Update... giveaway...

um... Marisa? winner of the crazy bag? I have no idea how to reach you. If I don't hear from you before Jan 21... the bag will be going to another bloggy pal. Sorry!

Thanks for sharing, Courtney!

So, awesome reader Courtney, sent me some pics of her scrap box onesies... as inspired by the ones she'd seen here. Hooray! I love sharing the wealth (here's the link to that tutorial again)... and I love knowing that those scraps are being put to great use. remember Christy's? and Jill's?

I like how the paisley tie one looks a lot like the one I made for AJ... happy memories in this picture... (sigh)...

Thanks Courtney, for sharing the pictures and remembering how much I love seeing what everyone else is working on. (and thanks for the little postcard shout out in that first pic!)

New Sale Items on Etsy

This week is forecasted to be RAINY RAINY RAINY here in LA. Which means more movies for the kiddos and the chance to actually sit down at the computer during the day and get some sale items uploaded to my etsy shop. For those of you who don't live close enough (or do, but couldn't make it to the awesome Upscale Backyard Sale) - I've listed a number of the SUPER SALE skirts that I had out that beautiful sunny day in November.

These are the last of their kinds... many of them are discontinued patterns - or ones that never really sold. They're up in the shop now. If you've been waiting to snatch up a deal - or use up the last of your Christmas $$$, now's the chance.

Drawing time

Now that The design director is in school all day every day, we don't get art time like we used to. Just now she found a shading tool from my drawing supplies and asked what it was. (yay!) i took a few minutes to show her how fun a plain old pencil can be. (I drew my thumb as I leaned over her and we worked on the shading together.) we got to talk about observing light and dark, shadows, shading...
I love moments like this. She's busy now... Looking at everything a little closer and trying to draw and shade it all.

SEND your LOVE to HAITI

It feels so helpless to simply sit back and not do something when you hear news of what is happening in Haiti. Today, prompted in part by my daughter's school - and their efforts to raise every penny possible to send to Haiti relief - I've decided to do what I can do.

Remember the collages I did when I was grieving over AJ? I really needed some stability and the image of that mountain was really powerful for me. Today I've decided to make available some postcards and also high quality prints of the mountain collage. We had some of these made up and everyone in the family got them for Christmas, so I know they look great already... they're framed and up in each family member's home...So now on my etsy site, you can find packs of postcards, perfect for sending a little note (these work for men and women, unlike much of my stuff!). You can also find a listing for the archival print on high quality watercolor paper - suitable for framing. If you are interested, I can also get the print made on canvas in various sizes.

All of the profits from the sales of these mountain images will be donated to Red Cross Relief and/or Child Hope International - who are mutual friends of my family and run an orphanage in Port Au Prince, Haiti. They are sending updates via their website, so check them out.
Please please purchase these to help out - and pass on the idea to your friends and neighbors - blog, tweet and share about it - this actually can do something!

That crazy bag! (We have a winner)

MARISA!!!!

you won the crazy bag!

and I have a second surprise. Because so few of you actually entered for the contest... ALL of you win a special surprise in the mail from me. Send me an email with your address to ship something to you and I will send you a special bit of Libby Dibby love!

yay for mail!

I'll stick the image from one of my pal, Tori's cutest cards here to demonstrate how I REALLY feel about mail.

love to you all today!

libby

Goodie bag gift

I always have a small stash of goodie bags on hand to whip up a quick smile gift when I get the urge... Because it's not really the gift that matters as much as the thought that someone thoght of you, right?
Today's little goodie bag is a $1 smell-good hand sanitizer for my carpool partner who is newly pregnant, an awesome mom of two already, and displaced right now because she's having her apartment painted and re-carpeted... Bleh... Not a fun week for her. I hope this will make her feel a little loved today.

I did it! Finished my first quilt!

It took so long to work up the nerve to start my first quilt and there are SO many mistakes, but I did it! Amy was there to snap this funny pic as I stitched the last stitch. It's January 12th and I have something to cross off my list! (besides getting a tattoo)

What's really the best compliment of all is that Z (who is NOT INTO PINK) wanted to lay under it so much that I couldn't get a pic of the quilt without him under it. He even requested its presence in the car as we went to pick up Mimi from dance class after school. Now that is a vote of approval. I guess there is something to be treasured when Mom makes something big enough to wrap around yourself...

I'm now itching to get started on another! I'm thinking that I have to finish my quilting group sampler first, then I'd like to do the Christmas quilt I never got to do over the holidays (tres simple) - and then hmmmmmmmmm.... ooooooooooh. so so fun to think about!

oh. I forgot to tell you that this quilt is made ALL from scraps that I had lying around here. I used pieces of skirts and vintage fabrics I'd collected or used over the past 5 years or so, especially some sentimental pieces that I really have always wanted to save for myself... The backing was free as it was a piece of fabric given to me by a friend last year, and the batting.... well, ahem... I (cough) used a really light fleece blanket that I had bought for this purpose at a discount store last year. Fleece always seems to wash and wear so well that I thought it was a great thing to try for batting since it costs so much less. Just pulled the quilt out of the dryer and it looks perfect. Might be a good option for the interiors... (total cost of quilt... $3.99)

YAY!

Quilting- for real!

I kid you not, this is exactly where I am right now... With my knitting on the right and my (first!) quilt on the left... I'm sewing up the binding right now after finally working up the nerve to do the sandwich and quilt portion. My bff Amy (of this past summer's wedding)
is sitting across the table, chatting with me as I sew and knit and sew again. (She's in town for 2 days before heading back to Thailand) And yes, my collage and drawing journal is underneath the knitting... In case the mood strikes?
The other journal under the quilt is my personal journal (I fill up about 3-4 a year with daily writing). This one is one I got from Anna Maria Horner's shop...

I swear, they have medication for people like me.

I'll send pics of the quilt when it's done.

Forgot to tell you what J made me

I forgot to tell you about my big present from J for Christmas! Well, he actually did two. One was a bound copy of the first year of our family blog in book form. (he used www.blurb.com)
The second was this poster print from our Christmas pic, made up of thousands of photos from our year in 2009. He used an online program (will post later!) that made it possible and spent hours working it out just right. Isn't that sweet? When I look at it, I get the real sense of our complete year. I see pics from Italy, artwork I did, school pics, our family trips to Seattle and Arizona, lots of AJ pics and random days at the house. I flood with memories both happy and sad. It's just amazing to see your whole year in one glance. Thanks, J!