Michael Miller Baby Bootie Contest

Hi friends,

Have you heard about the Michael Miller Baby Bootie Contest? I am planning to enter, but need a little advice.

First, here is the pair of shoes I made tonight - my "prototype," if you will. I was going for kind of a tennis shoes look. I don't know if I quite hit the mark there, but I'm liking the result, and am pleased with myself for coming up with an original pattern.

A couple of things that I like: 1) the fabric (one of my all time favs that I have precious little of remaining), 2) the "tongue" of the shoe/elastic laces. The tongue is only connected at the bottom so the shoe stretches open wide to put it on the baby's foot.

So, what do you think? Anything you would improve on? Do you think the shoes are too plain/ugly/impractical/etc? Should I work on my photography skills and set up a cuter shot?

I can only submit one entry, so it has to be good. Luckily, I have until June 18th to get it right. Help, please!

UPDATE: Wow! Thank you so much for all of your comments and great suggestions. I've read through all of them (a couple of times) and am excited to implement some of your ideas into my next pair. I'm out of elastic though, so while I wait for my order to arrive, I'll be posting some other crafts.

Thanks again! I really appreciate your thoughtful answers.

chick onesie

I love ...

baby onesies
appliqué
book club craft day

the chick design comes from these decoupage templates on Martha Stewart

things I want to make

Since I am such a slow-poke these days, I put this list together of things I would like to make (or attempt to make). Because, one, I think some of you crafty people out there might like to try these projects, and two, because I don't want to forget that I want to make them. :)

The list is, umm, quite long. Maybe I'll be done by 2010?

Bags

one-hour bag – by vintage ric rac

fabric bag/basket = bagsket – by foofanagle

fabric shopping bag – by oh, fransson!

fabric buckets – by vintage ric rac

Quilts
crazy 9-patch squares quilt – by oh, fransson!

easy lap quilt – by wise craft

multi-stripe baby quilt – by the village shop blog

bird embroidered quilt – by Martha Stewart

shirt pocket quilt – by Martha Stewart

For the Home
decoupage stool – by lorena, via design*sponge

decoupage storage cart – by lady harvatine

three-pocket wall organizer – by craftlog

patterned key rack – by design*sponge

paper punch collage – by ali edwards

bedside book cozy – by one more moore

family tree fan chart – by Martha Stewart

button-up window shade – by Martha Stewart

closet on wheels – by Martha Stewart

quilted coaster set – by Martha Stewart

Just for Fun

happy birthday banner – by see mommy sew

homemade slippers – via home companion magazine

fabric colored button hairbands – by your heart out

felt-covered barrettes – by angry chicken

coconut sugar scrub – by angry chicken

paper globes – by heather bailey

reuseable sandwich wrap – by the small object

Baby

baby dress pattern – by made by rae

crib rail guard – by new england quilter

covered nursery lampshade – by fat orange cat

nursing cover – by made by the mama monster

travel wipes case – by jan andrea

diaper bag – by a mingled yarn
baby leggings – by baby hopes

crocheted baby blanket – by rosy little things

baby tag blankets – by breanna

Bitty Booties – by heather bailey

baby shower bookplates – via nested

baby stroller blanket – by joybucket

hooded baby towel – by skip to my lou

soft baby cube – by london mummy

washcloth duckie – by Martha Stewart

nursing and bedtime playlist – by Martha Stewart

bath apron – by Martha Stewart

towel bib – by Martha Stewart

baby kimonos – by Martha Stewart

Kids/Toys

Crayon roll – by skip to my lou

plush robot – by revoluzzza

plush diggers – by elsie marley

fabric balls – by grand revival design

play "mail center" – by nothing fancy

Martha Show!

I was able to attend a taping of the Martha Show this week - so fun! She has the most beautiful tv studio. I'm on the second row, so tune in on May 13 if you want to catch a glimpse of me in the audience, eating up every minute of it. I think I'm in one of the shots towards the beginning.

This is Martha during audience question time. I was too star-struck to come up with a clever question. She's great!

black apple doll

so ... I almost forgot I blogged here! April was busy, but it did include some crafting. I'm going to try to get posts up much more frequently, because I have a little bit of ground to cover.

Let's go in reverse order - I am quite smitten with my latest sewing project, the Black Apple Doll.

aww ... cute, right?

I just might make 50 of them. The creator, Emily Martin, was featured on the Martha Stewart Show a couple months back and generously provided her doll pattern for Martha's website. Don't want to make it yourself? You can buy them in Emily's super popular Etsy Shop.

I made a few mistakes the first go round, so she's not perfect, but I like to think that just adds character. Also, I deviated slightly from the tutorial and embroidered her face instead of using fabric paint.

What do you think? Does every little girl in my family need one? Do I need 5 just for me?