One of those days

Everyone once in a while, you have one of those days where everything just seems perfect. One of those days where you kid actually behaves the way you want him to, and you feel like Super Mom. Today was like that.


My very best friend whom I've known since third grade, moved to Indiana this year. She was home visiting family this weekend, so I crashed their family brunch and got to spend some time with her. I love that Melissa and I can always pick up where we left off, no matter how long it has been since we've talked or seen each other. I also love the way we feel like a part of each other's families.


I took Connor with me, because I knew there would be lots of kids for him to play with. He was so well behaved the entire time. I'm never quite sure what to expect from him, but he did amazing. I kept having to check on him, because he was playing so nicely in the basement.

When we got home from brunch, I made a tail for Connor's Halloween costume. My mom bought him a costume, but it didn't come with a tail, and Connor really wanted a tail. I bought some green fleece, and even though it's not quite the right color of green, I'm pretty proud of how it turned out. I attached the tail to a fleece belt that velcros around his waist so he can easily take it off and put it on. Connor even helped me stuff it with polyfil to give it more shape.

This evening, Connor and I attend our nearby city's Halloween Safe Walk. Once again, Connor was very well behaved and had a great time. People kept saying, "Oh, what a scary alligator!" Connor would say, "No, I'm not! I'm a dinosaur!" Then he'd smack them with his tail. Luckily, he's four and cute and can get away with hitting strangers with his tail.

So, today was pretty much perfect. (Okay, there was a melt down this afternoon when I made him take a nap before trick-or-treating, but otherwise, it was great!)

Meet Moira

Look what I bought yesterday! I have to tell you that I have been coveting this little monster for weeks! I first saw her on LaurenSmash's blog and immediately hearted her when she showed up in the shop. After my craft show this weekend and another wholesale order, I finally felt like I could splurge on this little treat. I absolutely cannot wait for her to get to Kansas!

Here's the cute description from the shop:

"Meet Moira! She is one scary monster. She loves to jump out at people from behind a chair to scare them. She also loves playing pratical jokes on people like leaving fake bugs on their pillows and tacks on their chairs. Moira also loves embroidery, scrapbooking and cotton candy."

See, she's a scrapbooker! Just like me! LOL!

There are several other items in LaurenSmash's shop that I would love to have, as well. Her owls are to die for!

Craft Show Quote of the Weekend

"Let me just see if this is what I think it is," said the lady as she opened one of my purses.

I'd still love to know just exactly what she thought it was...

First Craft Show of the Season!

My sister Jessica and I exhibited at our first craft show of the fall season today. I have to admit, it was definitely not our most successful show, but it certainly wasn't the worst, either! I only sold three bags, but Jessica did a bit better with her hair accessories. Fortunately, we each managed to cover our half of the booth fee, as well as our lunch and expenses. (By "expenses" I mean the stuff from other vendors that we couldn't resist!) On the up side, it was a fun day spent hanging out with my sister and her 8 week old son, who was a total darling the entire day.

Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures of our booth, but I do think it looked great! The planning we did last weekend definitely paid off. At our show next weekend, we actually bought a double-sized booth, so it will be fun and challenging to fill it. We can hardly wait! We did this show last year and did quite well. The good part about not selling much this week means that I won't have to work my tail off replenishing my stock for next weekend! (See, there's always a bright side!)

Sampler Day!

I was totally surprised to find my very first Sampler on my front porch when I got home from work tonight! Just in time for my birthday tomorrow! I managed to put my purse down and check my phone messages before ripping into the package. Then I leisurely purused the contents on my couch. Here are my very favorite things from the October Sampler that I received!This necklace is by Wabisabi Brooklyn. It's a nice earthy orange color with black smudges. I love the way the pendant sits right at the base of my throat. I'm wracking my brain to figure out what I can wear it with tomorrow! I can definitely see myself becoming a Wabisabi Brooklyn customer.
Aren't these little earrings fabulous! Love the simplicity. These are from Eutectic, and I'm wearing them now. The jewelry on their site is all so elegant! I may have to email my mom a link for Christmas shopping...
I am a huge fan of the lost art of letter writing and 16 Sparrows is all about that! I love these little notecards. I will definitely be placing an order soon. I just can't decide if I want to mail these little cards to a pen pal or use them for journaling boxes in my scrapbooks! I know I want to become a member of the Letter Writers Alliance, though.

Another treat for a letter writer was the pen pal kit from Wolfie and the Sneak. I am going to have a very hard time deciding who is worthy to receive this super-sized cupcake envelope, and it will be a very special package that gets the Fragile sticker.

Okay, now, I should be sewing! My first craft show of the fall is on Saturday, and I never feel like I have enough done. Did I mention that tomorrow is my birthday?

Pennant Banner

While looking for craft show booth ideas, I ran across several that had super cute pennant banners decorating them. I had to make some for myself! Here's how I did it!

To make two 3 yard long banners, I bought 1/2 yard of 4-5 different fabrics and two packs of double fold bias tape (3 yrds long).


I created a plastic triangle template with a 6 inch base and 10 inch height. Who knew I'd ever use that geometry I learned in high school?

Fold a piece of fabric in half, right sides together, matching the selvedges. If you place the base on the triangle along the bottom edge of the fabric and cut, then turn the template upside down so the point is at the bottom edge and cut, you should be able to cut 10 triangle pairs from a 1/2 yard of fabric. You're cutting through 2 layers of fabric, so you should have two identical triangles. Keep the pair together! 5 different fabrics will leave you with enough extra triangles to start on a third banner. (Sorry, I didn't think to take pictures of this step!)





With right sides together, sew along the long sides of the triangles with a 1/2" seam allowance. Leave the base open. Trim the seams to 1/4" inch. Turn triangle right side out and press. Use a scissor point to get a nice point on the triangle. Repeat for all triangles. (It really doesn't take as long as you might think.)





Starting about 7" from the end of the bias tape, pin the base of the triangle inside the fold of the tape. Pin the next triangle approximately 3/8" - 1/4" from the next one and so on. Stop about 7" from the other end of the bias tape. The first banner I did, used 19 triangles and the second only 16 triangles. It just depends on how you space them.





Stitch along the open edge of the bias tape, removing pins as you go.


Super, super easy! And kind of fun! Can't wait to put these on my tables at my craft shows this fall!

Random Stuff

Holy moly! It's been way too long since I updated this blog! I've had good intentions, just not very good follow through.

The truth is that I have been very busy! My first craft show of the fall season is in two weeks. I have been frantically sewing and sewing and sewing! I want to be absolutely certain that I have enough bags to fill our booth. Last night, I worked on making pennant banners to decorate our table. They are actually turning out very cute and I can't wait to finish them tonight. I'll try to post photos of that project.

My sister and I work together on our craft show booths. Jessica makes adorable headbands and hair accessories, as well as doll/baby blankets and travel pillowcases. Next Saturday, we are going to tape out a booth space on my living room floor and plan out our booths for the three shows we are doing.

I was telling a friend about the shows we have signed up for. This particular friend used to do craft shows and is the organizer for our local craft show. She said that the big show we are doing in November is really good. In fact, she sold out the first year she did it! Talk about throwing us into a panic and a frenzy of sewing!

Anyhoo, my dining room is covered in bits of fabric scraps, and my sewing machine is humming happily along each evening. It's nice to be busy!