Projects, Projects Everywhere

I started this little project to decompress from a few lengthy tutorials in a row over at Home Ec. and Small Craft earlier this month because it didn't involve sewing anything. It's also easy to do whilst catching up on Design Star on Hulu! I plan on turning it into this cute hat that Elsie made last year for Ruby as she has no hair to keep her warm. I also need to find that girl some socks and shoes because she's been barefoot for months and those toes are going to start getting chilly! I haven't made any more progress on the moccasins but haven't lost my enthusiasm and I have it in good faith that a certain friend has been perfecting her mini moccasin template lately. And I've seen a sneak peek of a sample. And they are cute as can be!

I've tried to get back to the crochet project a few times only to remember my hook is missing after an incident involving a certain four-year-old mindlessly unraveling row after row as he watched Thundercats with his daddy one afternoon. I came around the corner and shouted, "What are you doing!" and they both looked surprised that it was happening. That'll teach me to keep my stuff laying around for other eager fingers to work on.

So, do you have any favorite suggestions for handmade (and warm and slightly practical) shoes for little ones on Etsy that you love? There are a ton to pretty shoes to choose from but I'm most interested in hearing real reviews of things you've used and loved. Thanks in advance and I'll be sure to share if we go with any.

xoxo,
Rachel

Small Craft Video Sneak Peek

Hi! Elsie and I spent a good part of today filming videos for Small Craft, our upcoming online class. We are each doing 3 projects in video sessions! While we were at it, we filmed a quick little sneak peek video for you...

Small Craft from elsie flannigan on Vimeo.

This is one of Elsie's favorite projects. It's called the 'Gramma Chic Diaper Bag'! I'm pretty sure this is what I was wanting to do with my mustard yellow train case when Ruby was born. I still have it and I think it's going to get a makeover for fall!

Don't you love those adorable handmade dresses on our 'studio' backdrop?!

P.S. Earlybird registration includes a download of all 6 of Elsie's paper doll designs as a fun bonus! There are 5 girls plus a cute dress set that you can print out at home! Register here. (all photos Elsie's.)

xoxo,
Rachel

November Is Here!

Zimmermann's Baby Booties

We're still waiting, but in the meantime we've got family in town enjoying the wait with us and more to come soon! In anticipation that every day is another day closer to being completely absorbed in the scent of newborn cheeks, I've invited a few special guest bloggers to keep the lights on and bring you a variety of eye candy and great links. I'm thrilled that these women agreed to help out and know you'll be well taken care of for a few weeks.

A sneak peek of one of the two new tutorials I'm posting Monday morning! I tend to make things out of necessity these days but practicality and beauty don't have to be mutually exclusive so when I started thinking about how we were going to maneuver the holidays this year without missing out due to sleep deprivation, my holiday organizer was born. I'll be offering the tutorial with step by step photos, clear instructions, and plenty of ways to customize your own so stay tuned. On an unrelated note, I am in love with this color scheme for Fall. IN LOVE.

Fall Felt Garland

November 1st means new blog sponsors and I'm proud to host the new and returning sponsors who've joined us this month. Check out the links on the right side and give them a visit. You may get some of your Christmas shopping done early!

xoxo,
Rachel

Fresh From The Oven

A mid-month dose of pretty, handmade things from the Red Velvet Art girls. Here are a few of my favorites.

Fall Feathers Print by Elsie


Twilight Neck Warmer by Emma


Acorn Coffee Cuff by Holly


2010 Art Prints Calendar by Elsie

Olive Juice Babyband by myself

Brown Baby Bear Hat by myself


Vintage Velvet Holiday Bow by myself

The baby accessories come in a few different colors and you can see the rest of the lovelies, including ACEO's, vintage headbands for the grown up girl, and more original art featured in the update here.

Thank you to everyone who left a comment on the previous post. Brett and I both appreciate your stories and your words of encouragement so much. And Sebastian says hi.

xoxo,
Rachel

42 Down

58 To Go

The Last August Weekend Before Today

I found an armoire,
located a power sander,
played in the backyard,
let my belly see the sun,
ate two icy pops,
didn't sleep well,
spent a lot of time driving Brett to and from work,
cleaned my studio,
rearranged Sebastian's room again,
did laundry,
did dishes,
purged some fabric scraps,
visited with new neighbors,
received happy mail two days in a row,
started reading Handmade Nation,
cut out leather journals,
sketched out some embroidery patterns,
got a shoulder rub that took away all the tension,
got up early and waited on the sun,
and realized this baby is coming soon.

xoxo,
Rachel

Pack It In

This weekend was full of activities and out of towners! Friday evening Brett and I went to see Harry Potter for a much needed date night. The theaters were STILL packed three days after the opening and we barely managed to get two seats together in the front section. I would've played the pregnancy card if I'd had to in order to sit next to my husband on date night! We loved it.

Saturday was for garage sales with my Katy friend, lunch with Angela and her friend from KC, meeting Suki at the RVA shop, home to see my boys, coffee with Jamie, Talisha, Ashley and her entourage, home for a moment, dinner, Lens Crafters, and back home to get the little man ready for bed.

Tired was an understatement. I actually went to bed in the 10:00 o'clock hour, something I haven't done since high school! It was energy well spent, though, and Brett now has his first pair of hot prescription glasses. (Pictures to come.)


Sunday included being late for church, coffee at the Mudhouse, a trip to the park, an afternoon of cleaning and blog makeover to do lists, watching Sebastian swim like a frog, and a Redbox DVD that Brett found much more interesting than I did. It may be because I was too focused on making my second granny square! I've almost decided on the color scheme for this blanket but only because I can't find a specific shade of yellow yarn. The one above is a little brighter of a green and close to the yellow family without being mossy or slimy. It seems that Holly and I were doing this at the same time last night.


The fruit of our garage sale/thrift store toils on Saturday. There are a few choice items that aren't ready to be seen yet because they are part of my plan to make myself even more crazy with another place to focus my energy. None of these lovelies are intended for my house, though. You can peruse the selection yourself at PonyParty.etsy.com.

The sidewalks in our neighborhood are currently being demolished so I'm turning up my new favorite album by Thao and getting back to work on my online to do list while S is napping.

Found

Another reason I need to learn to use those needles.

Hormonal Motivation Works For Me

What I'm talking about is the growing urge to nest now that I know we're having a baby girl rather than a baby boy. I finally have permission to start the granny square blanket I've been wanting to make since last Fall. The desire to get started has been there all along but I'm giving credit to the hormones for making it happen.


Thankfully not everyone has to be hormonally motivated to start something new. If you've been wanting to try but haven't found the right tutorial or find it all a little overwhelming, you may want to stop by my post at the RVA blog. You'll get some eye candy, links, and tutorials to get you started. Give yourself plenty of run throughs on the tutorials before actually picking up your needle to get your head wrapped around the pattern involved. Once you realize how easy it is, you'll be able to watch your newest Netflix DVD and get something done at the same time.

p.s. This is a practice square using yarn from my current stash. Ruby is getting something much prettier!