Sugar and Spice and Everything....Pink!

I know every mother says this or something like it every year, but even so, it must be said....

HOW IS IT POSSIBLE MY BABY IS SIX????

But it's true! Our Sweet Miss Emily is six years old today. And what a beautiful six she is! I am so glad she was born six whole years ago. What a treat she is! Anyone who knows her knows she has had a personality and a half since before she could speak. She knows her mind...and so does everyone else! She is so bright and smart. She is very sweet and kind...I still remember her toddling away from me at just over a year to comfort a much-older child at the park who had fallen and hurt himself. She had real concern on her tiny face and pushed past the child's mother to try to hug him!

Here she is this morning at the breakfast table. Now Grammy (my Mama), if you're reading this, take a deep breath....this is not normal breakfast here! The child has never had sugar cereal before today. Not to say she doesn't eat sugar but we haven't ever bought sugar cereal before now. She got to pick her own birthday breakfast at the store and this is what she picked. O.k. that being said....here's The Birthday Girl!

I made her a little "tiara" (this is no Holly Doodle tiara, mind you, but Emily swooned over it!) and she got to open one gift....

What is it?

It's a beautiful "Cupcake" pendant from Reminisce Heirlooms! Tabetha, you outdid yourself! It's just darling!

And it even comes in a little cupcake paper! TOO CUTE!!!

Emily loved it,

of course!

And now for the sugar....look away, Grammy!!!!

Teeny-tiny cupcakes since it IS a school morning...and her Grandma Dack is her teacher this year!

Happy Birthday, My Sweet Girl!

Monday means YUMMIES!

Well Good Morning Bloggy Friends! You know what today is, don't you? It's Monday! And though that means all manner of bleary eyes, downcast faces and nastiness of all sorts, here it means.....YUMMIES!

Today I've got a special treat for you...I've engaged this delicious little pink dream of a scooter for our trip today! Isn't it SWEET?? It was the most awful, boring black and I painted it up for you in this yummy pink hue...

I will have to ask you to wear this little number...but it won't be TOO terribly painful, will it??? It IS awfully cute!

O.k. hop on! And away we go!

YUMMY THINGS ONE AND TWO: Lovely Vintage-Inspired Art by Moss Hill Studios

I really admire the work of Moss Hill Studios and these two collages are just AMAZING. My favorite is the first one, "Tattered Threads "...look at the vintage linen on the edge!

I really like this one, as well...

"Heavenly LOVE Nest"

These collages end VERY SOON, so if you're interested in them, hurry on over there and snap them up! And she has a blog, too...full of MORE yummies!

YUMMY THING THREE: Pink Confections by

Icing on the Cake

Sweet Karin of Creative Chaos recently opened an etsy shoppe that is just SCRUMPTIOUS! If you haven't seen it yet, check it out! Try to pick just one favorite....see how much trouble I had!!!

Dream in Pink collage

and Vintage Pink Floral Notebook

YUMMY THING FOUR: Sweet Pink DOLLS sign

Etsy seller, littlebrownhouse
sells handmade signs like this one and I just love how they look like they've been around for ages! In case you forgot or are new to my blog, my line of girls' clothing is called DOLL! http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=5253096is perfect for my studio, don't you think?

And speaking of DOLLS :) my newest fabric heirloom album, "My Own Sweet Doll," is up for auction on eBay...just a few days to go!

Well this has been fun, hasn't it? Thank you, Sweets, for coming along with me! Hope your day is full of yumminess, even if you have to MAKE IT yourself!

Weekend Fun!

Lots of fun things to show you today, My Bloggy Friends!

First, I get to show you the cards and tags I made for my swap partner, Becca, since she received them and now I can't spoil the surprise!

Next....I just can't wait till Monday to show you one of THE YUMMIEST THINGS I have ever seen.....EVER!!!! My friend, Jennifer, of Sweet Eye Candy Creations (I showed you her dear little birdy boxes last Monday, remember?) just revealed an EXQUISITE shadowbox she was comissioned to make by an Italian art collector many of you may have heard of named Rosanna. I am absolutely WOWED by Jennifer's work....

This is my favorite little element....if I HAD to pick!;)

See more details and read all about this lovely confection on Jenn's blog here.

In other news, I've been tagged by Angelina of RetroWhimsy Greetings.
This will be fun! Here we go:

4 Jobs I've Had:

- Retail at a children's boutique (college)
- Writing Tutor and T.A. for my Women's Studies professor (college)
- Copywriter for Ad. Dept. of local department store
- Writing/editing for a couple online boutiques

4 Films I would watch over & over:

- "You've Got Mail"
- "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (old Audrey Hepburn AND the newer Julia Ormond versions)
- "The Devil Wears Prada"
- Newest version of "Pride & Prejudice"


4 Places I have lived:

- Guadalajara, Mexico
- Ukarumpa, Papaua New Guinea
- Columbia, South Carolina
- Fresno, California


4 Favorite TV Shows:

- Grey's Anatomy
- Desperate Housewives
- The Bachelor
- OPRAH!!


4 Favorite Foods:

- Homemade ice cream
- Cereal (all kinds!)
- These incredible sandwiches my husband makes that have turkey, mont. jack, cream cheese, bacon and avacado on soudough....even better when accompanied by steak fries!!!
- My grandmother's dressing


4 Websites I visit everyday:

- my own
- etsy
- my blog friends
- eBay


4 Places I love to be:

- in my house ALONE when my husband or MIL have my kids
- the fabric store
- antique stores
- with my family during the holidays

4 Favorite Colors:

- light pink
- white-I know it is not a color but I love it.
- light sage green
- ivory


4 Names I love but wouldn't use for my children:

- Jack (sounds odd with our last name....Dack)
- Kirwin ( a great-great uncle's name I've always liked)
- Eleanor
- Clara

Now I'm tagging Becca, Linda and my sister, Ray!

And now some piccys from last night at my parents' house...

I'm a Brownie...Who Knew?

You Are a BrownieDecadent and intense, you aren't for the weakhearted.Those who can deal with your strong flavor find out how sweet you really are.
What Dessert Are You Most Like?

"My Own Sweet Doll"

My own sweet dolls...

I can hardly believe this was nearly a year ago! My sweet girls were Angelina & Alice for Halloween...one of my favorite piccys of them to date, as this is just so "typical" of each of them!

It's these sweet girls that inspired my latest creation....

"MY OWN SWEET DOLL"

"My Own Sweet Doll" is a vintage-inspired album handmade from fabric, vintage images on fabric, vintage tatting and trims, vintage child's collar and so many other incredible details! This album was created to be an heirloom....a place to keep treasures that are special to our little girls. Cards, pictures, photographs and even small objects will fit perfectly in the pockets of this over-the-top sweet fabric book. Imagine your daughter thumbing through this with HER daughter, looking at all her childhood treasures!

The "cover" is made out of a rich, quilted Durham rose fabric and features incredible scalloped edges. The inside "pages" are fashioned from linen, barkcloth and even vintage linens! Incredible embroidery is seen througout, some of it hand-embroidered by me and some vintage.

Included with this book are all the sweet offerings you see in the photos...
~a tiny vintage bisque doll in her original pink frock
~ 2 large unused vintage baby cards
~ sweet "Encore" vintage card (don't miss her glittery dress!)
~ 3 "doll" tags made of wood and decopauged

Also included is a custom-created personalization of this book. One way this book could be customized is for me to embroider your daughter's name on the front of the book. Another option would be for you to email me a photo of your daughter that you'd like printed on fabric and then sewn into the book.

Also, if you are interested in commissioning me to make a custom book for you or a loved one, please contact me, as I ADORE doing custom projects! :)

Here's a few photos of the details, but this is just a PEEK...so be sure to go check out my auction for ALL the piccys!

The Sweetest Things...

Hello, Sweet Friends o' Mine! I have oh-so-many yummy things to share with you today! Are you ready? Pull a chair up, don that sweet little pink bib I've laid out for you (that's vintage quilted satin, mind you!), pick up your pink-handled ice cream spoon and here we go!
First off...




























Remember this little fabric book I made a few weeks ago? The lovely Amy of Inspire Co. bought it and I embroidered the cover per her request. I just LOVED her idea..."The Sweetest Things"...isn't that just darling? Read what she's going to use this little book for here.


And look what I have for sale in my etsy shoppe! Something similar to Amy's book but with a little vintage fairy twist...

A little whimsically-sweet book for your whimsically-sweet thoughts and ideas. And I

will personalize this book for you (my treat!) in any way you would like!

All made from fabric, this little book is sure to be a keepsake. Features lots of little pockets (I've told you I'm a compartment/container/pockets, fiend, haven't I??) for holding the ATC cards I'm including with this book (also made by me) or whatever little snippets or supplies you would like to keep in them.


Here's some more pages...pockets galore and lots of vintage images on fabric, rhinestones and vintage laces and trims!


The spine of this book is my favorite part...tulle, ribbon, fibers, buttons, beads and baubles!








Don't miss the fairy and wand charms hanging at the bottom...

Some sweet details....

Vintage image of a doll embroidered to vintage image of a butterfly...plus hand-beading on the wings! If you are interested in this little bookie, pop on over to my etsy shoppe!

Also in my etsy shoppe today, a Pink Fairy and her Pink Bird companion...both wooden tags decopauged and embellished.

And look at these delicious treats! These were made for me by the darling Becca of Of Bluebirds and Roses for Angelina's Christmas in July Card & Tag Swap! Boy did I get lucky! Aren't these just lovely?



Here are the tags Becca made...

And here are the cards! Notice the hand-painted envelopes and the details she added to the cards....incredible!!!!

Thank you so much, Sweet Becca! Your swappies are on their way to you! I can't wait for you to see them...I had such fun with this swap!

Well, Sweeties....thanks for popping in today to enjoy some Sweet Treats with me...there'll be more tomorrow...I have almost finished the Quote Contest winners' little gifts and I can't wait to show them off!

Because Nice Matters!

This morning over coffee I was just delighted to find that I'd been nominated for the "Nice Matters" award by Linda of Lilly Cottage and by Betty of She's Sew Pretty! What NICE friends both Linda and Betty are and honestly, if they hadn't nominated ME, I'd have nominated THEM! It seems that the way this works is that I now get to nominate 5 others for this award and get to bestow this lovely upon them as it was bestowed upon me..."Because Nice Matters"!

For my five nominations I am choosing the following five ladies as nominees:

~ Jennifer of Sweet Eye Candy Creations...

Jennifer you are a sweetie and one of the NICEST people I have ever encountered! I am so delighted to have found you and call you "friend!"

~ Cathy of ...

What a lovely soul you are! I know I've told you but I will say it again...your creations are so full of YOU...so heartfelt and even poetic. And on top of it, you are as nice as nice can be!

~ Allison of Sugar Plums...

You, my sweet friend, are ever so nice and I'm happy that I met you and that we have remained friends all this time! You are a wonderful mama, a talented designer and SUCH a nice girl to know! And you're lavender vanilla body butter is VERRRRRYYY nice! (she sells it, girls, so ask her about it...it's my fav!)

~ Lauren of Speckled Nest...

Ever since I caught my first glimpse of you in your cubicle, talking to a buyer, I knew right away you were NICE. What I didn't know is that we would become fast friends and would still be friends nearly seven years later! You are one of the reasons I have found the courage to take "crafting" seriously and THE reason I found the blogging community and have so happily joined it! You are one of the nicest people I know, Lauren, and I just know we will be friends for a long, long time.

~ Kari of ArtsyMama...

Kari, I don't know you personally but I read your blog daily and am always so blown away by your artistic talent and even MORE by your patience, positive attitude and quiet strength in the face of challenges. Your babies are so blessed to have you as a Mama, Kari, and they will "rise up and call you blessed," even if it's not today! Your heart shines through your posts and I am inspired by what I see. "Nice" is not quite the word for you, but only because it doesn't even come close to describing the generosity of spirit that is in every post and every creation.

Let's all be NICE today...I'm going to go start by hugging on my girlies who I have just shushed in a rather mean tone since Baby is napping...see how nice I am???? ;)