Beware: Extreme Sweetness Ahead!!!!

Well Hello, Sweets! It's so lovely to see you!

First of all, I know I've been remiss with blogging and just terrible at serving up your Yummies each Monday. It's been crazy here. Last week I worked on orders, my husband went backpacking, I worked on some of the sweet treats I'm going to share with you today and worked on the new website a bunch. We spent some time with our families, I broke down and bought some jean shorts even though I really DID take to heart Oprah's advice that no one over 21 or something like that should EVER wear shorts! I went antique shopping and crafted with Analise a couple times in the last couple of weeks, ordered loads of new fabrics, hung out with my friend, Marianna, who is visiting from Indiana and took care of a sick Baby! Phew!!!!

Anyway, all this to say, I'm here today, and I'm SO TOTALLY EXCITED about showing off some new, very yummy things I've been so anxious to share with you! Although this won't be the traditional Yummies shopping trip I usually take you on, what you'll see will definitely be yummy and I hope you'll enjoy it.

First off, the very talented Ingrid Riley of Cherry Tree Graphics of finished my website design and I've been happily adding products, slowly but surely, to the site! I finally got the cart working this morning so you can actually begin to order things from the site. There will be new products added all the time, but for now I've got most of what I've been selling in my etsy fabric store loaded on the site! I am IN LOVE WITH my new logo, the "free shipping" graphic that Ingrid made and just the whole "feel" of the site....even better than what I was hoping for! Check it out when you get a moment!

Now the next exciting thing I want to share with you is something that's been awhile in the works and I've been just chomping at the bit to show you it!!! It's an exciting collaboration with a lovely, lovely artist and friend that has me just thrilled to pieces...

But first let me introduce you to my friend....

Meet Donna "Cookie" Gotlib. I found her etsy shoppe awhile back when I was looking for some unique offerings for my new website. I want to carry more than just fabric and I'm so excited about the products I've discovered. But while I was poking around on etsy, I came across Cookie Sunshine, a charming etsy shoppe full of the most whimsical and delightful drawings by the very talented Donna "Cookie" Gotlib. Here are just a couple of my very favorites!

"Dancing on a Cupcake"

"The Cupcake Lady"

"The Cupcake Purse"

And though I adore these drawings, you should know that Donna draws more than just cupcake-related things! You can find dozens of equally darling and magical drawings and prints in her etsy shoppe HERE.

So back to my excitement news....I've been searching high and low for the perfect patterns to sell on my website. I've found several really wonderful quilting-type patterns but so far, had not found any embroidery patterns that were quite right for my aesthetic. But when I saw Donna's cupcake-related drawings and some of the sewing-related drawings, I KNEW I had found the kind of whimsy and sweetness that I have been looking for in embroidery patterns. So I wrote her, asked her if she had ever thought of turning her incredible drawings into embroidery patterns. She said she'd thought about it but hadn't done so yet and what did I have in mind?

Fast-forward to now.... Donna and I are simply THRILLED about our new collaboration. I am helping Donna turn her amazing illustrations into some wonderful embroidery patterns! These patterns are so incredibly delicious and fun! We are still about a week or two away from releasing the first pattern for sale but we simply MUST show you what that first pattern will be....

Ta-dah!!!!

Do you recognize the sweet lady I've embroidered? Yes....scroll back up to my favorite Cookie Sunshine drawings until you see "The Cupcake Lady." Yup. That's her! Isn't she SWEET? I had such fun embroidering her and making the embroidery into a yummy wall-hanging in all the scrumptious fabrics from my etsy fabric store. One or two of these photos will be on the front of the first pattern and in the pattern you will find the drawing to transfer to fabric, a full set of instructions, some basic embroidery-stitch instructions and even some tips about how to create the wall-hanging I made out of "The Cupcake Lady."

Now you know why I've been all in a tizzy! Just so much fun and there's so much more where that came from! Donna Gotlib and I will be releasing 4 more patterns in the next couple months and you are going to LOVE them. Donna will be designing the motifs, I will be embroidering them and designing something as a sample of what you can do with the patterns, writing the instructions and Donna and I will be selling the patterns. I'm going to be carrying the patterns in my fabric etsy shoppe as soon as they are available for purchase and you will of course find the full line of patterns on my website when it goes live!

In the meantime, go and visit the charming Donna, the imagination behind these drawings and embroidery patterns, over at her Cookie Sunshine blog where you'll find so much more charm, whimsy and fun!

O.k. so now for my next yummy and exciting reveal...

Well I have to say....I TRIED....really, I did....to save these for the grand opening of our website, later in the month. But I just couldn't! They are just so yummy and fun that I had to share them with you now. :)

Introducing "Just Baked" Cupcakes by Confections Fabric!

If you've been visiting here for awhile, you probably know that I have a serious fabric addiction. Specifically, I love to see coordinating fabric piled on top of each other....and it's just simply YUMMY. Hence the name of my blog and soon-to-be website. But for some time now, I've been working out how to make some ACTUAL CUPCAKES out of yummy fabric....a true "confection" you can hold in your hand, even if you don't sew. :) You should see the prototypes that are now officially my girls' toys! Woooo-eeeee....not so cute! So just like any baker of edible confections, I've refined my "baking" techniques, tweeked this and that until I came up with this recipe! Each one of these yummy confections has been handmade from our own pattern and is sure to delight. In the yummiest fabrics we could find, our cupcakes feature handmade mini yo-yo's and a unique ingredient from our favorite bits and bobs: hand-embroidered buttons, vintage millinery flowers, bling, buttons and more.

Each cupcake measures approximately 4" high and the base is about 3" in diameter. The base is reinforced for sturdiness and to keep it "standing" when it's on display.

If you'd like to sample some of my yummy "Just Baked Cupcakes," head on over HERE! Get 'em while they're hot, Sweets!

And while we're talking about cupcakes, I have to show you the little gifts I made for my husband's cousin's baby shower yesterday! I got this cupcake fabric in and I'm IN LOVE with it. Isn't it perfect for sweet little "duds" for the yummy new arrival?? It's a little drawstring bag with a bundle of burp cloths, a little bib and a onesie (not shown). Then I used one of the cupcakes to make a frou-frou-glitter tag that the new Mama just loved!

Now I know you're on a bit of a sugar high but before you collapse onto the sofa in a sugar coma, I simply must show you one more thing.

Look what my friend, Pat, sent me as a house-warming gift! She said she saw it and KNEW I had to have it. This darling tray was made by La Rea Rose. I just adore it. I have it in my studio but the spot where I have it hanging doesn't have good light so I've hung it in the studio window where the light is better. Isn't it adorable??? Thank you, Pat, for the lovely gift, and thank you to La Rea Rose for making such a lovely tray!

Well Sweets....that's it for today! Hope you had as much fun as I did. Have a lovely week!

Love and Hugs,

Cheryl