« March 2010 | Main | May 2010 »
{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.
Wishing you a lovely weekend!
*** *** ***
Right now, I am...
seeing :: piles of paper, notes, and photographs....and ultimately the finish line! This manuscript is all but 'done', but I've come to learn (this third time around) that I will use every last second possible to tweak and edit. I've also come to really love this part of the process - when it all comes together, and I linger on the details one last time before letting it go. (Remembering to wander helps.)
listening :: to She & Him Volume II and The Avett Brothers I and Love and You, evenly alternated through the course of my day. Good music is essential.
eating :: green smoothies, peanut butter toast, and chocolate. All day long. It's a semi-balanced diet that works just fine. For now.
feeling :: grateful for my rockstar of a husband, who is keeping us all fed, clothed, and happy while Mama keeps working. Not to mention building a new sandbox for the kids amidst it all, painting furniture because I asked very nicely, and editing his own work in this book to boot. Can you see why I didn't ask him to step in as my guest blogger as he usually does? He would have done it, though, he's pretty swell like that.
thinking :: I need to step away from this space just for the next two days. I'll be back on Friday with {this moment}, and with my third book out the door!
anticipating :: some celebrating in honor of that. Oh, yes.
I'll see you here on Friday!
This weekend, I must say, involved a whole lot of work. But amidst the work, I snuck away a few precious minutes here and there to wander towards bliss. A row here, a pitch there, a scoop of the sand....springtime family bliss of the best kind. Even in little moments (especially, perhaps, in little moments).
Was there a bit of wandering in your weekend too?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today, I am happy to be sharing a giveaway from a new April sponsor, LüSa Organics! In the words of shopkeeper Rachel:
"LüSa Organics creates exquisite, effective body care for babies and children and handcrafts moisturizing soap for the whole family. Though we're a young company, we've been featured twice in Mothering magazine! We're best know for our cloth diaper safe Booty Balm and Baby Wipe Juice."
You can follow along with the LüSa Organics blog, Clean
Rachel: We've been making body care since 1997 and launched the LuSa Organics line in 2008.
Rachel: My heart's desire is to leave a positive mark on the world. Creating the hightst quality, safest, and most effective body care and baby care is one step in that journey, but creating products that inspire joy? That's really the point. I love that countless people have a joyful experience during the ordinary moments of their day because of our products - changing a diaper, washing their hands, bathing their child. We're making magic happen. And I believe that these small moments of joy inspire positive global change.
SouleMama: What were you doing before this work?
Rachel: One upon a time I was an environmental educator. As a naturalist I worked with children and adults helping them find inspiration of the natural world. It was great fun (but not as fun as this).
SouleMama: What inspires you?
Rachel: Finding a better way. Stepping lightly. Unfurling ferns. Birds nests. The river. The moon. Whole ingredients. My children. Hearing the song in each moment. Creating. Seeing others create. Laughter.
SouleMama: How does the balance of work and family play out for you?
Rachel: Oh, sweet balance. As we speak my kids are running wild (one of them half-naked) around my office and our yard. Homeschooling-meets soapmaking-meets cooking-meets cleaning (or not)-meets shipping orders-meets crafting meets baking meets hanging laundry. These are our days. Everything is interwoven. I wouldn't have it any other way.
For today's giveaway, LüSa Organics is offering the following to one winner:
"Take your pick! For those with small children we are offering our bestselling Baby Wipe Juice and Booty Balm. (Both are cloth diaper safe.) Baby Wipe Juice allows you to quickly and easily make truly natural baby wipes using washcloths or papertowels.) If you are not in a baby-moment of your life, choose your four favorite naked organic soaps!"
In addition, LüSa Organics is offering $10 off any order of $45 or more to all SouleMama readers. Discount is redeemable by entering LUSASOULE in the coupon code. Offer good Until May 5, 2010.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you to LüSa Organics!
To enter, please leave a comment in today's post (one entry per person, please!). I'll close comments and announce the winner by 8am EST on Monday. Comments closed! The winner is:
Booty Juice would be a hysterical name. :) Looks like very nice stuff!
Posted by: Kristianna
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today, I am happy to be sharing a giveaway from the NaturalKids Team of Etsy! In their words:
"The artisans of Etsy’s NaturalKids Team are committed to creating all-natural, ecologically sound gear for children as one of the ways we put into practice our ideals about taking care of our planet. The group's artisans include dollmakers, woodworkers, painters, quilters, clothing designers and textile artists. Each one handcrafts beautiful, safe and heirloom-quality gear for kids, using exclusively natural, and often organic materials. When we choose toys, dolls, clothing and accessories for children made from wool, natural woods, organic cotton, upcycled sweaters and other renewable resources, we acknowledge that Earth Day is every day.
Our work can be found on Etsy by searching "naturalkids team" and we also have our own website featuring our natural products, at www.naturalkidsstore.com. We feature fabulous tutorials for making kids and adult crafts, recipes, eco living tips and more on our blog."
Natural Kids: The NaturalKids Team was started by woodmouse in 2007. It was a small group, with a small presence on Etsy. Since that time members have come and gone but our mission has stayed the same. To be a group of sellers dedicated to creating natural products for children.
Natural Kids: Our creations are free of chemical-based polyester, toxic PVC, plastics and other chemicals and finishes that leach into our children’s skins and our landfills. Natural dolls, quilts and clothes made in an artisan studio are of a higher quality and provide long-lasting satisfaction in a way that commercial versions cannot compare. At the same time, natural toys can be easily composted and returned to the planet once again. You can buy them in good conscience, as they are also sweatshop free! Wool-stuffed toys have the amazing property of feeling more alive, because the wool in them holds warmth and familiar smells. Rattles made from sustainable woods come from living trees, and are warm and inviting in a way that plastic versions are not.
Natural Kids: Choosing natural dolls and clothes can help teach kids about making conscious consumer choices, and understanding where their "things" come from. Children often ask, "Who made this, mom and dad?" How we spend our money is very powerful. Teaching the importance of buying handmade at a young age is a wonderful lesson.
For today's giveaway, NaturalKids is offering a bundle package (shown above) to one winner, which includes the following gifts from members:
bamboo and organic cotton cloth diaper from Banana Bottoms
toy giraffe from Sewn Natural
Mother Earth wooden doll from The Enchanted Cupboard
leaf art clips from Maple Shade Kids
wool felted mouse from Eves Little Earthlings
trio of eco-gnomes from Kats in the Belfry
2knitted bunnies from Fairies Nest
wooly Mama and baby mushrooms from Cute Little Thing
3 knitted food pieces from Fair Trade Family
playsilk from Birch Leaf Designs.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you to the NaturalKids Team of Etsy!
To enter, please leave a comment in today's post (one entry per person, please!). I'll close comments and announce the winners by 8am EST on Sunday. Comments closed! The winner is:
thanks so much for sharing this store, I hadn't seen it before what a treasure o gifts. Happy Sunday!
Posted by: branchhomestead
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.
Wishing you a lovely weekend!
*** *** ***
{another Hipstamatic photo. Thanks for indulging me in phone photos this week - It's been nice to 'travel light' for these wanderings.}
Today, I wandered amidst a sea of daffodils with my loves. One identified, one sang, one danced and the other smelled every flower. In the four fabulously different ways that each of them are, we were all together.
Happy Earth Day to you!
{Head's up: There are two giveaways of autographed sets of my books going on right now. One on Vickie Howell's blog
in promotion of her forthcoming book Craft Corps
(giveaway ends today!). And another on the Petite Purls blog (this re-opened giveaway
ends Friday!). Good luck!}
*** *** ***
Today, I wandered...when pretended that email and text messages and skype don't exist, and instead, amidst a busy day, sat down and wrote a long, leisurely, good old-fashioned letter.
(In the US it's officially National Card and Letter Writing Month!)
I went wandering...with a friend through the rows of old, funky, faded, rusted, worn and loved. I came home with nothing in my hands, but a wonderful quiet in my mind.
How will you wander today?
I've been trying to keep in mind the importance of Wandering these days. The kind of wandering that restores peace of heart and peace of mind. The kind of wandering that opens the door to new possibilities. The kind of wandering in which the mind can daydream and fantasize and - perhaps most importantly of all - do nothing but be present.
The kind of wandering that is a lovely balance in the midst of busy days and busy minds - days like the ones we're having right now. Overlapping seasons of kids activities, a manuscript that is so nearly due (we are so close! We're talking days, people!), the regular busyness of the spring season, homeschool portfolios to compile, and all the other big family projects-in-progress. There is an abundance of activity, schedules, details, and piles at the moment.Quite in contrast to the quiet days that we are used to - and work hard to preserve - most of the time.
While that's all fine and good and just exactly what we want to be doing right now, it can sometimes make one's head spin. You know? I know you know.
So I've been thinking about Wandering. About making certain - in this temporary very busy time for us - that there is time for us all...to Wander. Because the time that we need such wandering most of all? That's when it's the hardest to remember and make happen.
To keep myself on task and held accountable to that, I'll be bringing you some of my wanderings this week. Just a photo a day of a place where I've wandered of late. A place where I've found a bit of quiet.
I hope you enjoy, and that you, too, remember to leave some time for wandering in your days.
On this day...I wandered up a hill in the woods where I'd never been before, amidst April snow! Hopeful daydreaming happened. All is good.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today, I am pleased to share news from a new April sponsor, Caterpillar Baby. In their words:
"Caterpillar Baby is a family-run online store based in Toronto, Canada, devoted to offering the very best in cloth diapers and accessories. Cloth diapering doesn’t have to be a sacrifice - we sell environmentally responsible products that are comfortable, effective and easy to use."
Caterpillar Baby: Besides wanting to be able to spend more time with my daughter (as opposed to going back to my desk job and seeing her for perhaps 3 hours a day!), I also noticed that there was a definite lack of cloth diaper-focused stores in the Toronto area. Being a computer programmer married to a graphic designer, I knew the two of us could come up with something special.
Caterpillar Baby: It's definitely a challenge. With the business demanding a lot of my attention, it's really important to be able to set aside some quality time each day to spend with my daughter. Sometimes it's hard to tear yourself away from the computer, but I realize that it's extremely important to be able to get out of the house to do fun things - not only for my daughter, but for myself as well.
For today's giveaway, Caterpillar Baby is offering:
~ an Annie Marie Padorie (AMP) One Size Duo Pocket diaper, with a 2-layer hemp insert
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you, Caterpillar Baby!
To enter, please leave a comment in today's post (one entry per person, please!). I'll close comments and announce the winners by 8am EST on Monday. Comments closed! The winner is...
two little ones who could both use some new clothies!
Posted by: La Familia O'Halloran
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today, I am pleased to tell you about our sponsor Stubby Pencil Studio! In owner Kate's words:
"Stubby Pencil Studio offers a wide selection of eco friendly and affordable art supplies and gifts for children. Several new items are now available - jumbo soy crayons, Mimi the Sardine zipper bags, travel and activity journals, ice cream scented Snifty pens and more. Spring and summer are busy months for birthday parties and we've recently added more options for party favors and treat bags, as well as fun and creative gifts ideas for kids."
Kate: "Whether you think you can or can't, you're right." ~ Henry Ford
Kate: Since Spring 2006, when my twins turned two. I looked for simple cards to send as thank you notes for gifts. Nothing seemed to fit, so I quickly made cards for the girls to color and I wrote the note inside - everyone loved them. Over time, we built the website, added more card designs, small toys, and art supplies to purchase with the cards. It's a great satisfaction to be able to source these items and make them available to families.
Kate: My first career was with Bank of America, but with restructuring, I had the opportunity to leave. I returned to school and studied Graphic Design (which I love) and gave me the flexibility to work from home. When my twins were born in 2004, I was able to stay home with them and over time create this business - which is challenging, but fun at the same time. The business is a perfect fit for us - our girls love drawing and painting and we test all the products before we decide to sell them - our little market research department - a pretty cool job when you're 5 years old.
For today's giveaway, Stubby Pencil Studio is offering:
~ a $100 shopping spree!
In addition, Stubby Pencil Studio is offering a 10% discount to SouleMama readers. Enter MAMASAVE10 at checkout to redeem. Offer good until 4/30/09.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you, Stubby Pencil Studio!
To enter, please leave a comment in today's post (one entry per person, please!). I'll close comments and announce the winners by 8am EST on Sunday. Comments closed. The winner is:
this would be wonderful - thanks for the opportunity!
Posted by: Meg @ Kids & Eggs
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.
Wishing you a lovely weekend!
*** *** ***
There's some exciting attire arriving these days for the Soule boys. Dance recital costumes and very soon - baseball uniforms! Exciting stuff, busy nights.
Our dance bags I made in the fall have been so helpful in keeping everything together between classes. It's truly made getting out the door on time a whole lot less chaotic. So I thought I'd apply the same strategy to the coming baseball season. Because I can remember more than one occasion last year on which we were late, all frantically searching for one baseball sock.
There's been a flurry of sewing for each of my babes this past week. Equal sewing. Equal blog coverage. Today, I bring you Adelaide and her beach-ready attire. Because oh, this summer girl (like her Mama) is ready for summer at the beach. Of course we enjoy the shore year round, but there's nothing like immersing oneself in that ocean, you know? And generally speaking, that happens in the summer months, though this little one can't resist a little dip no matter the time of year. She's been wearing her bathing suit (with rain boots) since the first day of spring asking when she can swim in that ocean she loves. Soon, my sweet. Soon.
When she does, I was thinking this wrap dress might be the perfect beach/bathing suit cover. It's the One-Piece Sundress pattern from Near Sea Naturals. She tops out the sizes recommended, but it has such flow and width, I think it works just fine. I am not kidding you when I say this dress couldn't be much easier to sew (such a great beginner project - don't even fret about those buttonholes. You can do it). It took nearly as much time to make as it did to fold the pattern pieces back up and fit them back in the envelope they came in (which, granted, always takes more time than it should). The construction brought me such a deja vu feeling, until I remembered all those smocks I used to make. By the dozens. (And again, look at that wee babe of mine!)
She was thrilled with her dress. Thrilled with the fabric choice. There's a blue lightweight linen on one side, and on the other - Mendocino Mermaid by, um, I'm slightly embarrassed to say it again, Heather Ross (Heather, I think I officially declare myself your Ambassador!).
Though there isn't any swimming in the ocean just yet...there is much prancing about in the woods. Which, it turns out, this dress is perfect for too.
I made this shirt for Harper recently. Oh, the fourth baby. You should see the state of some of his clothing - most of which have been around the toddler block at least four times. He needed something fresh. Though I'm guessing he doesn't really care what he's wearing, so perhaps it would be more accurate to say I needed to see something fresh. (I hope to make more.)
The shirt is the short sleeve version of the newly released Sketchbook Shirt from oliver + s. I love working with Oliver + S patterns (remember my flurry of bubble dresses? Goodness, I made a lot of those). They're so carefully written. And I always know heading into one (versus a traditional, commercial pattern), that if I take things slow and read carefully, not only will it all make sense, but it will always make a fabulously constructed garment in the process. It's the best kind of guarantee for my precious sewing hours.
The fabric is, of course, mushrooms from Heather Ross. Stitching this shirt for my boy, I remembered fondly this smock I made for Miss Adelaide at a similar age with a similar fabric. Oh my. Now he's the chubby-toed toddler walking around with squeals of delight at so very much he sees....in his own special way, of course. He's a cheerful fellow, this Harper Pie.
My little Ezra turned seven this weekend. We had a wonderful celebration of all that is 'him' - heavy on the good food and good music. The day involved a lot of ice cream and vinyl. I do love his style of celebrating.
His homemade gifts included a new set of bow-ties. Ezra's a bowtie kind of guy - he loves them and they suit him so well. I think he wore all four of these over the course of the day, and chose fabric for making some more with me. (The pattern I used is from CrabAppleAttic - so quick and satisfying to make. And with the help of this little video tutorial, I finally figured out just how to tie those bow ties on my little guys neck.)
Seven! Good gracious. Certainly, it was just yesterday that his tiny little 6lb body slipped right into my hands, and his big blue eyes looked up with wide wonder. Wasn't that just yesterday? No, I suppose yesterday was when his tiny little 6 year old body snuggled up to tell me about his dreams, with equal wide wonder and magic. Oh, my baby...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today, I am happy to be sharing a giveaway from longtime SouleMama Sponsor, Lisa Leonard Designs. In Lisa's words:
"At Lisa Leonard, we create, custom, hand-stamped jewelry that is meaningful and perfect for every day. mother's day is coming soon. so hurry! our deadline for mother's day delivery is april 28th."
You can keep up with all the Lisa Leonard going-ons, by visiting her personal blog or following her on Twitter.
Lisa: i am inspired by nature so we often go to the beach on the weekends. also, i love taking pictures and find that photography motivates and inspires me!
For today's giveaway, Lisa Leonard is offering TWO winners:
~ a $50 gift certificate to Lisa Leonard Designs!
In addition, Lisa is offering 20% off for SouleMama readers. Use code 'soulemama20' at checkout. Offer good through April 13th only - so hurry!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you, Lisa Leonard!
To enter, please leave a comment in today's post (one entry per person, please!). I'll close comments and announce the winners by 8am EST on Monday. Comments closed! The winners are:
Wow! I love her designs.
Posted by: water worksawesome!
Posted by: angelina
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today, I am pleased to tell you about a new April sponsor, Very Baby. Very Baby is the work of Jessica. In her words:
"Very Baby is pleased to offer hard to find cloth diaper sewing supplies including fabric, patterns, and specialty notions. We have fabrics you won't find in local fabric stores like waterproof PUL for diaper covers, organic absorbent fabrics, and wool jersey for natural diaper covers. We also offer an Approved Seamstress Club for mamas who would like to sew, label, and sell diapers made with our Very Baby patterns."
Be sure to check out the Very Baby diaper sewing forums, as well as the helpful diaper sewing tutorials. You can follow along on Jessica's personal blog, Balancing Everything.
Jessica: April is the anniversary of our store opening! It's been 8 years this month.
Jessica: Necessity! I was sewing cloth diapers for my first baby, but had to wait months for specialty diaper fabric to be group ordered through co-ops. Things like waterproof fabric, soft wool knits, and absorbent fabrics were next to impossible to find locally. If I could find what I needed in online shops, I had to order from multiple places and the shipping charges would really add up. I wanted to start a shop where someone would be able to get everything they needed to sew diapers in one easy location without waiting ages and ages for it to arrive.
Jessica: I'm sure the right answer here is my lovely sewing corner, but in actuality my best ideas come to me while I'm showering... as rare as that opportunity is with four young children and a home business!
Jessica: Very Baby was a surprising overnight success. My husband quit his job and came home to cut and ship diaper fabric all over the world. Having him working with me has made all the difference when it comes to balancing everything, though we still have sticky kitchen floors and dinner in take out boxes when I'm up to my ears with a new pattern design. I homeschool our four children, and I find that being flexible with our schedules helps as well. The kids are very hands on with the business and enjoy using their own time cards to help us in the shop. I've learned to let go of my perfect housewife ideal. My floors will not always sparkle, my toilets will often resemble scary science projects, but I make time for what's most important, reading and snuggling with my children, making memories, and living creatively together.
For today's giveaway, Very Baby is offering the following gift bundle to TWO winners:
~ a $50 gift certificate good towards anything in our store! Along with the following brand new printable PDF sewing patterns:
Very Baby One Size Fitted Diaper
Very Baby One Size Pocket Diaper Pattern
In addition, Very Baby is offering 10% off for all SouleMama readers. Use code Soule10 at checkout. Offer is good through May 10th.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you, Very Baby!
To enter, please leave a comment in today's post (one entry per person, please!). I'll close comments and announce the winners by 8:30am EST on Sunday. Comments closed! The winners are....
We just got placed with a 4 month old less than 72 hours ago. We'd love to switch to cloth. Thanks for this wonderful opportunity Amanda!
Posted by: lindatoddjordanWhat a wonderful giveaway! A dear friend of mine is expecting her first baby in June and these would be just perfect for her...
Posted by: Colleen/And Baby Makes Five
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.
Wishing you a lovely weekend!
*** *** ***
{hope; stanley needs reconstructive surgery; a hat to be; a button search; new Oliver + S}
...morning to night, a little bit of everything.
In the middle of a very busy, slightly stressful, energetic day, I found this
small
simple
sweet
sunny
moment of bliss.
Yes.
wishing you a lovely springtime easter day!
(I'll be back here on Tuesday.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today, I am pleased to tell you about a new April sponsor, Follow The White Bunny. Follow The White Bunny is the work of Nicole, from the Netherlands. In Nicole's words:
"Follow the White Bunny Patterns offers some of the most original hand embroidery PDF patterns to be found, suitable for all skill levels. All the unique designs are made by Nicole Vos van Avezathe . So…follow the White Bunny and meet a Princess with Vegetable Issues, a Danish Hedgehog in a teacup, a thoughtful Jackalope and many other magical characters waiting to be embroidered by you. "
You can follow along on Nicole's blog, or see her at Feeling Stitchy where she writes weekly.
~~
Nicole: I started selling embroidery patterns of my own design on Etsy a little over a year ago with only one design in the shop! At that time I was an expat living in Norway and stay at home mum to two beautiful daughters both in (pre)school. I had some time to craft and explore what I enjoyed doing most. My love for embroidery and drawing soon resulted in my first embroidery pattern design. My second design, a Princess and the Pea pattern which can be used as a sampler for stitches, proved to be very popular and in the year that followed making embroidery patterns increasingly became an important part of my life. Due to the positive feedback from customers I decided to continue making embroidery patterns after my return to the Netherlands. Now it fits in perfectly with my family life. I feel privileged to be able to do what I like most and work from home on hours that are most convenient to me and the kids.
Nicole: I’m inspired by a lot of things: books, music, history, fairy tales, older patterns and everyday stuff. Elements of what I read, hear, see and like, find their way into my patterns. I love it when all the elements ‘click’ and a new unique pattern design is ‘born’ . My ‘Pindsvin’ pattern for example started with a teacup I inherited from my grandmother. Hedgehogs and waves are fun to embroider, or so I think, so I added a little Adventurous travelling Hedgehog and put him in the Teacup on sea. The teacup had a Danish Design which is why I named the little hedgehog ‘Pindsvin’ , Danish for Hedgehog.
For today's giveaway, Follow The White Bunny is offering TWO gifts:
~ a $25 gift certificate towards patterns in the Follow The White Bunny shop!
In addition, Follow The White Bunny is offering a 10% discount on all PDF patterns from the shop. Simply mention MAMABUNNY in the comments to seller and a refund will be issued after the transaction is complete. (Pattern Package Deals are not included. Offer valid from April 3rd to April 9th.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you, Follow the White Bunny!
To enter, please leave a comment in today's post (one entry per person, please!). I'll close comments and announce the winners by 8am EST on Sunday. Comments closed! The winners are:
These patterns are so beautiful! Thanks for the opportunity!
Posted by: UlrikeJust love this embroidery!!!
Posted by: sewperstitious
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.
Wishing you a lovely weekend!
*** *** ***
This is a little sneak peek of something you'll see in my next book (which we are literally living and breathing right now as we wrap it up! And it's not really a sewing book, but you'll be seeing this project nonetheless. Mysterious...). It will be a little while before you see what it is, but I am loving this fabric right now so very much, I thought I'd show you.
Remember the Bird Calendar? It's still quite likely one of my favorite projects ever - a family collaboration of the best kind. With the mountain of scanned kids bird drawings that I had from that project, I printed them onto fabric at Spoonflower last year. There are so many possibilities with this. There's a whole series of drawings floating around the house right now with our family members as greek gods and goddesses. Um, hello, matching pajama pants!
I love checking in to see what people are doing with their own fabrics. My friend Martha Miller is doing some amazing things with her daughter's cut mandalas on fabric (be sure to read her moving blog - Not Bad Thing - about the process).
And now, did you see that Heather Ross is releasing some of her out-of-print fabrics (in fresh, new colorways!) on Spoonflower? Fun, fun, fun. I've got a little bit of it in my hands - the gnomes in a linen-cotton canvas and the pink mushrooms in a quilting weight...
Now, what to make? Hmn...
Greetings! I'm Amanda Blake Soule - mother of five, author of four books on family creativity, editor & owner of Taproot Magazine. I live with my family in an old farmhouse in Western Maine where we raise animals, grow vegetables and make lots of things. I write about it all here on the blog. Thank you for visiting!
