Thursday, March 31, 2011

The Solution For All Those Buttons

A few posts back I talked about the fabric/button collection that was my Nana's. I had no idea what on earth I was going to do with that many buttons. But Design Sponge came to the rescue. *Thanks guys!*

If you haven't already checked out their site, head over there for some awesomeness. Seriously. Awesomeness. Especially the DIY section. There's probably 10 things I bookmarked to try. What you see in these photos was one of them. Download the template. Print on card stock. Attach buttons. Frame. Done. Awesomeness.

I'm planning on swinging by Walmart to pick up some contrasting embroidery thread before work tonight and possibly some frames.

And now, feast your eyes on these...







Has anyone else tried any of the Design Sponge DIY projects?

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Apparently, I Spoke Too Soon

Because when I came home from work, there was this note from Mom.

It's a note thanking me for cooking dinner for her last night along with a little note that says: Dom ate the ribbon off my flowers.

And then...

Thanks for throwing up all over *my side* of the bed.

So let me edit the last post by saying that I love my kitties to death but sometimes I'd really like to punt them down the hallway.

Kitty Love

Because not everyone has kids in human form.

{Fatty}

{Dom}

Click on either photo for a full view.

Wednesday Giveaways!

Red Riding Hood Notepad & Set of 4 Buttons

Custom MoKoPo Creations Mini-Painting

Book Necklace from LaurenBlytheDesigns

French Terry Lounge Pant

$30 shop credit to Red Rabbit Studios

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Guess Who Turns 60 Today?

Happy Birthday to the best Mom in the world!

SewZinski Giveaway Winner!



Congrats Darcy! You are the winner of the Geo Bloom porcelain travel mug from SewZinski! You will be receiving an email soon.

Thanks for everyone who commented. Don't forget we still have two more giveaways going on right now!

Monday, March 28, 2011

Focus On... Rainbow Lollies {And a Giveaway!}

This week's Focus On feature comes all the way from Melbourne, Australia! Cassie over at Rainbow Lollies makes the cutest colorful things. In her shop you can find bookmarks, earrings, hair accessories and more. I'm especially fond of this gang of owls. I want one in every color :)

Cassie is giving away a $20 shop credit to one lucky winner!

Also, head over to her shop for 10% off on all items! Just add coupon code: FRIEND10


Tell us a little about yourself:
I love earrings and all kinds of fun jewelery. I started out by making fabric button earrings using all kinds of yummy fabrics from old to new, classic to modern. My purpose is to make it fun, colorful, sweet and affordable to everyone. I want everyone to have something in their jewelery box that they can wear to match their everyday outfits. As time goes by I expanded my love of fabric covered buttons to include rings, pendants, brooches and hair accessories. Everyone can have a choice to pick something from each section to match or mix it up for a bit of uniqueness.

My second love is felt. I love the wonderful range of colors with felt fabrics from 100% wool, mix blend or even craft felt. Every piece of felt is a color masterpiece and begs to be turned into something pretty. With felt, I enjoy making little animals. The smaller, the cuter, the better! You can view my felt creations in my Etsy shop as magnets, bookmarks or even embellishments for your craft projects.

Everything in my shop is open for custom orders and I love to get e-mails/ convos asking me to make something special :)


How do you promote your business?
Currently I promote by being active on Etsy forums, teams and Twitter. In future I am planning to set up a blog and of course, the ever popular Facebook Fan page.

Sum up your craft in 5 words or less:
Fun, sweet, cute, colorful and love

What is your favorite Etsy shop?
I have many favorite Etsy shops and it is hard to tell which is number 1 on my list. Instead I am going to give a special mention to this shop and seller on Etsy who has been a constant support and friend to me since I first started. This special person is Su and her shop is Alice Loves. Su makes the most gorgeous comfortable and easy-care clothes for toddlers and preschoolers using quality designer prints. Her daughter Alice is her model and test drives every piece of clothing. If it survives on Alice, you can be assured that you are getting something that is of good quality! Do check out her shop or send her a convo saying hello.


Any advice to other crafters?
I still consider myself as a newbie as there is so much to learn whether on Etsy or elsewhere. I am not an expert in crafts or selling them but I love doing what I do. I wouldn't call this advice but more of sharing my experiences - do not do just for the sake of getting an income. Do it because you love it. Of course everyone wish they could quit their day job and craft full time (me included) but not many of us can afford to do it. It takes off the pressure and less stressful (financially) to you and your loved ones if you do not rely on your Etsy shop as main income UNTIL you are fully established with a steady stream of sales with minimal promotion. This is when you know your work has reached a wide audience and buyers come to you because they love your work and want to have a piece of it in their lives.


*******************************************************************
- Make sure you leave me a way to contact you if you win. -
- Please leave separate comments for each entry. -

First entry (mandatory):
- Visit Rainbow Lollies, Heart your favorite item and leave a comment telling me about it.

Extra entries (optional):
- Heart Rainbow Lollies on Etsy (leave 1 extra entry)
-Follow Rainbow Lollies
on Twitter (leave 1 extra entry)
- Purchase an item from Rainbow Lollies & leave a message to buyers that you were referred to her shop from this blog post (leave 5 extra entries!)
- Blog, Facebook or Tweet about this giveaway and leave the link (leave 3 extra entries)
- Follow our blog via Google Connect (leave 1 extra entry)

Fine print: Giveaway begins when it is posted and ends at 11:59pm pacific standard time April 11, 2011. A winner will be selected by a random number generator on April 12, 2011 and will be emailed promptly.

*******************************************************************

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Inspired by Amy

I am so loving Amy Butler's fabric designs right now. Kinda makes me wish I had a sewing machine.

{Click on the pic for a larger view or click here to view the treasury}

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Memories of Nana


After Nana passed away last month, the family had the task of going through her things and deciding what to keep, donate or throw away. Nana had a large three drawer Rubbermaid cart in her dining room filled with fabric and fabric related items. At first it was suggested that no one wanted it and it should be donated. I said I would take a look through it to see what exactly was in there and I was pleasantly surprised at what I found. A lot of the stuff I left in there. The photos below are the items I snagged.

Buttons! Loads and loads of glorious buttons! Two storage containers and two glass containers full! Most of them still have thread on them and bits of fabric so I'll have to go through them and clean them off.

Pretty much every color and material one could think of, with a big emphasis on white.

I also snagged some pieces of vintage fabric. Seriously, I think some of this stuff is older than I am!

I love {LOVE!} this print above. I've been searching Etsy for some bag/wallet patterns. I think this would make a fab tote bag!

And perhaps a wallet out of this.

And some pillows from this.

Still deciding on this one.

Still doing some research on this Bulpitt's bag.

This fabric is actually a wrap around skirt that Nana had made. I clearly remember her wearing it with a white blouse and sandals when I was little.

I think this fabric would also make a cute pillow or clutch.

Tote!


Friday, March 25, 2011

Black Bean Salsa

I'm not one for posting a bunch of recipes and I've been hanging onto this one cause I wanted it all for myself. Seriously. But I figured hey, everyone else should be able to taste how awesomely delicious this is. So I give you: Black Bean Salsa

Main Ingredients:

2 cans black beans {drained & rinsed}
2 cans corn {drained & rinsed}
2-3 Roma tomatoes {diced}
1 packet Good Seasons Italian dressing mix
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin

Drain & rinse black beans & corn. Set them aside in a glass mixing dish. I have a Pyrex bowl that comes with a lid. This is also what I use to serve it in. Chop up tomatoes and toss them in the bowl as well. In a measuring cup add vinegar & olive oil. Add the packet of dry dressing mix and ground cumin. Mix well. Pour this over the bean/corn/tomato mix. Stir everything together.

And now the hard part:

Store in the fridge for 3-4 hours for the flavors to mingle. Yes, you will want to eat this right away. Yes, I do it all the time. But trust me, wait. It's soooo much better. And if you can wait longer, yep, it gets even better.

The above is the very basic recipe and it's up to you to decide what you want to add to it. I'm not really big on tomatoes so sometimes I add less. Sometimes, not at all. For the most part, I always add extra cumin. I love the smoky flavor and kick it gives. I also add fresh chopped cilantro and finely chopped red onion. Really though, whatever you want to add to it is fine.

Here's some other options:

chopped olives
celery
jalapeños
green peppers
chili powder
cajun seasoning

I usually buy some Scoops tortilla chips but I've also used this salsa in salad, in a pita with grilled chicken and on burgers. It's very versatile.

I'd love to hear what you guys add and do with yours!


Thursday, March 24, 2011

New Circus Inspired Products from Michael's {for only $1}

Notebooks, note cards and stickers! Oh my!
Totally in love with Michael's new circus inspired $1 bin items! Yep, $1 each!






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