Still Kicking

I just wanted to stop in a say I'm still alive. Is anyone out there? I've actually started writing more than one post and haven't had the chance to finish, so I'll keep it brief in order to get this online. 

Here's what I'm up to:

 Amelia is now a whopping 18 months old (yes, I knit the sweater). She spent her 1st birthday at Disneyland and turned 16 months at Disney World, not bad for such a young lady. She's in "school" 3 half days a week (yay) so I've been back at the sewing machine and working on my shop again.

I'm always making something. Here are a couple of my latest projects:

This is Amelia's Easter bunny. I thought it might be fun to make here a new critter every year....this will be #1 in a set. I got the pattern on Ravelry here.

I'm still a fan of monkeys (though I rarely make them anymore) so when Rebecca Danger came out with this monkey pattern I had to play along. Isn't he the cutest? I think Nick likes him more than Amelia does.

I'm still making tons of these:

and generally having a good time. Hope you've been well all these months and I really hope I can manage to blog a bit more than once a year from now on. Fingers crossed.

Back in the Swing

Hey there! How are you? I feel really bad that I'm blogging so infrequently, but you know how it is with a new baby in the house. I just thought I'd drop in and give you an update on how things are going around here.

Amelia is now 3 months old, if you can believe that! At my baby group they're always saying how hard the first 3 months are...if you can just get through the first 3 months, things will be easier.

 

 I guess that's pretty true. Not so much that it's hard, but the fact that you get those big smiles every time you look at her makes things a lot more fun. I can't complain, other than occasional wake-ups, she sleeps about 8 hours a night...she's growing, smiling, putting her hand in her mouth and wiggling all the time. Still not much hair to speak of (except eyelashes!), but it's coming along slowly, haha.

Now that Amelia's so grown up, she's giving me lots more time to get things done around the house...and to sew!

I've started to slowly restock my Etsy shop (not so much restocking of the monkey shop, however) and I've got about a million knitting projects in the works. Occasionally I get a babysitter for the afternoon so I have a few hours to focus on things. This week Trisha and I are going to spend the day working on a year-long project that I'll tell you about later. I'm so looking forward to it too.

 

Today I even got around to listing a little messenger bag I've had sitting here since about August

Better late than never, right?

Ready to Occupy

It's been ages since I posted, but I've been so busy with crafty projects that I just wasn't ready to show you anything. Now I am!

I had my baby shower yesterday (can you believe it!?) so I was working hard to get the baby's room in order for the girls to see it. Here's how it's looking so far. (I apologize for the bad lighting and color in the photos, it's a tough room to take pictures in).

The colors are a little washed out, but this is the view from the doorway. There should be a shelf above the dresser/changing table, but that hasn't made it's way onto the wall yet.

 Both the dresser and the chair are from IKEA. I hope to add some rick rack or fabric to the chair at some point but I'm not sure if that project will take place any time soon. The rug is from Land of Nod, the crib is a hand-me-down from a friend.

I made the bumper out of the giant pile of fabrics I told you about before. Did you know you could buy a pack of precut crib bumper foam at JoAnn? Me either. It's nice & sturdy so I don't have to worry about it smooshing down too much when the baby gets a little bigger. You can't see it well in this picture, but the skirt is a blueish floral with a rick rack trim & a layer of flat eyelet underneath (same as I did for the curtains).

Here's a closer look at the bumper. I got the idea for the x's from Schnibbles Times Two (you can see the quilt on the cover of the book). I always knew I wanted patchwork for the bumper but wasn't sure how to do it. I made the x blocks first & then added the gingham border to get the pieces to the right size for the foam. It was a very tricky project, but I'm happy with the result. The opposite side is vertical striped (you can kind of see it in the photo above).

I knew for a long time that this was the dresser we'd be using. It just seemed like the perfect size to use as a changing table and the drawers are huge! It's from the Hemnes collection at IKEA. I told you about the knobs I ordered (dreamscapedesigns on Etsy) in a previous post, I really love the way they add a little fun to the dresser. I used a set on the closet doors too. Nick wants to build a sort of tray thingy for the changing pad, but I might just change that plan to some really strong Velcro (we only have 5 weeks!)

Another thing I knew I wanted was the alphabet. I labored over how to do this for a few weeks. I could make my own, but who has the time? I love these, but the color scheme wasn't right and I thought they'd be too white on that white panel wall. The set I got, I had seen in lots of places over the last couple years. I ended up purchasing them from Amazon because they had the best price. I got the teeny clothespins from Amazon too! I just used little nails, very thin ribbon to hang the cards on & thicker ribbon tied in bows to cover the nails. When baby gets big enough to reach the cards, this wall will likely change.

And here's the last big project I made for the room. I had this adorable honey bun laying around and thought it might be fun to use it as the top for a mobile. Naturally, I wanted to make whatever would hang from it. I labored over this project for a long time too. I couldn't decide if I wanted flowers or animals or what! In the end I bought a crochet pattern from Amy Gaines and changed things a little so I got the animals I wanted (I had to have a monkey in there!). It was a chore to get the critters to hang right (and Mr. Pig still isn't cooperating), but they're pretty good now.

Here's a better view of the frog & pig. I loved this pattern...it was easy to follow and super quick to make. I may have to make some more of these little guys with rattles or bells inside.

And now some Etsy love. I bought 3 prints from different Etsy sellers. I used a nice textured piece of scrapbook paper as a mat for this card from Belle & Boo.

I couldn't believe this could be any cuter in person than it was online, but it is! It's from When Guinea Pigs Fly and hangs above the dresser on the right. I don't have a photo of the 3rd print I bought from Trafalgars Square, but it hangs to the left of the dresser in the same frame as this one (also even cuter in person). I love Etsy!

And last but not least, another item I didn't make but I really love:

The lighting in my house is awful at best so I needed to add something near the chair. I found this lantern at a local toy shop and fell in love with it. I'm not into princesses as a general rule, but this thing is just too cute and the colors are perfect! I used a fixture I had laying around from IKEA and a dimmer switch (also from IKEA). At least I can turn it on pretty low if I need to. And yes, you can get dimmable cfl bulbs, yay!

In the end, I'm happy the room is pretty much ready for baby BooBoo and I like the look. One of the comments yesterday was that they liked how it's not too "matchy-matchy", that's a huge compliment in my book. I don't do matchy-matchy.

Now, I just need a baby to live here....I'm so ready. This has been an amazingly uncomfortable pregnancy for me, my back is so done (but I know it's worth it)!

It's a Baby!

Our 20 week ultrasound went well yesterday, everything seems to be progressing fine and I am gaining just the right amount of weight (which is amazing considering my appetite!).

Here's one of the piccies they gave us. We got a whole cd of baby pictures to take home, haha. Can you see the baby's little face?

I guess you're wondering what the sex is, huh? I'll give you a hint....

I bought this adorable knitting pattern on Etsy last night from BEKAHknits. She sent it really fast too, I love that! Check this one out, omg!

So, yeah, it's a GIRL!!!

Of course, I already had fabric lines picked out either way. We'll be going with Dolly Dresses from Lakehouse. This is just a few of them. 

There are also polka dots, gingham, elephants and more colors too (periwinkle blue and grass green *sigh*). I think it'd be fun to paint the room grass green...that way it'll work for anyone once we get around to a second baby (I know, I'm a planner, I can't help it). Girly but not too frilly. You like?

Now, I gotta go shopping......

Wonderful Yarn

You may have noticed that I've become a bit of a knitter lately. Because of this, I will now share with you some delicious treasures I recently acquired from the UK.

I don't know how I found Lilou Colours, but I'm glad I did. She offers several types of hand-dyed yarns.

This was my first purchase, it's called Burst of Sunshine, and it's an "ultimate sock yarn. It's a really soft wool/silk/bamboo combination. I loved it so much  when I got it that I quickly whipped up a little swatch.

Isn't it gorgeous? I might make myself some fingerless gloves, or maybe some socks as a Christmas gift. (I'd rather keep it for myself though, hehe.)

Then I ordered more!

*sigh*

Guimauve, Key Lime Pie and Irish Landscape. (3 points for great names!)

You must check out Lilou Colours, she's new to Etsy and deserves some love.

Since we're on the subject of yarn, here's the update on my crazy clown socks.

I'm so close!!

After Christmas Post

I just realized I've been neglecting my blog again. Oops, sorry about that. I had hoped to have a nice, easy January and get lots of things done around the house, but so far it's not working out that way. No complaints though.

I just thought I'd share a few really great things that showed up here at Christmas time.

Nick got me these adorable pewter measuring spoons from beehive kitchenware. Let me tell you, these have been in my favorites for-ever! I love them. I hope to hang them above the new cooktop if I ever get the cabinets hung on that wall.

I got myself this cute little snowman pincushion from Pennys by Kristie. I just popped it on the tree when it arrived and that's where it stayed. (I hate to say it, this is the only "decoration" that ever made it on to our tree this year. Like I said, I've been busy.)

I saw this book (it started as a blog) at Borders a while back and I was absolutely rolling on the floor crying it's so funny. Thankfully, Nick remembered it and I found it under the tree. You have to check out this book, seriously, you'll be crying by about page 3.

This lovely cake comes from the "Baby Bottoms Up" chapter. Poor green baby.

I believe this one was made in support of fire fighters during the California wildfires. Nice, yet scary.

Get ready for Valentine's Day! The misspelling in Cake Wrecks is worth the price of admission. 

Anyway, check out the Cake Wrecks blog to see how funny this girl is. The writing is half the fun.

Hope you had a lovely Christmas and a Happy New Year, I must run upstairs and chain myself to the sewing machine for another day. Cheers!

Soapy Love

This past weekend I got a chance to meet Kathy aka Lizzie Jane and her daughter Layla aka Layla! It's always fun to meet a fellow blogger/Etsy seller or two.

It just so happens that I've been searching for a new soap maker, so seeing these girls in person was a great opportunity to do some smell testing.

Needless to say, Nick and I found a few soaps we couldn't live without. They are so pretty and smell divine!

This one's my favorite. I love the buttons (of course) and the "monkey business" scent is so yummy. They have a pumpkin lavender soap too, *sigh.

Stop by & say hi to Kathy and Layla some time.

Shopaholic

I've been doing a little shopping lately.

These two 5x5" photos came from Friendly Made on Etsy. I've had my eye on that dinosaur for months! There's a 3rd print downstairs in our family room.

Another item I've been coveting is this lavender bunny all the way from the UK. Check out Pouch for more cute stuff.

How about a little local handmade goodness? Our farmer's market does one day of crafts and it was yesterday. I couldn't walk away without this cute pincushion! Adorable, no? Unfortunately, I can't send you to a website or anything for this one. :(

I also came home from JoAnn with quite a collection of colorful yarns. My monkeys are going to be so happy, haha. I couldn't resist taking a photo of all these bright colors.

Now, I must get back to work so I can keep shopping. hehe

Thank you, Etsy!

Last week I was lucky enough to appear in one of those Etsy Finds emails that get sent out now & then by our friends at Etsy. WoW! Thanks so much to Etsy for including my little monkey, I had a ton of sales and even passed the 500 sales mark for Monkey Travel Club. I'm just so amazed at how well they've done. I don't know what I would have done without Etsy. More than likely, quit the full time craft making by now. So, thank you Etsy for not only featuring me, but for running and creating an excellent site for all of us handmakers. :)

I had so many orders to fill, I was a monkey (and friends) machine for a few days. Meanwhile, I've been working on remodelling our downstairs bathroom and getting the guest room set up too. Now I need to apologize for not stopping by any of my favorite blogs lately (including my own, haha). I promise, I'll be back when my mom and aunt have visited. I must get back to cleaning the house now, my guests arrive this evening! Yikes!

Etsy Love: Jadite Kate

Have you ever hearted something on Etsy and then gone back to savor it & found it sold? That's the worst, right?

Jadite Kate is one of my favorite shops. If you take a peak at my favorites, you'll see a ton of her stuff there. One of my favorite items that recently sold was these awesome glassbake mugs. I'm addicted to anything Jadite or like it, so these are perfect for me.

Photo courtesy jaditekate

Well, the other day I was busy painting our guest room when I decided to take a break. I walked into my kitchen and noticed a box sitting outside the door. I didn't order anything, did I? It's got Nick's name on it. hmmmm? I instantly thought, "maybe Nick bought me those cool mugs!!!!". I let him know he had a package here and he said I could open it. I WAS RIGHT!!!

YAY, what an excellent surprise! I love them. Aren't they great? I can't wait to redecorate the kitchen and hang these over the kitchen window. I love them so much that I just went back to jaditekate's shop and got this. hehe

Now, I must go find something to drink out of one of these mugs. :) Thanks Nick.

All Over the Place

Nick and I went on a little expedition on Sunday to see an exhibit of this man's work (which was so cool!), and did a little shopping too. We're still trying to get to know the Seattle area.

I think I've told you about my thing for fake food. I made this cheeseburger over the weekend. Isn't it cute? I thought I could stitch the pieces together and use it as a pin cushion.

I got the pattern for the cheeseburger from this book. There are some great patterns in there. I might make a chicken leg or some chocolate chip cookies next. hehe The author has a blog too, check it out here.

Happily, I sold out of the original round of coupon organizers I put in my shop, so I just made 3 more. Now, I need to get to writing the sewing pattern. If you want to see more photos of these, they're all listed on iSew now.

While Nick helped Josh do some destruction on Saturday, I went on a little quilt fabric store hunt. That turned out to be a complete bust, but I did end up with a few things. Those 3 on the right are from Pacific Fabrics in Everett, WA.

I've been very strong lately and have purchased almost no new fabric. Believe me, I don't need it. But sometimes, you just can't resist a few new things.

I've had my eye on the animal print forever. Not sure what it will become, but I love it! I must thank Nick for sitting through a visit to Keepsake Cottage Fabrics yesterday.

Now I'm back to stocking my shops, painting every surface of my new house and trying to save for a (desperately needed) new kitchen. Did I mention I'm taking a cake decorating class too? I took a one-day class back in November and loved it. This class will go for 3 weeks. I've got to bake a cake now too. phew. Busy times.

All Over the Place

Just a peek at what I've been making lately. A bit of everything.

Last night, the idea of making some crocheted Easter eggs just popped into my head. While Nick watched Quantum of Solace (this movie is so not my cup of tea), I came up with a pattern that works for me. I've made these six so far, I think I'll make a few more.

While working on my zipper pouch pattern, I discovered that some of the photos were missing. I had to start all over again, so this is what I made. I'm really hooked on these fabrics and this color combo. I'm thinking it's a perfect color scheme for my future laundry room. I'm going to hang this print in there for sure!

Speaking of Easter, I finally listed a Nano Bunny this morning. I wasn't sure I liked him, but he might as well get his chance for adoption. Poor Hank deserves a good home as much as any other critter. ha!