Check out these darling paper wedding hankies from Eat Drink Chic.  Inspired by the screen printed hankies that have been popping up in  the wedding and design blogs, Amy Moss created this free downloadable stationary in the style of vintage hankies.  Brilliant!

You can download these sweet designs from Amy Moss right here.

I mean, there are other reasons why I know I'm kind of nerdy, but this is the most recent;  I saw this article in the Chicago Tribune today and got excited for the new edition of the Chicago Manual of Style.  Even though I'm not a writer, editor or publisher.  And even though I just improperly cited the title of the book.  And as long as we're out book shopping, I'd also like to pick up a copy of the DSMIV.

My office has been bugging me lately.  I spend a whole lot of time in here during the day, and I want it to be a happy place.  So I finally convinced my husband to hang up some new shelves from Ikea and paint the desks white.  I'm also working on decoupaging one of the big ugly cabinets with vintage fabric.  I'm telling you all of this only to lead me here:  having a newly painted desk now requires the usage of coasters for any of my many cups of coffee, tea, ice water (with a straw), or diet coke plus throughout the day.  And when I found these little lovelies from Uncommon, I knew they had to come live here in my office.  Laser engraved birch???  I kid you not.

They arrived just yesterday. And they're perfect!!


You can get some for yourself here (or maybe some of these, which I would also like).  And I think you should. 

ps: I promise to give you le grande tour of the office when I finally get around to making it look pretty.

Over the weekend, I finished up an order for all of these darling fabric garlands.  They went to the sweetest little children's shop in town.  If you know where I live and live nearby - and would like to see them yourself - check them out this weekend at Fall Fest - they'll be making the Lil' Surprises booth even more colorful than usual!

I used all sorts of gorgeous designer fabrics on these cutie pies (and made a large, though undetectable  dent in my fabric stash) and I just love each and every one of them.

I find it difficult to throw away even the tiniest fabric scrap when they're as pretty as these...

So I've been making tiny little things of out the tiniest little scraps...




Do you have any other suggestions for these sweet little scraps?  Would you like some of them?
Leave a comment telling me what you'd do with them and I'll send one person a package of pretty little scraps next Monday!

****
Sorry friends, I know I'm almost a week behind.  I won't bore you with excuses :)
I'm going to send the pack of happy scraps to a fellow Midwestern Sewing Girl.
Have a lovely week!

xoxo

Hi Friends.  I spent the weekend cutting and organizing fabric and sewing and packaging and taking pictures of fabric.  Check out my overly organized and nicely cut selection of vintage sheets (they didn't stay organized for long!):

And I was able to update my shop just in time for this month's Paper n Stitch exhibition.  Please come visit me there!


Today is my boy's 8th birthday, so I'm off for a day of ice cream and cupcakes!!  Have a lovely day!

Hello my sweets!  I'm off on a little adventure to Denver for the wedding of a dear family friend.    I have rented An Education for my iPhone for the plane ride, packed a book I've been waiting to read, and gathered embroidery projects to occupy any down time.  I think I'm all set!

In case you're interested, since I'm always such a style icon, I will be wearing this dress from Anthropologie - it's called Rising Battenberg, and it was a line by Anna Sui for Anthropologie.  They must've sold out quickly, though, because I can't even find the listing on the Anthro site to share with you :(



Anyhow... that's where I'll be this weekend:  escaping the sweltering Chicago heat to brave the equally sweltering Denver heat.  What about you? Are you on a strict popsicle diet to combat the heat?

Several of these custom pink and yellow garlands made their way to an amazing "Down on the Farm" birthday celebration by Send in the Clowns in California last week.  My garlands helped decorate the lemonade stand beverage stations - a collaboration of Sweets Indeed  and the super-talented team at Send in the Clowns!  Here's a couple peeks at my garlands in all their glory:

In the next two weeks, my 'babies' will turn 8 and 10 years old.  Not only is it hard to believe that I'm soon to be the mother of a ten-year-old, I just can't figure out where the time went.  They grow up so, so quickly.  Happy birthday to my brightest stars, my angel babies - I love you with all my heart!!

A new batch of vintage scalloped garlands... most have already been packed up and shipped out.  These babies are flying out of here like hotcakes.  I'm frantic because it seems like vintage sheets are getting harder and harder to find.  My husband says it's because I already bought all of them :)

I probably never told you about my little party planning business that I started several (okay, 7) years ago...  It was the perfect way for me to combine my love of party favors, event planning, design work, and jars full of candy!  I started the company with a friend, who eventually moved away, and our little business was too much for me to handle all by my lonesome.....


Recently, I was contacted by Marie, who owns a company in California called Sweets Indeed that epitomizes everything my little events company would have wanted to be when (if) it grew up.  Marie and her staff create The Most Amazing and elaborate candy and dessert stations I've ever seen.  Every tiny little detail is accounted for and executed with perfection.  And I was so thrilled that she asked me to create some custom scalloped garlands for this event hosted by Found Vintage Rentals (yet another dream job of mine!!) held on the 4th of July:

Looking at this photo makes me want to take a nap... ahhh those pretty linens!  But there's no nap in the cards for me today - we're in the full swing of summer over here at the HQ.  Swim lessons, gymnastics practice, and baseball games, plus I seem to be vacuuming the house three times a day and trying to fit in some design work.  What are you up to these days?

Cosa Verde is a juried online marketplace showcasing eco-friendly goods, and I'm so pleased to announce it's the latest place I've set up shop.  One of the things I love about Cosa Verde is that, for each new shop that opens it's doors on their site, they plant 10 trees.  And 10% of the fees I pay to maintain a shop there are designated for charity (in my case, The Hunger Project). Every little bit helps, right?  Browsing features on the site include categories like Organic, Reusable, Repurposed, Conflict-Free, Cruelty-Free, and Vegan. If you haven't browsed their marketplace yet, head on over and take a peek! If you're interested in opening your own Cosa Verde shop, please mention my name when you register.

I am so very happy to announce that my scalloped fabric garland is the giveaway today over at The Bright Side Project.  I have been a fan of the site since their launch last year, and adore their objective to bring a little sunshine to the world by offering themed giveaways each and every day.  Throughout the month of June, The Bright Side Project is celebrating Endless Summer,  featuring brands + artists that make you want summer to never end.  Wouldn't a lovely vintage scalloped garland brighten up your summer garden party?  Head over to the Bright Side Project to enter for a chance to win!