Dotty

What a nice surprise to come home this afternoon and find that I've been included in a CREST treasury curated by dottyral. In Dotty's shop you'll find not only her very popular emery pincushions, but also a new line of hand stitched pendants.




















Even nicer is to find out that someone visited my shop and bought the set of cute clips pictured in the top row of the treasury list along with two other sets!

New Fabric

The mail carrier brought me an envelope of delightful fabrics today from Krista, owner of Fabric Closet. A big thanks goes out to her (when she is back from vacation) for providing these four fat quarters for a giveaway that I won! The giveaway was offered on a blog called A Heart For Home. On this blog Allyson writes about her family and faith plus she offers recipes, crafts and some great giveaways. Her latest recipe is for foccacia bread which sounds great. I wish someone would make me some...
Anyhow, here are the fabrics from Krista's shop that I chose for my prize.
Heather Bailey's Pop Daisy in Green
Heather Bailey's Pop Daisy in Rose
Sandi Henderson's Playful Paisley in Aqua Farmer's Market and
Michael Miller's Clementine Boho Blossom

Wednesday Welcome: First Class Mail Art

Each week I'm using Etsy's Pounce feature in order to discover new items "from undiscovered shops waiting for their first sale" as the Etsy site states. This week's welcome is extended to First Class Mail Art. The mail art pins in this shop are made with stamps from many countries and include a wide variety of images. Who knew a postage stamp could be turned into such a nice piece of jewelry?!

CREST's Fat Tuesday Sales TODAY ONLY

Many members of the CREST team on Etsy are hosting sales today, Tuesday 2/24, in honor of Mardi Gras. Check out these talented artists and take advantage of our sales! Remember, all hair accessories in my shop are 50% off the currently listed prices until 11:59pm Eastern!

SewArtsy.etsy.com
Half price on this pink and brown paisley tote - (regularly $44.95)

Brigabauble.etsy.com
50% off Sterling Silver and Rose Quartz 5-decade Catholic Rosary (regularly $65)


UndefinedVillage.etsy.com
50% OFF all 8x10 photos!


MaryEllenDoran.etsy.com
50% off hand cold forged sterling silver hoop earrings (2-inches long) (regularly $15)


MaggieSueDesigns.etsy.com
All Hair Accessories 50% off the listed price!















Shelbyb.etsy.com
10% off Yarn and FREE SHIPPING!


ArtStudioShanti.etsy.com
All Neckwarmers 50% off Listed price


JellyBugArtworks.etsy.com
25% off all Purple, Green and Yellow items!

LondonGirl99.etsy.com
Free 18-inch leather necklace with purchase of any yellow, purple, or green pendant.

SweetBeadStudio.etsy.com
15% off All Necklaces and Bracelets.

Laissez Les Bon Temps Roulez

Let the good times roll! In honor of Mardi Gras 2009, I'm offering a SALE today and tomorrow (Fat Tuesday) only. All hair accessories in my Etsy shop are 50% off the currently listed prices! Details can be found in my shop announcement. Visit the shop HERE and check out the hair accessories HERE. Here are just a few examples of what you'll see there:

She's a Party Girl

Our baby girl turned 7 yesterday. Time really does fly! It seems like it was not so long ago that our son was an only child and our daughter was still an unrealized dream. This weekend we were all operating in the mode of "all Jessica all of the time" since she was able to have two parties this weekend! On Saturday, her actual birthday, we celebrated at home with family. My husband made a great pan of lasagna and we enjoyed a family dinner in the company of Jessie's Grandparents, Aunt, Uncle and cousins.
Today we hosted a party at the local roller skating rink. Jessica has some really nice friends from the neighborhood and from school. She knows some of the girls from her soccer team and some from her Brownie troop. Others she went to kindergarten with last year and a few are new friends from her 1st grade class this year. It was an enjoyable afternoon of good clean fun topped off by her favorite vanilla Costco cake. Here's a shot of Jess enjoying her special day:

Thrify Thursday

Visiting a thrift store is like digging for buried treasure. Sometimes you end up empty handed but other times you uncover a coveted item. This week I found two sets of rubber stamps, one brand new and the other barely used. Now the question is, when will I get a chance to use them?


The Marcella K condensed alphabet stamp set is brand new and was only one dollar! The other set did not come with any identifying info. It is in great shape and only three or four of the stamps appear to have been used. All these in a nice box for only three dollars. Hooray :)

Wednesday Welcome: Seahorse Designs

Each week I'm using Etsy's Pounce feature in order to discover new items "from undiscovered shops waiting for their first sale" as the Etsy site states. This week's welcome is extended to Seahorse Designs of Alexandria, VA. These personalized images are hand painted with acrylics and watercolors and are then printed on Crane's 100% cotton paper. Announcing a birth, marriage, or other special event? You'll find classic designs for all of these and more! Custom designs or motifs are available, as are stretched canvas pieces and larger sizes for watercolor paper.

Baboons and Periwinkles

Enjoy a laugh with me (or at my expense) while looking at this silly piece of collage "art" I made a while back and just found while digging through my supply closet. WHAT was I thinking?!? Apparently, I was thinking about a woman being rescued from a burning building by her lover...while she was dreaming of some pretty odd things!

Thank You

I received a great-smelling wax tart gift set from Willow Lake Scents over the weekend. Just sending out a quick thanks to Heather for offering this nice giveaway prize :)
You can visit her blog here:

Giveaway Links

Enter to win a cd: Rock Out with KidzBop 15 ends 2-19-09.

Win a pair of PZI jeans. Click HERE. Ends 2-20-09.

For Rob on Valentine's Day

Forever and Always by Chris Engle
When I'm with you,
eternity is a step away,
My love continues to grow
with each passing day.

This treasure of love,
I cherish within my soul,
How much I love you...
you'll never really know.

You bring a joy to my heart
I've never felt before,
With each touch of your hand
I love you more and more.

Whenever we say good-bye,
whenever we part,
Know I hold you dearly
deep inside my heart.

So these seven words
I pray you hold true,
"Forever And Always
I Will Love You"

Friday Favorites: Romance

Friday the 13th feels lucky to me today. I've never been a superstitious person and 13 has been more lucky to me than unlucky. My first job was on the 13th floor of a hospital and I stayed there for 10 years. Our son was born on August 13th which was a Thursday that year but still, you get the picture. 13 is not a bad number.
Today for my special Friday the 13th edition of Friday Favorites (the first of three this year I think?) I'm sharing photos of the things I'm enjoying today.











A beautiful bouquet of roses from my husband and kids. It smells as nice as it looks!













A roaring fire in the fireplace to enjoy with my family. My parents are here to visit overnight tonight and we're all soaking up the warmth.

What are your favorite things this Friday the 13th?

J. Crew Sweater Re-Do

Winter is my least favorite season; it seems endless and dreary to me.
I feel like I'm always cold, the sky is often gray, the grass is no longer green, the trees are bare, nothing blooms and I really miss the sunshine. I don't like skiing or other winter activities.
I only venture outside when necessary; never by choice this time of year. Good thing I can see the bus stop from my front windows and that my kids are old enough to walk there! I'm not a hermit, I'm just hibernating.
So back to the sweater. My very warm gray J. Crew cardigan lost a button a while back.
Since I didn't like the original brown wood-look buttons that came on the sweater; I decided to jazz it up a bit with an assortment of colored buttons! Here are the before and after pictures:


















Let me know what you think. Any similar projects you've done? Show me!

Wednesday Welcome: Fine Wine Designs

Each week I'm using Etsy's Pounce feature in order to discover new items "from undiscovered shops waiting for their first sale" as the Etsy site states. This week's welcome is extended to Fine Wine Designs. This artist makes hand crafted furniture and home decor from recycled Napa Valley wine barrels. Most of the items are available in golden or red oak stains. If you are looking for a unique gift for a wine lover, you've found the right place!

Thank You

Thank you to Wendy at Bobs and Bits for including my ponytail holders in her recent EtsyKids treasury list. Her shop is full of custom hand painted decor for your little ones to enjoy! Here is her list called "EtsyKids is over the rainbow..."


My yellow ladybug ponytail holders are shown in the 2nd row. Here is a glimpse of some of the other colors available in my shop:


If you need another color, please ask and I'll let you know if I have the fabric for it or not. Custom requests are always welcomed!

Giveaway Links

TODAY is the last day to enter to win a treat from English Toffee Anytime.
Click HERE to enter. Ends 02-09-09.















Enter to win a 4 pack bundle of fat quarters from Fabric Closet.
Enter HERE. Ends 2-20-09.















Enter to win $200 worth of Giella cosmetics.
Click HERE. Ends 2-20-09.















Enter to win a shirt from Leave Me B.
Click HERE. Ends 02-23-09.

Yes, I Know How To Use A Drill

After living in this house for almost 4 and a half years, today I finally put up some curtains in our living room. I was in the process of working on installing the rods when the kids got home from school. Our 10 year old saw me holding the drill and asked me if I knew how to use it (YES). Obviously I need to let our kids see me doing more around the house instead of scurrying around getting everything done while they are gone during the day. By the time they get home from school at 2:45pm the house is partially cleaned (it is rarely all clean at one time since I do a little every few days), their clothes are washed and put away, they have clean sheets on their beds and fresh food in the kitchen. The cats are fed, the library books have been returned and the dry cleaning has been picked up. Presents for their friends' parties have been purchased and wrapped.
The tooth fairy was here twice this week, maybe SHE did all of that work?!? (well, actually yes, but the almost 7 yr old does not know who SHE is yet). As a surprise one recent evening I made brownies from a mix and the kids were so excited they acted like I was the best mom EVER (usually I'm stupid, the rules are stupid, homework is stupid, clearing the table is stupid, going to bed on time is stupid, you get the idea). Maybe I should make them a batch of brownies from scratch and see what being treated like royalty feels like!
I ran out of daylight before I was done with the window treatments, hopefully I'll get a photo up in the next day or two :)

Wednesday Welcome: tricotista

Each week I'm using Etsy's Pounce feature in order to discover new items "from undiscovered shops waiting for their first sale" as the Etsy site states. This week's welcome is extended to tricotista. In the words of the shop owner: "I create womens accessories that are bold, fresh and contemporary so that the women who wear them can make a statement about themselves. I want women to wear art that is as unique as they are and in many cases, customized to reflect their individual style and personality. Because of the fluid nature of the felting process, each piece I create is a unique work of art. No two pieces will ever be exactly the same. When you wear my work, I hope you will feel young, chic and unique!" Enjoy this peek at these beautiful wool creations you'll find in the shop:

Please Translate

I don't speak or read Chinese. If you do, please let me know if the pretty picture below shows my name, Meredith, correctly. Somehow I traveled down a long and winding virtual road and ended up finding a Chinese name generator tool. It is fun to see what you can create; I just hope this shows my name and nothing obscene or embarrassing! Give it a try and let me know what you come up with. There is a cute panda bear choice but I went with this traditional looking tree branch. I'm hoping it is a cherry blossom which I really should be able to recognize since I've lived near Washington, DC my entire life! (I do realize that our cherry blossom trees in DC are from Tokyo, Japan and not from China.) The 2009 Festival will be March 28 - April 12, 2009; the Parade will be on Saturday, April 4, so as not to conflict with Easter weekend. Click HERE to learn about this year's National Cherry Blossom Festival!

Dishpan Hands

What a fun night we had last night watching the Super Bowl with family and friends! We had a wide variety of foods and drinks and a great big chocolate cake from Costco. I was too full to eat cake last night so I had it for breakfast today (bad girl!). The Steelers got the job done and all is right in the wide world sports.
Of course, the party aftermath is not so fun. Like waking the kids for school at 6:30 am after letting them stay up late last night. They reminded me of zombies when they stumbled out the door at 7 to catch the bus. Also not fun is having to make a lot of trips up and down the stairs to carry dirty serving platters, utensils, and crock pots up to the kitchen to clean them. My hands are starting to feel like sandpaper. Time to find my good Neutrogena skin repair lotion!
Between loads of laundry and party clean up, I did manage to take photos of one bag that I've just listed in my shop. It would be a cute gift for Valentine's Day or Mother's Day. It is pink and brown with a little yellow thrown in for fun. It is just one of eight bags I made with Flutterby fabric from Moda; this print is hard to come by as it sold out quickly when it first launched. This is the only one in this line of my bags that is mainly pink.

The bag has three pockets on the inside and ties closed with matching brown fabric ties. The back is solid brown corduroy to match the bottom and straps. Click the image to see it in my shop "Maggie Sue Designs".