is on fire for what she is doing. And she hums a lot of Christmas tunes as we work. I may never get The Nutcracker out of my head before July, but I don’t mind.

2011-01-07T13:55:00.000-08:00

-Under Construction-
Big changes coming soon!

So Pretty!

2010-08-14T11:06:00.000-07:00

I got to make this beautiful Regency dress for my client to wear to a Jane Austen picnic.

I know I know, the picture is awful. I forgot to bring my camera to the fitting, so I had to use my cell phone, and it's not quite finished, I still needed to do the hem at that point.

You can see me in the mirror behind my client!

Anyway, it turned out just lovely and even my perfectionistic friend Della thought it was beautiful work, which was a huge compliment to me!

Everyone loves chenille

2010-08-05T11:15:00.000-07:00

This is one of the projects that I've been working on this week. Sweet little dolls for a few of the different sororities.

Pictures were taken at night on a plastic chair, so they're a lot cuter in person. I was in a hurry to get them in the mail!

I got them shipped off to OK. and they are only available from Greek Isle Co.!

Pretty chairs!

2010-07-29T09:43:00.000-07:00

Hello poor neglected little blog. I've been busy and distracted for....I don't know...a year?

Anyway, last night I got to spend a few hours helping a friend (or rather, she was helping me) re-cover cushions for her rocking chairs.

Don't they look pretty?

Dollies for Haiti

2010-03-25T13:35:00.000-07:00

Link to the dolly donations blog where ours are at the very top!

Dollies for Haiti

2010-03-22T13:28:00.000-07:00

The girls and I made these dolls to send to an orphanage in Haiti.

There are so many children there who have lost everything, including their families. We wanted to let them know that somebody loves them!

More details here

Our Trip to the Coast

2010-03-10T13:21:00.000-08:00

We got to take the girls to the coast a couple of weeks ago. It was right after the earthquake in Chile, so the surf was amazing and there were tsunami warnings!

The weather was beautiful, but a little windy and cold.

We met a very friendly squirrel

And saw REAL seals! How cool is that!

Violet's Pack Ponies

2010-02-23T09:02:00.001-08:00

Christmas Pictures

2010-02-12T11:53:00.000-08:00

What? It's not even half-way through February yet?

Every year we get Christmas pictures and get an 8x10 print and then at Christmas time we hang them all up beside the Christmas tree. We've only missed 1 year. That was the year that Willow was almost 2 and she threw up all over the portrait studio!

Anyway, here is this years picture with the girls in the dresses I made. Aren't they sweet!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-07T07:42:00.000-08:00

Here's a few pictures of our Christmas morning.

Willow worked really hard and made Violet this doll. Well I helped a little bit too. Anyway, Violet loved it and Willow was so happy!

Willow's new diary.

Some of Violet's home made dress ups.

Dad's gift from Violet.

Willow agog over her digital camera. Best $5 gift ever!

The rest of the pictures look something like this.

I made the images kind of small because there are so many of them. You can click on them to make them bigger. Merry Christmas!

shopping for men

2009-12-24T13:19:00.000-08:00

Rule #1:
When in doubt - buy him a cordless drill. It does not matter if he already has one. I have a friend who owns 17 and he has yet to complain. As a man, you can never have too many cordless drills. No one knows why.

Rule #2:
If you cannot afford a cordless drill, buy him anything with the word ratchet or socket in it. Men love saying those two words. "Hey George, can I borrow your ratchet?" "OK. By-the-way, are you through with my 3/8-inch socket yet?" Again, no one knows why.

Rule #3:
If you are really, really broke, buy him anything for his car. A 99-cent ice scraper, a small bottle of deicer or something to hang from his rear view mirror. Men love gifts for their cars. No one knows why.

Rule #4:
Do not buy men socks. Do not buy men ties. And never buy men bathrobes. I was told that if God had wanted men to wear bathrobes, he wouldn't have invented Jockey shorts.

Rule #5:
You can buy men new remote controls to replace the ones they have worn out. If you have a lot of money, buy your man a big-screen TV with the little picture in the corner. Watch him go wild as he flips, and flips, and flips.

Rule #7:
Do not buy any man industrial-sized canisters of after shave or deodorant. I'm told they do not stink - they are earthy.

Rule #8:
Buy men label makers. Almost as good as cordless drills. Within a couple of weeks there will be labels absolutely everywhere. "Socks. Shorts. Cups. Saucers. Door. Lock. Sink." You get the idea. No one knows why.

Rule #9:
Never buy a man anything that says "some assembly required" on the box. It will ruin his day and he will always have parts left over.

Rule #10:
Good places to shop for men include Northwest Iron Works, Parr Lumber, Home Depot, John Deere, Valley RV Center, and Les Schwab Tire. NAPA Auto Parts and Sear's Clearance Centers are also excellent men's stores. It doesn't matter if he doesn't know what it is. "From NAPA Auto, eh? Must be something I need. Hey! Isn't this a starter for a '68 Ford Fairlane? Wow! Thanks."

Rule #11:
Men enjoy danger. That's why they never cook - but they will barbecue. Get him a monster barbecue with a 100-pound propane tank. Tell him the gas line leaks. "Oh the thrill! The challenge! Who wants a hamburger?"

Rule #12:
Tickets to a football game are a smart gift. However, he will not appreciate tickets to "A Retrospective of 19th Century Quilts." Everyone knows why.

Rule #13:
Men love chainsaws. Never, ever, buy a man you love a chainsaw. If you don't know why - please refer to Rule #8 and what happens when he gets a label-maker.

Rule #14:
It's hard to beat a really good wheelbarrow or an aluminum extension ladder. Never buy a real man a step ladder. It must be an extension ladder. No one knows why.

Rule #15:
Rope. Men love rope. It takes them back to our cowboy origins, or at least The Boy Scouts. Nothing says love like a hundred feet of 3/8" manila rope.

Thanks to AllegroArts for lots of laughs with this :)

Santa

2009-12-22T10:43:00.000-08:00

We took the girls to the mall to see Santa. Willow was too scared, but Violet got to sit on his lap!

Fiber Art

2009-12-10T09:41:00.000-08:00

So I thought I'd try my hand at fiber art. What do you think? Is there a market for it? I think it's beautiful but I want to know what you think. I thought I'd try and have a whole line ready for Mother's day

Craft Show Fun!

2009-12-08T19:29:00.000-08:00

This weekend I took the girls to the biggest, most amazing craft show I've ever seen!

Here's the girls with their new handmade barrettes.

We met up with Kate from etsy. I had bought one of her birdhouse ornaments on her shop and then I found out she was having a booth at this craft show, which I had intended to go to anyway! So I just picked up my order there.

Isn't she cute?
Her bird houses are just beautiful! This is art. Look at the detail!

We also met up with Mari. Here she is telling the girls about fused glass. I was sure I had taken a better picture of her, but I guess not. Sorry Mari!
We got to spend quite a bit of time with her and Violet says that "That lady that's Mom's friend" is her new best friend.

Kate and Mari both belong to our etsy Createability team.

3

2009-12-03T15:18:00.000-08:00

Has it really been 3 months? Has it only been 3 months?
So much has happened.
For starters, we sold our house and moved to Oregon. I figured, since we're a few hundred miles from any of my family, maybe it's time to dust off the ol' blog.
We're really liking it here. My sweetie got a really good job. We're REALLY enjoying the weather. We like our new ward. Willow is doing well in her new school. It's all good.
I'm getting a new camera soon, so I'll post pictures then.

First day of School

2009-09-14T08:15:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday was Willow's first day of first grade. She did great!

I, on the other hand did not do great. It was so hard! I'm a dyed in the wool home-schooler! I feel like I'm sending my baby to the wolves!

In reality it's fine. The kids are nice and she's making friends, the teacher is great and I've seen such an improvement in her attitude and behavior in just a week that it's amazing. So yay school! I guess...

The most beautiful mess

2009-09-10T08:08:00.000-07:00

An old friend's mother surprised me this week by bringing over 3 garbage bags full of fabric and sewing stuff! I'm in heaven! Some of the fabrics are just gorgeous!

I spent a whole day sitting on the floor sorting and petting fabric.

2009-09-07T17:02:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I had a booth at our local farmer's market and it was awesome! My best market yet! It's funny though, if I hadn't sold so much all the problems would have made it miserable!
First I couldn't find a piece of my canopy, so I didn't set it up. But that turned out to be good because the wind was awful! I'm sure it would have blown the canopy across the park and into the creek! As it was all my signs and dolls were blowing all over the place. Even the table was trying to jump away.
Then it rained. Okay, only 4 drops, but enough to make me panick and start putting stuff away, which I then had to get back out again when it stopped.
Then a sweet little autistic boy came over and broke my umbrella, danced with my mannequin and re-arranged my entire booth. He said it looked much better now, just like wal-mart.
But all in all it was great. Good sales, good contacts, lots of fun.

Fall

2009-09-03T18:02:00.000-07:00

Look! I'm in a treasury! That's so cool.

I'm not ready for Fall to be here yet though! The evenings are getting cooler, all my tomatoes are ripe, Willow is going to be going to school next week...sigh...I know there's no getting around it, but I'm still not ready for it...

This made me smile

2009-08-25T08:41:00.000-07:00

I met a sweet etsyian yesterday and she featured me on her blog today! How fun is that! I love Etsy :D

Farmers' Market

2009-08-02T13:16:00.000-07:00

I've been working with the comity to form Rathdrum's first Farmers' Market for several months now, and it's been a huge success! This last Saturday was the third weekend running, but the first time I actually got pictures.

I'm still working on my booth setup, it's not quite how I want it, but it's getting there. One of the main problems is that I have to fit everything into an economy sedan!

We also keep finding these funny catapillars! They seem to be curious and very fast!

2009-07-08T09:28:00.001-07:00

Look at this! Robin from Lolidots is doing a giveaway for me!

This little guy could be yours! You can see more pictures of him in my etsy shop.

I'm ba-ack

2009-07-03T10:11:00.001-07:00

Time to dust off the old blog. I've been so busy doing so may great things! And I haven't shared them! What's wrong with me!

I'll be better after this.

aw..

2009-04-14T08:20:00.000-07:00

This made my day today!
My Little bird made it all the way to Australia to this sweet little girl!

Look at her sweet face.

2009-03-26T09:55:00.000-07:00

MyLittle.Etsy.com 2/1/09

Life with a 3 year old

2009-02-14T12:18:00.001-08:00

GAH!!

Oh well, at least she likes to read, right?

Bunny the bunny

2009-02-07T15:01:00.000-08:00

See our new bunny? We've had her for 2 weeks and we still just call her "bunny". I think that's her new name. The girls have been having a great time with her, and she litter box trained! Hooray!
I built her cage myself. I'll post picture later, I'm rather impressed with myself :D

Look! I'm featured!

2009-02-05T10:46:00.000-08:00

Designs by Vanessa put me in her blog.

That's so cool! Thanks Vanessa!

How cool is this!!!

2009-02-01T17:52:00.000-08:00

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Last day of January

2009-01-31T09:09:00.000-08:00

I hate winter. I really do. I'm so tired of it. This winter has been a lot better than other winters for me, but I am still so ready for it to be over. So, this is the last day of January, February is a short month, and then March is spring! I can do that right! Oh I hope so.

I've already got some organic heirloom seeds from Homegrown Healthy and Smokey mist gardens on etsy. I can't wait to grow this pumpkin! Isn't it beautiful! Come on spring!

Awwwww...

2009-01-20T09:00:00.001-08:00

I got to do lots of custom items for Christmas. Here is one of my dolls in her new home with her new Mommy.

This just made my day!

Winter

2008-12-08T16:43:00.000-08:00

I usually hate winter, but this year has been so much better. Maybe it's because there hasn't been any snow yet. Maybe it's because my girls are bigger and more fun to hang out with. Maybe it's because I've been so stinkin' busy!

Anyway, it's been nice and cozy this year and I'm enjoying it.

That's a job well done

2008-12-01T14:29:00.000-08:00

I got to make 5 life sized snowmen for a display for a charity event benefiting kids with cancer. It took me months, but I'm done now and they turned out really well.

I went down to the CDA Resort to help set up on friday for the Festival of trees. It was really fun, but it took 7 hours!

Black Friday

2008-11-25T11:41:00.001-08:00

I LOVE Black Friday, so I just wanted to link really quick to a list of bunch of Black Friday sales on Etsy. My name will be on that list soon ;)

Cuteness!

2008-11-25T09:16:00.000-08:00

Now that I'm not a month behind it's easier to just sit down and blog.

I got to make these sweet little aprons for a friend of my Mom's. They turned out so cute!

These are my kids modeling them.

We're getting ready for Thanksgiving now, and I have a lot to be thankful for. Family, home, love, success, friends, comfort.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Oh good, the stomache flu

2008-11-21T07:27:00.000-08:00

I have not died or fallen off the face of the earth. I have been so incredibly busy!!!!!!
First of all, we finished our basement and rearranged the entire house. The kitchen was the only room that stayed mostly the same. It's just like moving without the excuse to order pizza. But now the girls have their own rooms, we have an office and a nice big school room!

I've been making 5 life sized snowmen for a charity event for children with cancer. It took me 2 months to design the first one and then a good 3 hours for each one after that. Whew!

Add to everything else, my shop has just gone nuts! I never thought I'd be this busy! It's unreal! I've got custom orders coming out my ears!

And then, the stomach flu. Sometimes we need to slow down and rest and re-evaluate what's important. If you can't find an opportunity on your own, the Lord will give you that opportunity. So thank you Lord, for the stomach flu. This week I've spent a lot of time snuggling and nurturing my children. Yesterday I got to sleep all day and take a long bath. Today I get to serve my husband. That's my real job, that's more important than any old snowmen.

I just gotta say...

2008-10-11T11:30:00.000-07:00

I love this shop! It's called Little Diva and you can find it here. I love her colors. I love her style. I love her pictures. And I LOVE her little model!! She is just so cute! Almost as cute as my girls :P

Darn, I was hoping that picture would be bigger. I guess now you'll just have to go look at her shop *wink*

2008-10-08T07:37:00.000-07:00

I spent this last weekend with my booth at a craft show-slash-flea market. It was a very nice flea market really, all the antiques were very nice and there was jewelry and home decor. There was really only one or two booths with just junk.
However, business was really slow and I only sold one item, not even enough to pay for my booth. I'm kinda bummed about that, BUT, it was a good learning experience and I had a lot of fun.

I learned that:

Being away from home for three days in a row is just too much for my family. My primary responsibility is and should be at home with my family. Even though the girls were in the booth with me on Friday and home with Daddy on Saturday and for two whole hours on Sunday, it was just too much for them, and so we were all stressed and cranky by the time it was over. That's most important thing I learned. I think I'll wait a couple of years before I try this again.

I actually had a display that looked really good! I've done craft shows in the past, and my booth has looked fine, but this time it looked really good!

I miss having co-workers. There were two ladies there with booths on either side of me that were just so much fun! I spent most of the weekend laughing!

And lastly, paper clips do not make good display hangers.

Aaarrrggggghh!! Computer problems!

2008-10-02T12:38:00.000-07:00

Do you see the frustration in my title? I feel it I tell ya'!

First off, the desktop decided to spontaneously combust. Nothing was working. My sweetie is a computer genius or all would be lost. He managed to get all our info and family picture and financial records and pretty much our whole life off the desk top and onto the laptop a little at a time with a thumb drive. Then he dropped a screw. I was being helpful and went behind the chair to get it, completely forgetting that the laptop was on the chair!!!!
Yeah, it fell and now it's kinda toast.
My sweetie managed to wipe everything off the desktop and start over and get everything off the laptop and onto the desktop, but he's worked and worked and can't seem to make that silly (I'm thinking of a stronger word, but I won't say it) laptop to work.
Well, the laptop is what I do my embroidery on, so we tried to install the embroidery software on the desktop. No dice. The software is written for a 32 bit processor and the desktop is a 64 bit. After much searching, calling Singer and cursing we have found that we're just out of luck. There are no patches, nothing we can do to make the embroidery machine play nice with the desktop.

I need a brick wall to bang my head on.

Oh Look!

2008-09-20T13:49:00.000-07:00

I've been featured on Kiddlins! How fun! She's got some great kid's stuff over there, go check it out.

Oak

2008-09-19T11:39:00.000-07:00

This little oak tree was a custom order, and I have to say it turned out just great. I don't know why she wanted a dragon fly on a tree, but it works!

I love the little oak leaves!

Wow! Look at this!!

2008-09-18T07:47:00.000-07:00

I just found the most amazing softie artist! And I don't use the word artist lightly, her stuff is truly amazing. Nosey Nest can be found on flickr, etsy and her blog, AND she has a tutorial for this cute duck!

Isn't this lovely?

2008-09-15T07:52:00.000-07:00

Today I'm featuring PSBBdesigns. She's on my Etsy street team and I think her work is just fabulous.

I think this is just lovely.

The County Fair!

2008-09-11T08:05:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at the fair! I wasn't even sick this year! Yea!

Ziggys had an area for making birdhouses and the girls and I made some. They looked awesome...and then we took them home and the girls painted them. Oh my they're ugly now! That's okay, it was a great experience for them to create and be so proud of themselves!

Trendy Shoppes

2008-08-26T16:45:00.000-07:00

I made these little cuties and mail them off with some birds to Trendy Shoppes! They should be up soon. I'm really excited. It's a brand new site and I get to be on it from almost the beginning! Plus the site owner is really nice.

*sigh* I really need to improve my pictures. I know my dolls look so much cuter in person! I'm just not a photographer, but I really want/need to be if I want to show off how cute my dolls really are. Arrrhg! It's frustrating, as a small home business owner I have to wear ALL of the hats. Some jobs I'm good at, some I'm not, like photographing. And marketing. If I could just sit back and dream and sew I'd be perfectly happy!

New dolls

2008-08-21T07:44:00.000-07:00

I've been designing some new dolls and trying to figure out how to make my embroidery machine do the faces and attach them. Here's what I came up with.

The one on the right is my first attempt. I think it's kinda scary looking, but Willow loves it, so I gave it to her. I even let her sew up the stuffing hole all by herself. She did a really good job!
I like the one on the left a lot better. It has a much bigger head and smaller face. I really like the feet! They're just so cute!

While taking pictures of these babies, Violet insisted that I take a picture of her baby too. Why does that one look so much better? Usually my pictures are just average and the one in a while I'll get one that's "wow", but it's always on accident.

Worst Blogger Ever

2008-08-18T16:04:00.000-07:00

Has it really been almost a month since I've blogged? I suck! I have been busy, but not that busy.
I've been selling my goods at a new site. Made it Myself is still in Beta testing and I think it shows great potential, plus it's free right now. I always like free.

Willow got to cook dinner all by herself the other night. She has been awful about complaining about what I cook for dinner for months, if not years. No parenting tips please, I'm doing my best!
Anyway, I finally said "Fine, you get to cook tomorrow night." And she did, with a very small amount of help from me.

She made biscuits and sausage gravy. She only burned her fingers twice. I was able to convince her that baking soda in the gravy wouldn't taste very nice. Her biscuits were very heavy. But it tasted pretty good and she was very proud of herself and best of all, hasn't complained about dinner since. That makes me very happy.

Best Anniversary Ever

2008-07-23T09:12:00.000-07:00

My Sweetheart surprised me with a trip to a tent and breakfast. It's like a bed and breakfast, but with privacy and s'mores.

He found this place not too far from Clark Fork.

The bed was a lot prettier before we slept in it.

It was wonderful! And the owners are the nicest people ever. We are seriously thinking about moving out to Bonner County in 2 or 3 years.

So now we've been married for 9 years. I can't believe it's been that long. It seems like maybe 3, but not 9. I feel old. But I also feel great. It's been a wonderful 9 years.

I love you Sweetie.

Tshirt fun

2008-07-15T11:26:00.000-07:00

I've been on a tshirt kick the last couple of days. Now 5 of my shirts have cutesy embroidery on them. It started with this one.

Man it's hard to take a picture of yourself! This is the best I could do.
I haven't had this shirt very long and I got a spaghetti stain on it! So I embroidered over the stain. Pretty good huh?

Then came a bird, pig, cherries and a monkey. Look how cute!

My sweet hubby helped me with this picture.
They turned out so cute I decided to put them in my shop.

Wow! Look at this!!

2008-07-10T15:37:00.000-07:00

Monica at The Homespun Heart (my very favoritest blog ever) is having a drawing! She got Land's end to give her a $120 gift card to give away on her blog! Go check it out! All you have to do is look at their bathing suits and tell Monica which one you like best on her blog! Easy cheesy :D

For the Birds

2008-07-09T12:03:00.000-07:00

Look what I've been making!

Aren't the cute?

Yes well, I made one and I liked it. So I made 2 more and they were great, then I made a batch of 14 more. I think I'm done with birds for a while! They're in my shop now.

This is why

2008-07-02T15:20:00.001-07:00

This is why I've been away so long. My little sister got married last Friday. The whole month of June was a whirlwind!

I got to make the engagement dress and take the engagement pictures, which was great fun.

And do the bridal shower, which I didn't get pictures of, but it turned out great. I even made a cheese ball :)

I made dresses for my girls.

And helped make the invitations, which were beautiful and done scrapbook style, so they took FOREVER.

And hemmed the groom's pants and put the patches on his new jacket. My hubby is on the left, my brother is on the right.

And had my sweet wonderful pregnant cousin come stay with me. She did Tori's hair and photography. You can see all the pictures on her site.

All that work, and my hair looks awful. I guess I was sweating too much.

Oh yeah, and I did her bouquet! Is that a good enough excuse for not blogging in weeks? I think so.

Ebay shudder

2008-06-19T17:16:00.000-07:00

I did it. I put a doll on ebay, also known as Fee-bay. I guess we'll see. Wish me luck!

It's a cute one, so it should do okay. I'm just nervous. There's just so much stuff on ebay, I worry that my little doll will get lost. Ah well, I guess we'll see.

Rainbow

2008-06-07T11:16:00.000-07:00

One good thing about all this rainy weather we've been having is the beautiful rainbows that go with it.

This was the most spectacular rainbow I've ever seen in my life!

Check this out

2008-06-06T09:15:00.001-07:00

I'm in a treasury. Twice! How cool is that!

Emily

2008-05-29T09:51:00.000-07:00

This is one of the cutest dolls I have ever seen!

Her name is Emily and she comes from PEQUENABUDA. Check out her shop if you have a chance!

Willow's first Piano Recital

2008-05-27T11:19:00.000-07:00

I'm so proud of her! She was really nervous, but she did great!

Not bad for 5 years old huh?

Better today

2008-05-20T14:31:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for your sweet comments :) They really helped lift me.

I've decided that I've been obsessing too much and I'm going to take a week (or two) off from Etsy and make some clothes for myself for a change! I'm going to make a whole interchangeable set of two skirts, three shirts and a jacket. I tried to take pictures of my fabrics, but the light is bad for such things today. But, the colors are inspired by some beautiful sea glass jewelry I found on Etsy.

The picture comes from West Coast Sea Glass. She has an amazing shop!
Anyway, I'll post pictures of my new clothes later ♥

Blah

2008-05-19T14:30:00.000-07:00

I'm so discouraged. I haven't had a real sale in a month. I thought my dolls were great, but I've only sold one and traded one. Both customers were very happy though, so that's good. Still, I thought they'd be a bigger hit.
I like my shop. I think I take pretty good pictures, I know they need work, but they're decent. I've learned a lot. I try really hard. Still nothing.

Etsy
Buy Handmade
Mylittle

I'm thinking of giving up. I was going to do farmer's market and other craft shows, but I don't want to waste my time and money if my stuff is junk. *sigh*

War bride pictures

2008-05-14T08:34:00.000-07:00

We took Tori and Dustin's engagement pictures last Saturday and I've been waiting to blog until I got some pictures that really show off the dress. I haven't got around to it yet, so I stole this one from my Mom's blog.

The dress turned out perfect and the pictures look so good!

Here's a close up, it still needed to be ironed though. I'll post some pictures that really show off the dress later.

In other news, I had a great Mother's day. Violet drew me a picture with flowers on it. My Sweet Husband and Willow got me a gift certificate to a pottery place! I've only done pottery a couple of times since high school and it's something I really enjoy. I'll probably just get to paint and glaze some bisque ware this time, but I'm really excited!

Happy Mothers day! I hope yours was as good as mine! ♥

Wedding plans

2008-05-08T07:38:00.000-07:00

Tori's wedding is kind of a World War II/War bride theme, and she wants to re-create this picture for her engagement pictures. She bought a vintage 1940s pattern and we've been making it this week.

Here she is modeling the top with her hat and gloves. You can see it's not quite finished. It needs buttons and you can see the facing for the peplum hanging down. The skirt is in about the same condition. It needs the waistband finished and hemmed. We should get that done today.

Vintage patterns are hard to work with I'll tell you what. It's like they make the pattern expecting you to seriously alter it. On just the top I had to add 4 darts and reposition 2 more darts, bring in the sides and make the neck bigger. But it fits like a glove now and it's so cute!!

I finally did it!

2008-05-07T07:47:00.000-07:00

I have been working on perfecting an apron pattern for months. The first draft was really cute, but really uncomfortable. How do you make an uncomfortable apron you ask? Oh trust me, it can be done. I finally came up with this. It's just perfect! I got Tori to model it for me.

I think it has a bit of a regency flair. I was trying to think of a name for it and I thought, "What was the name of that girl in Sense and Sensibility? Ummmm......Kate Winslet? No...." I had to look it up. Tori would be aghast.

Anyway, this is the Marianne apron. Pretty good huh? I have this apron on my shop, but the pattern will only be available through my blog or in shops and craft fairs locally.

May

2008-05-02T13:49:00.000-07:00

A new month and a new goal. I'm going to blog twice a week. I was thinking maybe Monday and Friday, but then I thought, no, that's not a realistic goal. If I don't do that I'd start getting hard on myself and that's not good. So, twice a week. I can do that.

Here are my two newest Nature Babies, Puddles and Mary.

Does she look like a marigold or a lion?

Tori and Dustin sitting in a tree

2008-04-28T15:47:00.000-07:00

My sister Tori's fiance Dustin got home from Iraq yesterday! I got to be there when he got off the bus. And my stupid camera malfunctioned! AARRGGGGGG!!! I got one picture of the back of my Mom's hand with Tori and Dustin in the background!

Anyway, it was very sweet and they are so happy together. It's a very sweet story about how they met and became engaged, but it's really not my place to tell. I'll let Tori do that if she wants to.

Busy

2008-04-23T08:34:00.000-07:00

I'm a terrible blogger. But I have an excuse. Kind of. I've been busy, wanna see?

Here's a new dress for Willow. It actually looks much better in person. We've had more snow and no good light for pictures. I don't think spring is ever going to come.

Look at all these Nature Babies! I took this picture right before I went over to Westwood Gardens and they took eight of my dolls on consignment! Woo Hoo! That made me happy.

I designed this image and digitized it and made it into an embroidery design.

Plus I am working on a lovely prom dress for a lovely young lady from church. And I sold my first international item in my shop. I get to ship to Germany! What fun. So yes, I've been busy.

My Little Sewing Blog

Super Violet

Feelin' Bloggy

Christmas

More Autumn

Teaparty II

Autumn

New favorite blogger

Poor Sweet Willow

Finally! What a relief.

So Pretty!!!

So so busy, and nothing to show for it

I'm going to talk like a Mormon for a minute

Because I don't have enough to do...

The Amazing Spring Collection!

Our afternoon in the Redwoods

Trunk show at Emilia's

Photo shoot

One more week!

This is how busy I am

Violet's skirt

sneak peek

SheSpoke again....

mmm

Sick day

The first item in the spring collection!

I think I'll call her "Sal"

*whew*

A happy, upbeat post

*sigh*

Because I'm too lazy to take my own pictures

I'm dying

A Receptacle For Random Thought: My Mama is proud of me

SheSpoke

Introducing Janell!

So Pretty!

Everyone loves chenille

Pretty chairs!

Dollies for Haiti

Dollies for Haiti

Our Trip to the Coast

Violet's Pack Ponies

Christmas Pictures

Christmas 2009

shopping for men

Santa

Fiber Art

Craft Show Fun!

3

First day of School

The most beautiful mess

Fall

This made me smile

Farmers' Market

I'm ba-ack

aw..

Life with a 3 year old

Bunny the bunny

Look! I'm featured!

How cool is this!!!

Last day of January

Awwwww...

Winter

That's a job well done

Black Friday

Cuteness!

Oh good, the stomache flu

I just gotta say...

Aaarrrggggghh!! Computer problems!

Oh Look!

Oak

Wow! Look at this!!

Isn't this lovely?

The County Fair!

Trendy Shoppes

New dolls

Worst Blogger Ever

Best Anniversary Ever

Tshirt fun

Wow! Look at this!!

whew

sigh

Ebay shudder