I have the coolest friends (Mod Podge Rocks)

I really have the coolest friends. And some of them have come to me through this blog... Like Amy, from ModPodgeRocks ... We've actually been able to meet in person after months of emails, but via email and blogs, she and I have become creative pals... And I think we both have something for giving and mailing gifts... Because I love sending her stuff (we met when she won a giveaway) and look what came in the mail today! My little wheels are turning... Chalkboard paint? Extreme Glitter Paint (in red, of course!)??? Outdoor Mod Podge? And Picture This Transfer Medium? Fabric iron on transfers? Oh man, the pressure is ON! (I didn't even realize Plaid made all this stuff)...
I'll keep you posted on what comes from this fun care package... And since my pal Amy, like me, is a huge polka dot fan, I'll make sure to include some of those in the ensuing projects. (awesome) I'll have to
be peeking over at her blog for some ideas and inspiration - 2 things she's never short on...
Thanks Amy!!!

More Handmade Scrappy Journals.

I love these journals. And I'm picky about journals. I fill up at least 4-6 journals and sketchbooks a year and I have a collection of both used and unused journals waiting their turn to be used... But now that I'm making these, the other ones are put on hold.

I've been making them for a while, but now they're cuter, a standard size, with nicer grommets, and bigger book rings. After using these the last year, here's why I like them better than my other (waiting) journals:

1 - They're sturdy
2 - They lie flat when you are drawing, writing, etc... and they fold back, too
3 - They're refillable. Don't like what you made? need a piece of scratch paper? These are not fussy. Refill it with some other fancier - or less fancy paper.
4 - They're cute. (some of them even have pen pockets now)
5 - They're scrappy and GREEN and we all know how much I love to use my scraps.
6 - They make great gifts. (I think I've given over 25-30 as gifts)

I've recently made a whole new batch and have put a few of them tonight on etsy.

What I'm wearing for Mother's Day

You know I wear Libby Dibby wrap skirts for pretty much every holiday, right? This Mother's Day, I'm not... I splurged, and used up all my gift certificates yesterday and got this PRETTY dress at Anthropologie... Oh, it's so pretty... (sigh)
J's reaction? "yummy"
:)

2 days left to enter the Fierce Handbag free giveaway

Dont forget about the bag giveaway!
You've got until May 6 to enter... Comment on the blog post here:
http://libbydibbystuff.blogspot.com/2010/04/i-have-coolest-friends-fierce-handbags.html

More pouches...

This is proof that I am certifiable, i think. Last week, my pal Amy - of Mazie Kane (www.maziekane.etsy.com) came over for a one-on-one sewing tutorial. It was a kind of crazy day as I spent the morning sewing with her and then the evening with four other women who I taught to make the Lazy Days (link later) skirt so we could make them to send to Haiti (all said and done we made 18). So what did I do in the in between time? I made these. And the front one... Oy, I couldn't bear to throw away those beautiful scraps and then made this pouch. Now I've been carrying it around for 3 days trying to figure out what to put in it. Yup, definitely I'm nuts.

Here's why I don't get much computer time during the day

Well, actually, I get exactly 1/2 hour, since that's how long a tv show lasts... As soon as that's over... "Momma! I need lots of kisses. I want to sit on your lap!!!"
(ps... Don't forget the giveaway!)

Mother's Day Alert...

Did you realize that we've got just over a week before Mother's Day arrives?
I don't know about you, but Mother's Day is a working holiday around our house. J is usually in the season of delivering season finales of the TV shows he works on and has even had to skip out in the middle of Mother's Day dinner to go work. I earn my salt as a mom on Mother's Day - (**please don't mistake this as griping... my man does his BEST to treat me well in May as soon as the TV season is over... remember how he took me to Italy last year? Here's 2 pics to show I AM NOT COMPLAINING)

...but - in addition to often having the kids mostly on my plate for Mother's Day... I also get lots of last minute requests for the hand stamped charms... Daddies asking me if I can ship to them via Express Mail on the Friday before Mother's Day... or random people asking me to drive all over LA to meet them with orders.

And because I am me, I always am hand-making something for ALL the moms in our family - including my sister and sis in law - since we all celebrate together.
So .. here's my own warning to myself... and also to you...

MOTHER'S DAY IS COMING!

Don't forget to do something special for MOM!

I have the coolest friends - Fierce Handbags (and giveaway)

I've known the awesome couple behind these new bags for years and this is a new venture for them, so I am super excited to introduce you to Fierce Handbags... the brain-child of my pals, Chris and Niki.

We have many impromptu Saturday morning breakfasts with their family and recently they started picking my brain about a new line of purses Chris was making made of duct tape. Not ones to make anything that's already out there, Chris has designed his own styles and he handmakes these bags the way a man's man would... with baling wire and grommets to keep the bag's shape - "fierce" colors that suit Niki's wild colorful style and great details to boot. Niki kept getting - in their words - "stalked" for her bag, so to keep his lovely wife safe (yuk yuk) he opened his etsy shop!

When I ordered mine, of course it HAD to be in red and white... I mean, their whole deal is that you get to pick from a bunch of colors and pretty much style it as you like... so I requested "mostly red" with touches of white that could pass for squarish polka dots (teehee). The extra white stripe on the flap was his idea, I'm glad it's there - it made for a nice balance.

Can I tell you I have gotten STOPPED for this purse. Everyone wants to know where I got it, what is it made of, how can they get one??? So I've been pressuring Chris to get that etsy site  up and running as soon as possible and now it is and you too can order and wear your very own Fierce Handbag.  You know you think it's cute and you how much are you wanting to design one for yourself, too?

Oh, and in case you are wondering, mine was the biggest size handbag. I'm kind of a big bag girl these days. Niki - who is also a mom of two carries the smaller handbag as her purse. So head on over to their site. The bags are super well made (s-t-r-o-n-g) and you'll be supporting an awesome family... tell them I sent you and when they pass on that info to me... I'll send you a free gift from me to say thanks for supporting my pals!

To win a clutch of your color choice, post a comment here saying which bag is your favorite, which colors you'd choose and how you'd design it... One lucky person will get a clutch... my treat.
ENTER by May 5 at midnight.

Skirts for Haiti

I had 4 girlfriends over tonight to sew skirts to send with my friend Suzie when she goes to Haiti next week. We made 15 skirts tonight... Complete with lots of little girl details like pockets, appliqué, ribbons and beads... I hope the little friends love them and can feel pretty and know we are sending our love...

(I'm so glad that Sewing Seeds gave me this idea last year!)

Life gives lemons

Ever since our lemonade stand, I've been wanting fresh squeezed lemonade... Something I'm a huge fan of... So when I saw my in-laws neighbor had a tree that was overflowing with more lemons than anyone could possibly consume, I "offered to take some off their hands"... We were given permission and Z and I went today to fill up a bag of happy yellow goodness. Yay!