Sunday 6 November 2011

Off the Hook!

My friend recently saw my daughter's owl hat and asked me to make her an earflap hat, and a matching pair of mittens.  Using the knowledge that I gained making my daughter's hat, I adapted an adult earflap pattern!  Then we scoured Etsy for a great mitten pattern.  I love how they came out!


But I think they look much better in action!


We went to the park to test them out.  They were warm and comfy.  Yay!


The pattern I used for the mittens is Ladies Wool Mittens from knot sew cute design shop.  She has lots of great patterns, including these adorable little Felted Baby Button Boots!  She was also so quick to help me out when I had a question.  Thank you Kim for helping me make my first pair of mittens!

Sunday 23 October 2011

Mama's Random Fluff n' Stuff

I recently decided to sponsor a couple of giveaways for the very first time.  I had a post on my facebook page inquiring whether I would be interested in sponsoring a giveaway.  I had never really thought about it before, but I decided that since I enjoy crafting, why not whip something up and support a WAHM?  I got right to work crafting this adorable headband, which will be given away at A Pocket Full of Sunshine Boutique in their 1000 fan giveaway.  The giveaway starts Monday, October 24 and will run for a week. 


After making the headband, I was feeling pretty good about my decision to donate to a giveaway, so I decided to get in on sponsoring another giveaway.  It was starting right away at Super Awesome Freeibies and Samples.  I had less time to prepare for this giveaway, so I thought about it and remembered that I have a small stock pile of hemp necklaces that I made a few years ago.  In my stock I found this awesome necklace to giveaway!


Within minutes of the giveaway opening, the entries started rolling in.  Along with the entries came so many kind comments like, "Definitely love this! =)" and " I LOVE this!! It is so perfect!!♥" and "It's a very unique piece, it reminds me of celestial bodies revolving in the universe.....WOW, THAT WAS DEEP!! ( But I really do like it.)"  The giveaway ends on October 25, and I'm super excited to hear from the lucky new owner of this necklace!

All of the kind comments I got about my jewelry boosted my confidence level, which inspired me to try something I've never done before. I decided to open up an etsy shop.  As you may already know, I enjoy doing a variety of crafts that range from sewing to crochet, and so much more.  I'll try pretty much anything, and when something works out great, I'll go on a crafting spree and make way more necklaces, headbands, hats, ect. than I could ever need or use.  I love sharing my work with others, so this will be the perfect opportunity to take advantage of my crafting sprees.

I definitely have fears, but I feel exhilarated.  I've been working pretty hard the last few days to get myself organized.  I realize that I'm taking on a lot, having only a month to go before I have a newborn and trying to get a business off the ground, however, I'm confident that with your kind words and support that I will be able to make this work.

In opening a shop, I hope to be able to forge new relationships with other WAHMs.  I'd love to hear your stories, so please feel free to post them in the comments section. I want to know how you decided to start your business, and about all the fears and problems you faced along the way.  I love hearing about how successful small businesses are built.

I think my favorite aspect about this new venture is the all the possibilities.  Above everything else, I really just want to love what I do.  I don't want to go back to a meaningless job in a few years down the line when my kids go to school.  I want to make new friends, create, and have fun, and be able to call it my job!

Thank you to everyone for your support!  I really can't say this enough.  If it weren't for all of you, I wouldn't have even thought about embracing this opportunity.  I look forward to providing you all with the very best service and handmade items I can!  Here is a link to my new shop, Mama's Random Fluff n' Stuff.  I will be stocking the shop randomly starting this week.  Please like my new business page on facebook to be the first to see previews, and to know when new listings and items are added.

Friday 14 October 2011

Adventures in Crocheting

I have what I've heard people refer to as "Crafter's ADD."  I switch between different crafty obsessions constantly.  Last year I decided to learn how to crochet.  I watched some videos on Youtube to get the basics, then I used a couple free patterns and made a hat and set of thumb-less mittens for my then 8 month old daughter.  My next crochet project was to be an owl hat.  But then I got distracted by sewing.  Now I'm expecting a new baby in November and I want to make my daughter and the new baby matching hats, so here we go again!

I purchased this owl hat pattern from Inner Hooker.

I have to say that as a beginner, this pattern was incredibly easy to follow!  I made my daughters owl hat, now I just need to get on to making one for the new baby.  I hope to improve on my techniques with weaving the ends in and sewing on the features a little bit with this next hat.  I truly don't know what I'm doing, but somehow I was able to make an adorable hat anyways!




If you have been considering giving crochet a go, I highly recommend just jumping right in.  It may look intimidating at first, but you will be amazed at what you can create if you just try it!

Tuesday 27 September 2011

Ever Sew Clever - Good Things Come in Small Packages!

I went for a walk to pick up the mail this morning, and when I opened up my mail box there was a small package in there waiting for me. I looked at the shipping label, and when I saw what it said I jumped for joy! The bowl covers that I ordered for my MIL for Christmas have arrived!!

As soon as I got home I opened them up to take a look. Of course I immediately had to put them on my mixing bowl set to try them out. Never mind my gorgeous "vintage" table. ;)


The print on these bowl covers is a cotton woven, and the inner lining is made with food safe and water resistant, nylon ripstop. The stitching around the elastic casing is very even and looks very professional.

I'm certain that my MIL is going to love these. They are so much better than the el cheapo, plastic shower cap looking, bowl covers.

Want to get some? Visit Ever Sew Clever's Etsy shop for custom bowl covers, snack bags and more! With nearly 200 fun fabrics to chose from, I know you'll find a print you love!

Monday 26 September 2011

Cloth Diapers!

I love cloth diapers. Seriously love them, might even be a little obsessed. I've been cloth diapering my 17 month old daughter since she was 4 days old. In that time, I've tried sooo many different kinds of diapers. I thought it would be fun to give a quick overview of all the different diapers I've tried and what worked best for us.

Pockets, AIOs, AI2s:


Bum Genius 3.0 with velcro - Love the fit of all my BG diapers. The velcro is great for babysitters, daddies and grandmas. Unfortunately the velcro on the 3.0s didn't hold up the greatest, so I need to whip out the velcro refresher kit that I got when I bought this dipe. We never get a leak with this diaper.

Bum Genius 4.0 with snaps - The snaps are awesome! You still get great fit because of the BGs stretchy tabs and 2 rows of snaps for the waist and leg. We never get a leak.

Bum Genius AIO sm. and md. - These take a bit longer to dry because they are AIOS, but you can turn them inside out to speed the process. Again, the velcro closure makes these super user friendly, and because they were used for a shorter period of time the velcro is still in great condition and ready to go for #2, due in November. The size small fit our daughter right away. She was 8lbs 5ozs. Again, never a leak.

Fuzzi Bunz Perfect size sm. and md. - These just didn't work for us. They always leaked out the legs because we just couldn't get the right fit. The medium still fits at 17 months and 25lbs, but we still experience leaks under clothes, so these are only for at home. I love the colors that these come in, they're so bright!

Sunbaby 4.0 - These are great value! The inserts aren't that absorbent, but we stuff them with prefolds and they work awesome. They have great prints, and they are affordable. I only have 2 right now, but I want more! They have waist and leg snaps to help you get the perfect fit. They are narrow through the crotch, so they are pretty trim under clothes.

Kawaii Snazzy Minky - These are so soft, and my daughter always reaches for them. She runs around the house with them and rubs them on her face and uses them as a pillow. They fit well, but they're kind of bulky for under clothes, so when we use them I just let her run around with no pants on. Then she can still feel how soft the minky is.

Tots Bots Easy Fit - I really like the idea of this diaper, but it just doesn't work for us. It doesn't have a stay dry liner, so we have to add in a fleece liner when we use it. It seems to chafe our daughters thighs (she has this problem with a few brands, so it's not just this diaper, I think she just has sensitive skin.) We also seem to get a bit of wicking at the legs with this diaper.

Cutiepoops - These are really cute, but with the all over print we get wicking. With the new style half print we don't get wicking, but these chafe our daughters thighs as well. Her one-size design features adjustable leg elastic instead of rise snaps, which is a really great feature.

Bebe Britches - I really love the fit we get with these, and of course they are super cute! Unfortunately, ruffled leg elastics also chafe our daughters thighs, so we can't wear them too often.

Doodle Dypes - Super cute, and I love that the soaker is contoured. Again, ruffled leg elastic, so we don't get to wear our Doodle too often.

Klbs Cozzy Bunz - The ruffled leg elastic seems a little bit gentler on our Klbs, maybe just because the outer fabric on this specific diaper is a knit. It came with an extra doubler which is great for older babies and heavy wetters.

Prefolds, Flats, Fitteds:

Bummis prefolds - I have the infant size and the regular size. I used the infant size for the newborn stage, now I use them to stuff Sunbabys. The regular size could be a bit wider IMO, it's hard to get a newspaper fold to have the wings reach around the front on a larger baby. The absorbency is good though.

Receiving blanket flats - This is so simple, and I LOVE it! We use these throughout the day at home without a cover for air out time. At night we use them with a trifolded prefold and the bamboo insert from our Cow Patties. She can sleep in this combo for 13 hours! We use wool over it and everything stays dry.

Kissaluvs fitted size 1 - For all the rave I'd heard about Kissas size 0, I thought I'd try the size 1. I wasn't impressed. Not even a little. The sherpa got rough after only a couple washings, it wasn't that absorbent, and it had too low of a rise to fit our daughter for up to the 15lb weight limit. Oh, and when I say not that absorbent, I mean one newborn pee and the thing felt like it was about to start dripping.

Motherease Sandys size 1 and 2 - I loved the size 1 Sandys right away. They fit as soon as the umbilical stump fell off. Now, just because they fit doesn't mean that they weren't incredibly bulky. They contained EBF poo very well, and I was happy with the absorbency in these. The side snapping worked great to get the right fit at the legs and waist. Now the size 2, on the other hand, we didn't get so much use out of. By the time our daughter fit these she was already beginning to get mobile. The serged legs irritated and chafed her thighs, so we didn't really use them. Also, by this age she was a bit more of a heavy wetter and the absorbency of the size 2s wasn't quite enough.

Cow Patties Famous Pocket Fitteds - I always recommend these to people who are looking for a great, but affordable night time fitted. They've definitely got what it takes to be an awesome night time diaper. The only issue I have with these is that they could use a higher rise.

Bububebe - These are the bomb for night time, and for under wool. They have customizable absorbency with snap in inserts. They are pretty expensive, but sometimes they come on sale, so scoop them up then! They are cute, they fit great, they are bullet proof. What more could you ask for in a fitted?

Covers:

Thirsties Duo wraps - Size 1 fit great from newborn. I loved these covers. They come in cute prints and great colors. They have a double leg gusset, which is a must for EBF poo. They covered any diaper that I tried to put them over very nicely. The size 2 seems to have a lot of extra fabric bulk. If I were to do it again I'd skip the size 2 and just get more Blueberry Coveralls.

Blueberry One-size Coveralls - These are great covers! They fit my daughter from newborn at 8lbs 5ozs, and they still fit at 17 months and 25 lbs. They have cute prints, double leg gussets, and great fit with snaps or velcro. The velcro is super strong, but also pretty scratchy. I prefer the snaps. The elastic around the leg gussets is smoother than the FOE on the thirsties gussets, and doesn't get damp feeling.

Bummis Super Whisper Wrap sm. - This is the only cover that I've tried and haven't liked. It doesn't have double leg gussets, so blow outs happened. It was also hard to cover a prefold at the legs, it definitely took a bit of extra work. I'm also not big on the prints that are available for the BSWW.


My go to diapers for the diaper bag are BG 3.0, 4.0, the BG AIOs(when they fit) and Sunbabys. If I know I'm not going to have a chance to change a diaper for possibly 4 hours or so I will use a Bububebe fitted with a Blueberry cover.

If we are chillin' at home I use receiving blanket flats and recycled wool longies. I have a pair that I made out of a 50 cent sweater that we can get super dirty then just wash in the machine and relanolize.

Everything else is either outgrown or only used occasionally. We will use the outgrown diapers on #2 due in November, with the exception of the Kissaluvs, which I sold because I really didn't find them worthwhile to keep.

I hope my experiences with these diaper brands have helped you make a decision in what might work best for you. :)

Friday 23 September 2011

Welcome!

Hello! Welcome to my new blog! I think I'll be using this blog mainly for reviews of products that I've tried, and sharing my excitement about great gifts that I've found for friends and family, but we'll see what else pops up! As this is still a very new blog, I will be slowly working on changing the appearance of it, so bare with me while I figure it all out. ;)

The main reason that I decided to start this blog and my new facebook page is because I kept finding all these WAHMs who make things that are totally awesome, and I wanted to share them. Most of my friends however, aren't into the same things that I am, so I decided instead of just posting to my personal facebook page and clogging up my friends newsfeeds that I would create a public page for people who are interested in the same things that I am. Enjoy!