Sew in Love

Country Mouse and I have been sewing up a storm again and we are finally ready to list more Amy Butler items in the shop! Amy's newest line of fabric - Love - is stunning to say the least. We are in awe of the gorgeous floral patterns and rich, soulful colors. How does she do it?!

Let's take a look at what's been going on in the sewing room, shall we ...

New Ironing Board Covers...Bliss Bouquet

Water Bouquet

Tumble Roses

Sunspots
Coordinating Scissor Sleeves

These prints and colors were inspired by Amy's trips to Indonesia and England - places we have not yet visited (someday we will get there!) but can only imagine how beautiful they are from these fabrics! We'll have these lovies listed in the shop within the next few days.

Isn't it fun to know where the inspiration for a fabric or a piece of art comes from? Do you ever purchase something because it reminds you of a place you have visited? I have some shell and starfish decor in my home because it reminds me of my wedding in Jamaica. Did I tell you that we are escaping our cold Minnesota winter and going to Jamaica in less than a month?!

Snow Fun

We had an incredible snowfall just in time for Christmas. It was our first major storm of the season, so we took our doggies (and ourselves) out for some much needed exercise during the holidays...



How do you like the snow? I love fresh snow and the first big snowfall always feels magical! However, I've had my fill of it and now the bitter cold has set in (it was -14 degrees this morning!) and I'm ready for Spring to arrive. The cold is simply no fun anymore!

But while we're stuck inside during this awful cold spell, Country Mouse and I will be busy working in the studio creating new things for the new year. We'll be back soon to share some new fabrics and a few new designs as well. Happy 2010! Hope you are staying warm!

Enjoy Your Holiday!

The cookies are baked...

(and mostly eaten!)...

Ornaments are sparkling...

And the gifts are wrapped...

phew!

We're looking forward to relaxing a bit during Christmas and reflecting on the past year. We might even try to sew up a few goodies for ourselves (and our furbabies!) that we keep putting off because time has been short. Our doggies have been begging us for new pillows to lay on!

We hope you get to slow down a bit and enjoy this time of year with the people (and pets) that mean the most to you.

We are really looking forward to 2010 and all that it may bring. We can't wait to share some of our new creations and plans we have in store for the new year! Thank you for all of your kind comments and support this past year, we wish you all the best through the holidays and into 2010!

Holiday Cards with Buttons, Tape, and Twine

Here's an easy little project with a few of my favorite crafty supplies: buttons, baker's twine, japanese masking tape, and pretty paper.

Directions:

• Select your paper and fold to your preferred card size.
  
• Wrap the baker's twine around the card and then cut to the desired length. String a few festive buttons onto the twine.
  
• Cut out some mini triangle flags from the tape and tape one end of the baker's twine to the card and wind around the card, securing the other end with another flag. Place your remaining flags on the outside and inside of the card.

You probably didn't even need me to spell that out, it's so easy! If you don't happen to have these crafty supplies around, I'll share my favorite sources with you. I took pictures of these ones before I received the most fabulous baker's twine in the mail - Divine Twine! And yes, it really IS divine! I ordered the turquoise one and you get yours right here. And a fun selection of tape can be found at Happy Tape.

I think the best part of these cards is that the recipient can take them apart and then reuse the supplies. Atleast that's what I would do :)

I just can't let go of a pretty card, but I certainly do not need boxes of old holiday cards lying around. Of course I do have a special box that contains my sentimental ones, like those lovey dovey ones from me and my husband's first holidays together...hehe, but I don't think he would want others to know that he really can be a poet :)

So after the holidays, I'll go through the cards I received and keep my favorites, planning to do something crafty with them eventually. How about you, what do you usually end up doing with your cards? Have you received your first Christmas card yet?!

Blur of a Weekend...

When I say this weekend was a blur, I truly do mean it was a blur! Just check out a few of our pictures from the No Coast Craft-o-Rama show...

~Setting up our displays~

Crowds of people!

We were so excited-nervous-panicky about our first big craft show. But everything went surprisingly smooth. We continue to be amazed at how wonderful and supportive the whole crafty community is - both customers and shop owners, it's such an honor to be a part of it all!

Both Country Mouse and I were able to sneak away from our booth and do a little shopping. If you did not make it to the big event, you can check out a list of all of the fantastic vendors here. Thank you to everyone who came out to the show!