out of the blue

I received the happiest blue package from Lacey today. It contained:

* a very pretty Parisian soap set (they smell lovely, too)
* a homemade cross-stitch full of blue flowers and a "g" initial
* Altoids (in my very favorite flavor)
* delicious smelling blue lip smacker
* cheery blue polka dot ribbon
* a fun mix CD full of "blue" titled music

Lacey - thank you, thank you. The package is beautiful and I am listening to the CD right now and am loving it. Thanks so much for being a fantastic swap partner!

Gasp!

Why, oh why are there two Michael's locations on Staten Island and none in Manhattan?! I'm either going to have to plan an elaborate trip involving ferries and buses, or convince someone to drive me to New Jersey. I have a feeling this will be worth it.

Update: also available online!!! YAY!

mellow+yellow swap

Today I sent off a package full of green (my favorite color) goodies to Lacey in Utah. I'll post the contents after she receives it so it is more of a surprise. This was my first blog swap and it was so fun. I hope she likes it!

c2b

My pitcher and glasses arrived today. They are even better in person.

I love tissue paper

It's official ... I am addicted to making tissue paper flowers. This one is a bit large. What can I say, sometimes I have a flair for the dramatic.



p.s. I love this wrapping paper.

secret crafting

I haven't been posting much lately - I am in the middle of a baby blanket and have been putting together my mellow+yellow package, which is meant to be a surprise. Over the weekend I made 13 more burp cloths and 50 onesie cookies (another baby shower this week), but I think I have posted enough on both of those things.

Also over the weekend, Jared and I went on a super long walk (like 70 blocks). All the way down 6th Avenue you can find the best ribbon/trimming/button/bead stores. It's heaven. Unfortunately, we didn't go inside any of them this time because hubby tends to have a meltdown anytime we spend more than a minute in a place as awesome as this:

pictures from M& J Trimming

I'll just have to save the hours and hours of ribbon browsing for a day I have to myself.

I'm a winner

I don't think I have ever won a giveaway in my life ... until now. I am the very happy winner of a set margarita glasses & a pitcher from cb2. Hurray! Thanks to Hostess with the Mostess for all of her fabulous giveaways (check out her new website here) and to Sheena, who tipped me off that I won!

picture from c2b

totally not craft-related

One of the Tales girls posted today about a new company, Shabby Apple, that specializes in modest dresses. I took a look and really loved their dresses so I thought I'd pass the word along. The dresses are so pretty and versatile, but the best part is, they are designed so that no layering is required (leave your tank tops and cardigans at home). My favorite is Summer in Nice (pictured below).

picture from Shabby Apple

checkerboard blanket

This is my first attempt at a patchwork blanket. The green squares are made with Red Heart "Hunny" yarn. It is a combination of chenille, baby fur and eyelash yarn which is incredibly soft. It is a small blanket, but I really like the way it turned out.

happy easter!

it's a swap and you're invited

I just discovered a gem of a blog called m. writes. She is hosting a swap - what fun! Only one more day to sign up. I can't wait to start putting my package together.

shower favors

Onsie cookies make a sweet little baby shower favor. I felt a little adventurous and switched up the designs this time.

About half were striped like before, because it looks so darn cute:

Others said "boy" or "baby"

But my very favorite just had a little heart in the corner - so simple and sweet:

I topped off the bags with curly ribbon and a cute little tag that I stamped and glued a mini diaper pin. I wrote the date of the shower on the back of the tag.


And that marks the end of my posts about last weekend's shower. It was a hit!

If you want to know how to see how to make these cookies step by step (and where to get the supplies) go to last month's post here.

happy birthday to me

Today I turn the big 24. I think I'll celebrate by speaking in a Jack Bauer voice all day. For example, if asked to attend a church meeting tonight, I think I should respond (in a raspy voice) - "With all due respect, Mr. President, there is no time! I am setting up the perimeter for my birthday party!" or, if I ask my husband what my present is and he refuses to tell me, I can yell, "Tell me what you know!!!"

In other birthday news, I got a drop from the Dharma Initiative (a.k.a my awesome brother and sister-in-law) this week for my birthday, complete with Cocoa Flavored Wax Treat - Chocolate.



For your next Lost party, you can get your own snack food labels here.

Thanks to all my family and friends who thought of me today. It has been a great birthday!

gift wrap

Using the same method as the pom poms below, you can create a pretty flower to spruce up a present.

baby shower decorations

I think I am in love with these tissue paper pom poms. The easy-to-follow instructions can be found at Martha Stewart's website (for some reason I can't get the link to work, so just search for pom poms in the wedding section). It's a cinch to change up the dimensions to make the pom poms different sizes. I found that the paper should be at least 1/3 longer than it is wide. The longer the paper, the fuller the pom pom (although be careful not to go overboard, or there will not be room to fluff all the layers).

With the help of a tall husband, we hung our pom poms over the food table, and they really looked lovely (and more fun than boring old balloons).

You can find another stunning example of how festive these look over at Oh Happy Day.

waffle-edge blanket

I made this baby blanket for a very good friend who is due in May. Yesterday was the shower I co-threw for her, and everything turned out really great (phew). Her friends and family came from all over - Connecticut, Utah, Boston, Chicago, D.C. and of course New York - so you can tell this girl is pretty special. Now that it is over, I finally have a chance to blog about the stuff I've been working on.

Although this blanket is really simple, I love the edging. I was planning to decorate one of the corners, but I thought it looked just right as is. Plus, it is in my very favorite shade of blue.



Only 2 showers to go ... it has been a busy spring.

I am also excited to announce that I got my very first order recently. It is from my sister, but you have to start somewhere, right?