Doll Blankets

Back in early December I had a little contest where participants gave me ideas of new items I could make for my shop. I had two winners: Tiffany and Jan. Tiffany suggested doll blankets and Jan suggested a doll sling. I am happy to say that I made both and my winners liked their prizes.  I will have to tweak the doll sling a bit, but overall I think it turned out well and I did get the gist of what Jan was looking for.

Tiffany said that her daughter just loved the doll blanket--which makes me very happy. There's nothing more satisfying than making a little one happy with something handmade.  She's going to have a giveaway on her blog and the winner will receive a doll blanket that I will make especially for the contest. I will post the link when she gets it up on her blog.

I am happy to say that if you don't win the blanket or would like one now, you can purchase one in my etsy shop! I made a variety of them from pink camo to baby designs.  They measure 24" square with rounded corners and are also reversible! They will wrap an 18" doll (that would include American Girl dolls) nice and snug!  So, hop on over to my Sassy shop and get your little girl a one of a kind blanket for her baby!

1st Wholesale Order: Tool Aprons

A couple of weeks ago I got my very first wholesale order. I was so excited! The buyer wanted 14--possibly 18--tool aprons for her son's birthday party. This was such a fun order because during the "I'm thinking about it" stage she asked me what could be put into them for girls. So I made a few suggestions: play hair dryer, brushes, etc so they could play "beautician"; art supplies, and play kitchen utensils. I'm actually glad she asked me that question because I had never thought of marketing my tool aprons for girls too--but now maybe I will!

After she made the decision to order them, she decided she wanted solid colors: pink w/purple trim for the girls and navy w/red trim for the boys. She also wanted them personalized. This presented a challenge since I don't own an embroidery machine (which will be the FIRST thing I buy when I hit the lottery) so I had to figure out a way to do this.  What I decided was to embroider the names onto shapes (oval for boys, hearts for girls) in felt that matched the trim colors and then applique them onto the aprons.  Now mind you, I am not very good at embroidering--especially freehand--but I did the best I could. I also decided to stitch the pocket dividers using a decorative trim and in thread colors matching the trim to break up the solids a bit.

I decided I would make one apron of each so I could send her a picture of what they looked like and get her approval before I made the rest of them (smart, no?). She really liked them, so away I went! It took me a total of four days to make them. Two days to cut them out and two days to make them (I did boys first and then the girls).  Not as long as I thought it would take! And walla! 14 tool aprons!

Getting My Craft On

It seems that lately I've been focusing more on cross stitching and sewing so I haven't crafted in quite some time. So, Monday morning I got the urge to do some crafting instead of sewing. I had bought a few supplies some time ago but just never got around to doing anything with them (I'm the only one that does this right?). I happened to find some jumbo paper clips and wondered what I could make with them. As it happened, I have a bookmark that is made with a large paper clip. It has a rubber frog on top of it (love that bookmark!). I thought I could make bookmarks with the clips, but what could I use for decoration? Ah-Ha! I have covered buttons! So I dug out some scrap fabrics and my covered buttons and proceeded to make four bookmark clips. I love how they turned out. And they were so cute, I decided to put them in my Artfire and eCrater shops.Since making the bookmark clips was so fun, I decided I would do some more crafting. Last night, being Tuesday, there was nothing on TV I wanted to watch, so while watching Celebrity Apprentice on Hulu, I made some barrettes. Some were made with mini roses and some were made with bug buttons I happened to have (no end of supplies in this house). I think they turned out rather cute. They're also listed in my Artfire and eCrater stores.

Cupcakes & Ice Cream

Isn't it funny how certain items become popular? I always wonder how these things start. Who decides what is to be popular and what is not? And once something does become popular, why must we all have it? I have noticed that cupcakes are the "in" thing right now. Not just the food itself, but anything having to do with cupcakes. You see them all over: shirts, purses, toys, book covers, even wall art.

With that in mind, I decided to jump on the bandwagon and make some cupcakes. Not the kind you eat (to be honest, I'm not much of a "cake" eater. I know, I know, there's something wrong about that)but rather the kind you can hang on your wall. And they turned out cakefabulous if I do say so myself! These would be SO cute hanging in your kitchen, bakery, craft room..even your little girl's room!And what would a cupCAKE be without a little ice cream to go along with it? So, I made ice cream cones too! They are creamtastic! Best of all, these could go in boys' rooms (the girls can't have all the fun!).So if you're hungering for some cute wall decor, drop in my shop and buy yourself a half dozen cupcakes and a couple of ice cream cones! I can also customize these in colors of your choosing too of course :)