Aqua Disco Dots

Here's the latest creation:

A friend of mine that traveled to Senegal, West Africa with me back in 2000 ordered this for a friend of hers. Think it'll do?

Adorable Aprons!

These aprons were a special order at my show a couple of weeks ago. The mom wanted matching aprons for her and her two little girls and the only preference she had was "something with pink." I had come across this fabric at Hobby Lobby about a month ago and was just dying to buy it but I didn't have a plan for it so I didn't get it then. When she made this order I knew exactly what fabric to use!! I think they are precious - she'll get them at church tomorrow and I hope she loves them too!

Need a giggle?

Check this out: http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9570146077

I can't stop laughing!!

Yay! Yay!! Yay!!!

Social Graces in Conyers is selling Moonpie Designs!

Well, since I work there one Saturday a month they let me put stuff in the shop.=) I am so excited! I went in to work today and Cheryl (the manager) had already added my stuff to the display. Enjoy some pics:

Branded! My hang tags. Like them? *Each one has a different background design.*

Scalloped Edge Quilted Baby Blanket

Snuggly Mini blanket and pillow set

Burpie/Bib Set

I think it looks great - but I may be a little biased. Just a little though.

Whew!

So last Saturday night as I am desperately trying to finish up everything for The Show, my sewing machine decided to stop working. Yes, the new one. It made me sick and I have been dreading taking it to the shop for fear that it would cost a bajillion bucks to get it fixed. Justin and I finally took it today (I can't put it off any longer - I have lots of orders to fill!) and apparently it just got overheated. Whew! They oiled it up for me and so hopefully it will run perfectly now. They also fixed the bobbin loading thingymabob that never worked right. Yay!

So now I can sew sew sew and fill those orders!

Toodles!

THANK YOU!!

I have to give a HUGE thank you to Zach and Sarah May for helping sooooooooo much with getting Moonpie Designs off the ground! Thanks, Sarah, for the hours of cutting out patterns and fabric, encouraging me to have "the show" and then allowing me to have it at your house, and most of all, for being an amazing friend and keeping me sane! Zach, my blog looks amazing and it's all because of you. I don't even know what else to say -- I'll cook whatever you ask for anytime you ask for it!! Y'all rock!

Thanks also to Lindsay Monihan for cutting all the patterns and fabrics (I know, the totes were horrible!!), helping with "the show", and listening all those days I talked your ears off about whatever happened to be bothering me at the moment. You are the best cousin ever!!!

Thanks Momma and Daddy for driving all the way to GA from LA to help me this weekend and for not letting me throw my sewing machine out the window when it quit on me Saturday night. Y'all are the best and I LOVE YOU!

Justin - I don't even know what to say. Thank you for the hours and hours of listening to me dream about this little business and for all the guidance on the actual "business" end of things. Thank you for cutting out potholder and tote fabric and for watching movies on the floor in the sewing room just so I wouldn't feel alone. Thank you for being my biggest fan and for saying you are "proud of me." You are the best husband ever and I love you more.

Finally, thanks to all the wonderful ladies of Christ Community Church in Conyers for the love and support and for actually showing up and buying things at the show today! You girls ROCK MY SOCKS and I love you all!!

More Products

Let me warn you now that this post will make very little sense and the pictures will be atrocious. (Is that even a real word?) My brain is more than fried. These are some examples of what I'll have Sunday.

Hand towels

Aprons and Mini-Me Aprons

I will also have all of the things listed under a previous post. I believe the post is titled Part Dos and Part Tres. If not, it's around there somewhere. Keep scrolling.

JUst to see you smile...

Hope this brings a smile to your face today. How could it not?

He is amazing.

Halloween and Prom

The annual Halloween party at the Rikard/Buckalew house was last night. Justin and I went after "Prom." It was a blast! Enjoy some pics:

Traditional 1970's Prom pictures with the fake plant and everything!

Sarah (I mean, Wilma) and I

Justin and I with our cousin Erin aka Princess Fiona

With Zach and Sarah - I made their costumes!

No picture is complete without a member of Motley Crue (Michael)!

Justin, Jesse (Beetle Juice), Wes (Milk Carton with a missing child on it - his face was the missing child picture before he took it off), and James (oh James...there is NO ONE like him!!!)

New Orleans Shrimp and Grits

So I felt froggy tonight and decided to make something new for dinner (we didn't have small group tonight - normally there is no time to cook on Sunday evenings). I got the recipe from my MIL's Women's Day magazine (October issue). It was FANTASTIC!

The weather was AMAZING this evening (it actually felt like fall) so we ate out on the balcony. We had candles and everything! Ok - everyone together now -- Awww. Thank you.

Here's a close up:

And here's the recipe:

New Orleans Shrimp 'n' Grits (modified)

CREAMY GRITS:

2 cups milk

1 1/2 cups water

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup grits

SHRIMP:

1 Tbsp oil

1 red pepper, chopped

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 small onion (I used vidalia), chopped

1 tsp minced garlic

1 lb peeled large shrimp

3/4 tsp each Old Bay seasoning and Tony Chachere's Cajun Seasoning

1 can sliced tomatoes, drained (or fresh plum tomatoes)

1/2 cup shredded Cheddar

1) GRITS: Bring milk, water, garlic and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Whisk in grits, cover, reduce heat to simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until smooth and thickened.

2) SHRIMP: Meanwhile, heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Saute red and green peppers, onion, and garlic. Add shrimp and Old Bay and cajun seasonings; cook two minutes. Add tomatoes; cook until shrimp are just cooked through, about 1 minute.

3) Remove grits from heat; sprinkle cheese on grits. Serve shrimp and veggies over grits.

*I mis-read the recipe (it's amazing that I even looked at the recipe - - I have a bad habit of straying) and added a whole TABLESPOON each of Old Bay and Cajun seasonings. I was terrified that it was going to be too salty, but it was still wonderful! In the future I will cut back on the seasonings a bit (to be able to taste individual flavors a little better) but I don't know that I would cut back to 3/4 a TEASPOON - in my opinion you wouldn't even taste it with that little seasoning. Also - I completely forgot about the tomatoes and left them out . It tasted great anyway - but next time I'll be sure to remember those.=)

** I bought pre-cooked shrimp with the tails still attached. Pre-cooked was the way to go, but next time I will remove the tails before cooking and serving them. It would have been nice to just eat without worrying about biting off the tails!

In the words of Sid the sloth - "BON APPETIT!"

Where to find Moonpie Designs stuff

Several people have left comments and/or emailed me asking where they can buy Moonpie Designs stuff - that makes me giddy!=) Right now all production is for a show I am having here in Conyers in November. After the show I will post what is left on Etsy which is like ebay but for handmade crafts (and WAY better than ebay!). Once the Etsy shop is open I will constantly be putting new things in the shop so be sure to check it out often (in fact, just go ahead and make it your homepage!!=P). I'll give the link to my Etsy shop after The Show.

Please be praying for me the next couple of weeks as The Show draws closer -- there is much to do and only me to do it!

Thanks for the interest! You guys ROCK my socks!

Rare, but beautiful, moments

Both kids that I nanny were out of school last Friday for Fall Break and I busted out the ol' camera to entertain myself while they were playing in the backyard. Because they are 6 and 3 they fuss with each other (okay - maybe it's because they are SIBLINGS!) a lot but in a rare moment of tenderness I captured this pic:

Please ignore the stupid timestamp - I forgot to turn it off (Thanks Zach for teaching me how!) before I took them.

Moments earlier this is what I was photographing:

Gracie walked away during his "magic trick" (hiding one pipe inside the other). In her defense, we had both already watched him do it AT LEAST 10 times so I can't really blame her! It cracks me up that literally moments after this I was able to capture their little hug from the top picture. Kids!

Blankets!

I made these little quilted blankets last week and they are quickly becoming my favorite things! The pattern came from Bend the Rules Sewing (very helpful and full of wonderful ideas for both beginners and pros!) and you can find it here.

Do you recognize the Dick and Jane fabric from a previous post? I finally decided what to do with it! I think it was a good choice.

Part Tres...

I also made this bib. I found this fabric at JoAnn's the other day and had to have it! I think it is adorable and perfect for a bib and burp cloth (burp cloth is coming soon).

Accomplishments Part Dos...

I made six Christmas potholders this morning. 3 pairs. I like them. What do you think?

I think this one is my favorite.=)

The accomplishments of a day off...

Today has been wonderful. No 20 minute drive to my nanny job at 6:40 in the morning, no kids (though I love them, a break is often necessary), and tons of sewing made it wonderful. I even got to take a bath and I might just take another one before I have to go to bed (around 9:30pm - I know. I'm old now.).=) Oh yeah - and I watched three of my favorite movies while sewing.

1) Under The Tuscan Sun
2) Return To Me
3) The Family Stone

All three make me happy. There are many more movies that make me happy too - those three just seem to be consistently in the Top 10-20.

Hoping for a response...

Does anyone know how to make a Kodak EasyShare C875 camera NOT put the date at the bottom of every picture? It kinda ruins a great shot.

Ramblings

There's Ritzy Chicken cooking in my oven and this makes me miss my brother. He is wonderful and I hate that we are so far away from each other. I took this while we were all fishin' on Labor Day. That, my friends, is a bait snatcher. Too bad I don't have a picture of the 35 white perch they caught that morning!

Notice the reflection in his glasses - that's Justin on the other end of the boat. I think it is cool.

My new fabric

My new fabric that I ordered from JCaroline Creative came in last Friday. It is so amazing that I can't decide what I to do with it. So for now it is just looking lovely while sitting on a shelf. Any ideas?These three are from Michael Miller's Jane and Dick Collection. The Dots are my favorite!

This one is from the Lotus by Amy Butler Collection. It is much more amazing in person.=)

If you have any suggestions of what I can do with these send them my way!

Preciousness

I am in love with these pictures (as well as the precious little boy in them!) and I actually took them. I never take good pictures - as you can see by the two in the previous post. I just had to share these. Enjoy!

Happiness

I'm constantly discovering (or re-discovering) new things about myself. One of the things that I REdiscovered today is that organization really really does it for me. After our bi-monthly grocery shopping trip to Kroger, I decided to reorganize our cupboard and freezer. I also put everything where it belongs and chopped up and froze all of the veggies (red, green, and yellow peppers, vidalia onions, and celery). I also individually froze all of the chicken (18 breasts!) using Glad Press and Seal. Those of you who know me know this is a very rare thing! I am very proud of myself and feel like I accomplished something major. If you are not impressed by the pictures, don't tell me!

a REAL sewing machine

Here it is - my new sewing machine! It seriously rocks my world! I've been sewing on it since Tuesday and I haven't had a single knot in the bobbin thread or a broken top thread or anything else that my other machine did on an hourly basis. It's amazing. And as you can see it is seriously sturdy and that makes me happy!

WARNING!

DO NOT BUY a Singer Inspiration (any of them!) sewing machine!! It WILL break and you WILL spend lots of money having it repaired. I'm seriously thinking about boycotting anything made in China.

Sewing Machine Update

Ahhh. Sigh. Deep breath. Inhale slowly....exhale slowly. This is what I have been doing for the past 24ish hours to keep myself sane. I took the machine to the Singer repair shop in town and I knew I had problems the moment I saw the look on the guys face when I uncovered my machine and he saw what model it was. Apparently Singer just started with these "bottom of the line" machines and they aren't even made by Singer -- they are made FOR Singer in... you guessed it...CHINA. Basically they are pieces of crap and everyone is having serious issues with them. All the parts for them are made in China too. Yay. It would cost me $69 plus the cost of parts to have it repaired (every single time it needs repairing!) so if I have to have it serviced twice (which is very likely) I would have spent as much repairing it as I paid for the piece of crap in the first place! Enter deep breaths and Excedrin.

This was a very teachable moment for me. I have learned the importance of research. I spent all of last night and this morning reading reviews of machines and testing them out at the shop and decided to purchase a new Singer CG-500. There is nothing fancy about it - no 2,394,812 stitches or bells and whistles - but it is COMMERCIAL grade and is what is used in schools so it is made to run 6+ hours a day and last for 25+ years. Surely this can handle my sewing. Surely. Please Lord! Also - the base is metal and it reminds me a lot of the the machine I learned how to sew on (my mom's 1970-something old hoopty) so I feel comfortable with it already.

OK - so I think I might be a little overwhelmed. I realized this just now as I was emailing myself some ideas and a To-Do list because I'm afraid I won't be able to remember it all by the time I get home from work (I'm a nanny, and keeping up with a 3 year old boy and 5 year old girl can make you a little nutty!). I find it absolutly crazy and sad that I just had to email something to MYSELF!

On top of all the stuff I need to go out and buy for The Show (that is quickly approaching), my sewing machine has stubbornly decided to stop sewing and only make a terrible motor-burning-out-ish noise. I nearly threw it out the window (that is one thing I love about our apartment - there is always a window handy for throwing things out!!), but my husband managed to convince me that in the long run I probably wouldn't feel any better when the smashed up machine had to be completely replaced by a brand new machine (by the way - this machine was just purchased in early June!!). Needless to say the machine didn't plummet to its death and remained on the third floor until I carried it safely downstairs and put it in the car to take to the local Singer shop. Hopefully it won't cost me $100 to repair a machine that only cost me $160 in the first place!

It is very frustrating to have a broken machine when you have tons of ideas and little projects in your head. Of course I am feeling uber creative right now while I am 20 minutes from home relishing every moment of "Quiet Time" (aka nap time). Lord willing my machine will be up and running again this evening and I won't have to go broke to get it fixed! I'll go crazy if I can't sew SOON!

Birthday in LA

As mentioned before, we had a small shindig for my birthday at my grandmother's house while we were home in Louisiana. DD (the grandmother!) got my some pinking shears! I was excited! I also got lots of little sewing things that I have been needing but didn't want to go spend money on. . . buying fabric is SO much more fun than buying tailor's chalk and bobbins!! Ignore the date on the picture - -my camera's acting up.

Hobby Lobby coupons

Hobby Lobby's coupon of the week is 40% off any one item of regular price. This makes me almost giddy with joy because I have been waiting and waiting for them to give a coupon for ANY item and since it is my birthday week I get to go and buy a rolling cart thingamabob for my sewing machine. Yay! I just wanted to share the love. Go to http://www.hobbylobby.com/ and click on coupons/specials and you can print it out. It's good until the 8th (my b-day) and you can print and use as many as you want - just one per day per customer. I may be making multiple trips to the ol' HL this week!

Louisiana Trip

OK -- as you can see there has been no improvement on the cuteness of this blog thus far. BUT - thanks to my wonderful and super talented friend, Zach, that will change in the very near future. In the meantime though, I will continue to post and you and I will just have to deal with the blandness and look forward to the facelift.=)

Justin and I are at my parent's house on the lake in Louisiana for the Labor Day weekend. We are buying my dad's truck and spending some time with them. We are also celebrating my 24th birthday (which isn't until NEXT Saturday, but I won't be with them then so we are celebrating now). I love birthdays! They are wonderful!

As far as MoonPie Designs goes, I have a show set for the beginning of October that is keeping me very busy and, I must admit, a little stressed. My inventory was pretty much wiped out after my last trip to Louisiana in July (thanks to my wonderful family who loves everything that I do!) so I am having to work extra hard to build it back up. I'm also adding several new goodies so that is exciting (and again, stressful!). I'll have pictures up of some stuff soon (also thanks to Zach).

Trial Run

Well I have succumbed to the temptation of this whole "blogging" thing. This is probably a terrible idea, but don't you just love those?=) I say that it is a terrible idea because I already spend entirely too much time reading other artsy blogs and now that I have my own I may never have a clean house again! Nevertheless I am going to see how this goes. Hopefully MoonPie Designs (my fledgling creative sewn gifts business) will get some good publicity now. I'm off to figure out how to make this thing cuter...wish me luck!