{show & tell} poppy dress

I just ordered this for Miss Thang.

I love it.  It's for next summer, and I'm going to die waiting for her to get to wear it.

Because I love you...

Please.  Listen to me.

In all of my diaper changing years I have only washed one diaper.  It was one of the ladybug's - and it didn't even fall apart.  After that I got really careful about watching what went into the washer.

I've never washed a pull up until today.

The Moo is basically potty trained.  At night we still put him in a Pull Up.  He sleeps in our bed 99.9% of the time and I prefer waking up dry.  His routine in the morning is to take his (usually) dry Pull Up off and stick it in the trash.

Yesterday we went to the zoo, and I decided to be lazy and put him in a Pull Up.  He's not tall enough to stand to go, and those bathrooms are nasty.  I was hoping he'd just take the opportunity to go in his Pull Up and I could change him if he had one on.

Quit judging me.  I am telling you - the bathrooms are nasty.  He still told me everytime he had to go, so it was a moot point. 

After his bath last night, I scooped up his clothes and threw them in a basket with a load I was going to wash.  Usually, there would be underwear in his pants.  This time there was a dry Pull Up - which means it added no weight to the pants - which means I didn't notice it.

Fast forward to me removing the load and finding little balls of gel EVERYWHERE.  I don't know how all of that fit inside that Pull Up to begin with.  Holy crap.  I don't even know where to start to clean it up.  Which is why I'm sitting here avoiding it.  If I can save you from going through this same thing, please let me.

Never.  Ever.  Wash a Pull Up.

{favorite things} My new sewing machine

My little Singer sewing machine has been giving me attitude.  It jams.  Constantly.  In the past year it's been in the shop.  TWICE.

At $89 a pop for a service call/cleaning, I could have already applied that towards a new machine.

A few months ago when picking up my machine at Bernina after being serviced, I was looking around at all of their shiny new machines.  There was a pink one that caught my eye.  For other reasons besides it being pink - one being it was one of the only machines in there under $500.  I played with it a little, and it ran smooth and quiet.  I took home a brochure and showed Justin.  I was thinking *maybe* Christmas - but seeing as we're still doing the Dave Ramsey I doubted it.

Insert me complaining about my stupid Singer jamming like crazy and dropping stitches as I'm trying to finish stuff up for this craft show.  (and no one wanting to pay for another $89 service fee)

Last night I was making dinner, waiting for Justin to get home from a quick errand with one of the kids.  I thought he was going to Best Buy.

He walks in the house and puts a box on the kitchen table, asking me didn't I hear UPS come?  So I say no and barely glance at the box...

Wait.

Did I see the words "Brother" on that box?

I look back to the table and just stare.

He didn't go to Best Buy.  He went to Bernina.  Real men go in sewing machine shops for their wives.

Now I have this little cutie:

I made two owls with her last night.  I'm in love.

No skipping stitches.  No jamming.  AND she came with a 1 year service contract - so if she does any of those things in the next year, she's fixed.  Free. 

If only I could skip the ladybug's dance class this morning to stay home and play with it...

Hang in there, buddy. :(

My coffee pot is kicking the bucket.

So sad.  I'm searching out replacements.  I can't spend more than $100 (really I shouldn't even spend that... but coffee pots in this house get LOOOOTS of use.) - and I found this retro looking little beauty that would match Sam (my mixer):

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=17502409

Wonder if I could also use a 20% off BB&B coupon on it?

{show & tell} my ladybug's dress

Remember the white dress I showed you that I made?

Here's my ladybug wearing it while walking our puppy :)  Sweetest dress, ever.

Here's the tutorial if you want to try.

{squishy} new logo?

No etsy shop yet... just trying to get through this craft show, first.  I <3 etsy, but it also freaks me out a little.  It's so big.  There are so many people making the same thing.  I don't like competition.  I'm not competitive enough to compete.  Say that ten times fast.

Here's the logo i made up this morning.  Time to get some little tags printed so I can start pricing stuff.  I think I'm just going to print them black and white on cardstock myself for now.  I don't know if this will be my final final logo - but it will get me through the craft show...

I'm not sure I'm in love with it.  So I'll worry about messing with it later.

When I was little, when I thought something was cute I'd call it squishy.  So much so, that my dad started using it when he would see something he thought I'd like.  "Look - it's squishy"  Ha :)  So that's where that came from.  It makes me think of my dad everytime I say it.

Well, off to sew. 

xoxo

{etsy love} Zip it

I am desperately trying to get enough product ready for the craft show Chelsey and I are doing in THREE WEEKS.

OMGOSH.

I'm no where near ready. This is insanity.

Anyway - since zippers no longer scare me, I'm making lots of fun little clutches to sell. I have the one I made me in my purse, and I wound up ditching my wallet and just use it. I love it. I have another one that I'll throw in there sometimes to keep random things in place. So much easier than digging for stuff...

I wasn't sure how I was going to make a profit on those suckers, though. For example - I was using zippers from Hobby Lobby at about $1.50 a pop. Ouch. Then by the time I use the designer fabric on them... wow.

I saw that Noodlehead recommended Zip it, so last week I went to check it out on etsy. (PLEASE go look at the Noodlehead blog if you have a chance. She is so nice. I had emailed her some questions about the Gathered Clutch I had bought the pattern for, and she is so nice about answering!)

I probably won't buy zippers anywhere else ever again. They are like .40-.45 cents a piece - and I ordered them Friday and they came YESTERDAY. I already sewed with a few last night and they are great. Very soft. Great quality. I'm super happy. I wish I'd taken a picture of the envelope she sent them in, because it had the cutest tape I've ever seen on it. BIG THUMBS UP FOR ZIP IT.

So, there ya go. I think I'll start a running list of stores I like on the right at some point. It will help me, if nothing else! :)

Now I'm off to get a little princess ready for dance class!

xoxo

swiggity swag.

Look.  I have to pimp something because it works.

At first, I was skeptical.  Then I earned my first Amazon $5 giftcard.

I still thought, yeah - I'm sure the code doesn't work.

Dude.  The code worked.

Then I earned another.  Same thing.  I LOVE IT WHEN SOMETHING REALLY DOES WHAT IT"S SUPPOSED TO!!! :)

You use it like Google.  That's it.  Just use it as your search engine.  Install the toolbar and use that when you want to search.  Randomly you earn free swagbucks and when you get 400 trade them in for a $5 gift card.  I'm halfway to my third right now.  I LOVE IT.

You can get other stuff, too.  I just happen to like the gift cards so haven't looked at anything else.  I heart Amazon anyway, so it works for me.

So now my little infomercial is over.  If you want to sign up, I'd love the referall credit.  I'm going to put a box on the right you can click on, and I'll post it right here, too.

Even if you don't give me credit - I DONT CARE.  You still have to do this!!!  Especially with Christmas coming up.  I order so much stuff off that site for gifts anyway.  It's just awesome, ok?

Just clickity click on this and tell me you did it so I can virtually high five you!! ;)

{simplify} fabric bolts!!

Fabric storage is a real problem for me.  There is not a seperate area in my house for my sewing - so I have really taken over half of the living room.  There is fabric everywhere.  I've tried different ways of storing and folding it and none of it has worked out for me.

Somehow, yesterday I wound up on this blog  from my phone.  Specifically on this post.  I am so envious of her darling - and organized - space!!!  I even emailed it to my husband and told him that our next house WILL have a room like this.  LOL

The coolest thing - I didn't even know these existed - are these fabric bolts!  I'm going to order a set as soon as I hit submit on here... I only wish they were at a store so I could go get them this weekend.  I hate waiting for things to ship!  I also did a survey on their site telling them I'd heard about them from The Cottage Home blog and got a 10% off code.  Gotta love that.

When I went to her blog to get all of the links to show you, I see that she is also doing a contest to win 5 free yards of fabric.  PRETTY fabric.  Go enter - but if you win, will you share? ;)  I want that sugar line SO BAD.  Do you know how many cute tops I could make my ladybug with that?

So there you go.  Organizing goodies and a contest.  Good times.

I'm going to go take my sick behind back to the couch and hope that I can feel a little better by a shoot I have tonight.  I have had to reschedule these  people THREE times for weather, so sick or not, I'm going to have to do the photo shoot.  Cross your fingers that my kids let me get some rest.  ;)

Have a great weekend!
xoxo